Near Philomont in Loudoun County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)

White Pump Drovers Tavern

Photographed by T. Elizabeth Renich, May 31, 2015

1. White Pump Drovers Tavern Marker

Inscription. The stone farmhouse just east on Colchester Road operated as a tavern in the late 1790s. By 1800, it was known as the White Pump Drovers Tavern. Drovers moved animals such as sheep, cattle, and hogs along roadways to markets. Colchester was the Fairfax County seaport, predating Alexandria.

On November 30, 1864, Union General Wesley Merritt bivouacked here during his Loudoun Valley barn-burning raid, and local farmer John Dillon provided Merritt's soldiers with two barrels of hard cider. Dillon's barn didn't get burned.

Wagons stopped at the Tavern as late as 1915.

Erected by Snickersville Turnpike Association.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & Commerce • Roads & Vehicles • War, US Civil. A significant historical month for this entry is November 1911.

Location. 39° 4.354′ N, 77° 45.331′ W. Marker is near Philomont, Virginia, in Loudoun County. It is at the intersection of Snickersville Turnpike (Virginia Route 734) and Colchester Road ( Route 730), on the right when traveling north on Snickersville Turnpike. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Purcellville VA 20132, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in the Washington Metropolitan Area

and in Northern Virginia.

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 4 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Bacon Fort (approx. 0.9 miles away); Round Oak Rag Apple Elevation

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(approx. 1.4 miles away); Battle of Unison (approx. 1.4 miles away); Bushrod Lynn (approx. 2.2 miles away); Hibbs Bridge (approx. 3 miles away); Ebenezer Churches (approx. 3.2 miles away); a different marker also named The Battle of Unison (approx. 3.2 miles away); a different marker also named Battle of Unison (approx. 3.3 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Philomont.

Also see . . . Snickersville Turnpike Association. (Submitted on June 1, 2015.)

Wide Shot of White Pump Drovers Tavern Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Linda Walcroft, June 7, 2024

2. Wide Shot of White Pump Drovers Tavern Marker

White Pump Farmhouse image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Linda Walcroft, June 7, 2024

3. White Pump Farmhouse

The old stone tavern is barely visible from the road.

Credits. This page was last revised on June 9, 2024. It was originally submitted on May 31, 2015, by T. Elizabeth Renich of Winchester, Virginia. This page has been viewed 2,345 times since then and 116 times this year. Photos: 1. submitted on May 31, 2015, by T. Elizabeth Renich of Winchester, Virginia. 2, 3. submitted on June 7, 2024, by Linda Walcroft of Woodstock, Virginia. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.