Stephens City in Frederick County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)

Stephens Family

Photographed by Devry Becker Jones (CC0), October 23, 2020

1. Stephens Family Marker

Inscription. Peter and Maria Stephens, German immigrants, settled here with their children in 1732. They had come from Pennsylvania with a group led by Jost Hite to form the Opequon settlement, a set of dispersed homesteads in this region. Archaeology reveals that the Stephens house occupied a site that Native Americans had once inhabited. Peter and Maria's son Lewis, land speculator, entrepreneur, and militia officer, laid out a town here, which the General Assembly established as Stephensburgh in 1758. The town, later known as Newtown and then as Stephens City, was about a day's wagon journey south of Winchester, setting a precedent for similarly spaced developments along the Great Valley Road.

Erected 2019 by Department of Historic Resources. (Marker Number A-127.)

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Colonial Era • Indigenous Peoples and Communities • Roads & Vehicles • Settlements & Settlers. In addition, it is included in the Virginia Department of Historic Resources (DHR) series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1732.

Location. 39° 4.813′ N, 78° 13.256′ W. Marker is in Stephens City, Virginia, in Frederick County. It is on Stephens Run Street just west of Main Street

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(U.S. 11), on the right when traveling west. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 5511 Main St, Stephens City VA 22655, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley.

It is also in the American South,

specifically in the Upper South,

and in the Mid-Atlantic.

Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region,

North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the original Thirteen Colonies,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Newtown Stephensburg Historic District (within shouting distance of this marker); In Memory of All American Veterans (within shouting distance of this marker); The Old Graveyard (approx. 0.2 miles away); Andrew Pitman House (approx. 0.2 miles away); Hunter's Raid Begins (approx. ¼ mile away); Patriot Burials (approx. 0.3 miles away); Revolutionary War Patriots Buried in this Historic Cemetery (approx. 0.3 miles away); Stephens City Rosenwald School (approx. 0.4 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Stephens City.

Another marker is no longer nearby. Newtown (was about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line but has been permanently removed).

Photographed by Devry Becker Jones (CC0), October 23, 2020

2. Stephens Family Marker

Credits. This page was last revised on September 29, 2021. It was originally submitted on October 24, 2020, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. This page has been viewed 1,216 times since then and 57 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on October 24, 2020, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia.