Davis Family Farmstead

Davis Family Farmstead. Bristoe Station. In this vicinity stood the home of Thomas K. Davis and his family. Davis purchased 136 acres in 1858 and by 1861 had built a substantial home, barn and outbuildings here. Davis also operated a store in the village of Bristoe Station at the northwest corner of the railroad crossing. Before the war, he had served as Prince William County sheriff and was a well respected member of the community. The war changed that. Davis supported the Union, while most of his neighbors were strong secessionists., In 1861, Confederates established Camp Jones in the area. When the Confederates pulled out of the area in the spring of 1862, soldiers destroyed Davis’s store. Later that spring, Federal troops under Brig. Gen. Rufus King tore down his fencing and cut some of his timber for use in their camps. In August 1862, battle raged on his farm. The Davis house was used as a hospital and as a headquarters by the Federals. The Davis family remained here until 1863 when threats of Confederate imprisonment forced the family to flee to Washington. Consequently they were not present at the Battle of Bristoe Station on October 14, 1863., That battle and a subsequent encampment by Maj. Gen. Samuel Crawford’s Union division in the winter of 1863-64 destroyed not only what was left of the farm but also acres of surrounding timber., From the breaking out of the war until 1863 I was farming and merchandising at Bristow Station where the Rebels burned me out twice on account of my political sentiments. I was a Union man straight out from the beginning to the present day. I farmed until 1862 when the Rebels stopped me… Thomas K. Davis, 1871