Berryville in Clarke County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)

Clarke County

Our Land is Our Legacy

Photographed By Devry Becker Jones (CC0), October 11, 2020

1. Clarke County Marker

Inscription.

Clarke County. Our Land is Our Legacy. , The short story of "Our Land is Our Legacy" begins with Virginia's Tidewater planters migrating to the northern Shenandoah Valley to take advantage of the fertile lands and abundant water. What we now know as Clarke County was primarily colonized by these slaveholding planters seeking new lands to enlarge their fortunes and perpetuate the plantation culture and economy which had already made them wealthy., They came with money chests sufficient to colonize the northern end of the valley and over time developed the political economic, religious and cultural systems to support and nurture a lifestyle which has been passed to us as a unique open space protected by commitment and covenants., Plein Air Museum , Today, Clarke County, though small in size, is a grand open air museum. We cherish our land as the most rarified artifact in any museum anywhere. To maintain and ensure our historic landscape we have chosen a different path than our neighbors., Over 16,000 acres, 1/7 of our land, has been placed in conservation easements, providing permanent protection from future development exceeding present zoning restrictions. Land not in easement is protected by a novel sliding-scale zoning system based on the premise that the larger a parcel of land the fewer homes can be built in proportion to the whole (see adjacent panel, right)., [Captions:] , The Lord Fairfax land grant to Thomas Lindsey in 1761 is typical of the thousands of grants by the Fairfax Proprietary., 17th-century metal strongbox brought from England by Lord Fairfax. (CCHA museum), Thomas, Lord Fairfax (1693-1781) inherited 5,282,000 acres of Virginia land from his father and grandmother. In 1708 he retained Robert Carter as his land agent for the immense Fairfax Proprietary. (Arthur Person photo courtesy of the George Washington Masonic National Memorial Association), Robert 'King' Carter (1663-1732) As the agent for Lord Fairfax, he granted 50,212 acres along the Shenandoah River to his family, resulting in 8,000 acres passing to his great-grandson, Nathaniel Burwell. (Portrait photo courtesy of the National Portrait Gallery), Carter Hall , built in the mid-1700s by Nathaniel Burwell

The short story of "Our Land is Our Legacy" begins with Virginia's Tidewater planters migrating to the northern Shenandoah Valley to take advantage of the fertile lands and abundant water. What we now know as Clarke County was primarily colonized by these slaveholding planters seeking new lands to enlarge their fortunes and perpetuate the plantation culture and economy which had already made them wealthy.

They came with money chests sufficient to colonize the northern end of the valley and over time developed the political economic, religious and cultural systems to support and nurture a lifestyle which has been passed to us as a unique open space protected by commitment and covenants.

Plein Air Museum
Today, Clarke County, though small in size, is a grand open air museum. We cherish our land as the most rarified artifact in any museum anywhere. To maintain and ensure our historic landscape we have chosen a different path than our neighbors.

Over 16,000 acres, 1/7 of our land, has been placed in conservation easements, providing permanent protection from future development exceeding present zoning restrictions. Land not in easement is protected by a novel sliding-scale zoning system based on the premise that the larger a parcel of land the fewer homes can be built in proportion to the

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whole (see adjacent panel, right).

[Captions:]
The Lord Fairfax land grant to Thomas Lindsey in 1761 is typical of the thousands of grants by the Fairfax Proprietary.

17th-century metal strongbox brought from England by Lord Fairfax. (CCHA museum)

Thomas, Lord Fairfax (1693-1781) inherited 5,282,000 acres of Virginia land from his father and grandmother. In 1708 he retained Robert Carter as his land agent for the immense Fairfax Proprietary. (Arthur Person photo courtesy of the George Washington Masonic National Memorial Association)

Robert 'King' Carter (1663-1732) As the agent for Lord Fairfax, he granted 50,212 acres along the Shenandoah River to his family, resulting in 8,000 acres passing to his great-grandson, Nathaniel Burwell. (Portrait photo courtesy of the National Portrait Gallery)

Carter Hall — built in the mid-1700s by Nathaniel Burwell

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Agriculture • Colonial Era • Industry & Commerce • Settlements & Settlers. A significant historical year for this entry is 1761.

Location. 39° 9.032′ N, 77° 58.803′ W. Marker is in Berryville, Virginia, in Clarke County. Marker is on East Main Street (Virginia Route 7B) 0.1 miles west of Page Street, on the

Photographed By Craig Doda, July 23, 2022

2. Clarke County Marker

right when traveling west. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 32 E Main St, Berryville VA 22611, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Josephine School Community Museum & The African-American Experience (here, next to this marker); Stewardship & Conservation (here, next to this marker); King Wheat, Millwood & The Burwell-Morgan Mill (here, next to this marker); Historic Districts (here, next to this marker); Berryville (here, next to this marker); Benjamin Berry (within shouting distance of this marker); Bank of Clarke County (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); Clarke County Civil War Monument (about 500 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Berryville.

Credits. This page was last revised on August 7, 2022. It was originally submitted on October 11, 2020, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. This page has been viewed 172 times since then and 16 times this year. Photos: 1. submitted on October 11, 2020, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. 2. submitted on August 7, 2022, by Craig Doda of Napoleon, Ohio.