In His Father's Footsteps

In His Father's Footsteps. Spotsylvania Court House National Historic District. , Samuel Peter Powell was born on January 26, 1880 to James L. Powell, Jr. ad Carrie Elizabeth Jones Powell. He was the oldest of nine children. His father was a surviving Civil War veteran and served as Commonwealth Attorney in Spotsylvania. He was also elected to the Virginia House of Delegates. Peter would follow in his father's footsteps and serve as Commonwealth Attorney and Delegate., After his parents died, Peter Powell kept the family farm which was known as Belmont. He attended school at Virginia Polytechnic institute in 1901 and graduated from the University of Virginia School of Law in 1902. He set up his law practice in Spotsylvania. He served as a representative on the Republican Committee, and ran for Chairman unsuccessfully in 1906 and 1910. He was elected to the House of Delegates in 1914. He was elected Commonwealth's Attorney for Spotsylvania County in 1916 and continued to serve in that position until 1930., Powell remained a bachelor until the age of forty, when he married Dorothy Vaughn McCormick of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania in 1920. Dorothy was also an attorney, and a graduate of the Michigan School of Law. She was a member of the Washington-Lewis Chapter of The Daughters of the American Revolution, and a contributing writer to the William and Mary Quarterly journal in 1931. Her published article was entitled "Colonial Churches in Spotsylvania County, Virginia." She practiced law with her husband, and the couple had two daughters, Mary and Catherine., After the fire in 1930. the Powells' moved to 307 Lewis Street in Fredericksburg and continued their law practice. Samuel died on November 14, 1944 and Dorothy died on October 17, 1969. Daughter Catherine continued her parents' law practice., [Captions:] , Samuel Peter Powell as he appeared in 1901. He graduated from the University of Virginia School of Law in 1902., Dorothy McCormick as she appeared in 1915, the year she graduated from Smith College. She later graduated from the Michigan School of Law. She married Samuel in 1920 and the couple shared law offices. Image Courtesy of University of Michigan., Samuel's daughter Catherine's drawing of the 1st (above) and 2nd (right) interior floor plan of Courtland. Catherine was seven years old at the time the house burned. She also noted that the family had been sleeping on the top tier of the front porch because of the seasonal heat. Drawings and Caption Information Courtesy of John Cummings., "Courtland" circa 1920. Damage from the war is still visible between the windows on the 2nd floor along with an unusual arbor of foliage above the first floor porch. The large rock in the foreground is a hitching post. Due to the time frame of the photo, the identified individuals could be the S. P. Mason family. Image Courtesy of John Cummings.