Birthplace of a University
With a vision for educating the children of Dayton in the post-Civil War years, Rev. Abram Paul Funkhouser and Jay Newton Fries started a primary school in 1875 with 20 young scholars. The gentlemen named the . . . — — Map (db m280275) HM
During the Civil War, the Daniel Bowman Mill occupied this site, grinding wheat brought here by Rockingham County farmers. The county was part of the prosperous agricultural region known as the “breadbasket of the Confederacy.” It was no . . . — — Map (db m129377) HM
In the fall of 1864, attacks by Confederate raiders and bushwhackers angered Federal officers in the Shenandoah Valley. On September 22, Union soldiers captured a hapless man named Davy Getz near Woodstock who was wearing civilian clothes and . . . — — Map (db m280373) HM
In the fall of 1864, attacks by Confederate raiders and bushwhackers angered Federal officers in the Shenandoah Valley. On September 22, Union soldiers captured a hapless man named Davy Getz near Woodstock who was wearing civilian clothes and . . . — — Map (db m268017) HM
A Thriving Town Center
At the beginning of the 20th Century, Dayton was a bustling town - with seven general stores, three blacksmiths, and at least three doctors. The Waverly Hotel was situated near the center of downtown, and guests in . . . — — Map (db m280283) HM
As the sun set and rain drops drizzled onto the grassy hill ahead of you on the evening of October 3, 1864, Union Lt. John Rodgers Meigs was killed in a fight with three Confederate scouts. His death unleashed a firestorm of retaliation. . . . — — Map (db m280055) HM
Here on the old Swift Run Gap Road on the evening of October 3, 1864, Union Lt. John Rodgers Meigs was killed in a fight with three Confederate scouts guided by local resident Pvt. Benjamin F. “Frank” Shaver, 1st Virginia Cavalry. Meigs, of Gen. . . . — — Map (db m15121) HM
The death of Union Lt. John R. Meigs, near the granite marker on the hill in front of you, unleashed a firestorm of retaliation. Gen. Philip H. Sheridan, erroneously told that civilian “bushwhackers” had killed Meigs, reported to Gen. U.S. Grant . . . — — Map (db m15123) HM
A 1749 Augusta County Deed Book document refers to "Harrison's stonehouse" and is the longstanding basis for dating the original limestone portion of the house as 1749. Dendrochronology studies in 2019 examined oak attic beams, and results . . . — — Map (db m280664) HM
The first church in Rockingham County was built on this site in 1747 on land owned by Captain Daniel Harrison of the colonial militia. Serving as a "Chapel of Ease" for Augusta Parish, the first building is believed to have been built of logs. The . . . — — Map (db m32106) HM
Daniel Harrison settled about 1745 at the headwaters of Cook’s Creek where it is believed he built the stone portion of the present house. During the decades 1750-1770, when this area was the frontier of the colony, the house served the settlers as . . . — — Map (db m16441) HM
Religious Dissenters
After his famed 1716 expedition to the crest of the Blue Ridge Mountains, Governor Alexander Spotswood decided to encourage settlement of the Virginia's western frontier by religious dissenters-such as Presbyterians, . . . — — Map (db m280272) HM
In Honor and Remembrance
of the heroes and victims in the
fight against terrorism
and to celebrate the
enduring spirit of all Americans — — Map (db m280320) WM
"The most important event for poultry in Virginia and probably the whole world occurred in 1885 when a young man by the name of Sam Blosser was found putting thermometers under hens, sitting around and watching them all day, and even sleeping . . . — — Map (db m280321) HM
Innovator & Entrepreneur
This plaque is in honor of Samuel H. Blosser, whose innovation and ingenuity contributed not only to the history of the Town of Dayton, but to the entire poultry industry in Rockingham County and Virginia. . . . — — Map (db m280332) HM
Living first at Oyster Bay on New York's Long Island, the English family of Isaiah Harrison moved on to Delaware where he owned substantial acreage. About 1732, the family moved south, landing by ship at the port of Alexandria. From there, they . . . — — Map (db m280644) HM
In memory of Lt. Col. Thomas F. Wildes, 116th Ohio Regiment, who, when ordered by Gen. Sheridan to burn the town of Dayton, Va. in retaliation for the death of a Union officer, refused to obey that order, risking court-martial and disgrace. His . . . — — Map (db m88643) HM
Early Shenandoah Valley settlers took advantage of abundant springs to supply fresh water for their families, livestock and crops. Daniel Harrison chose to build his substantial stone house overlooking Cooks Creek and a prominent spring, located . . . — — Map (db m280646) HM
Dayton is the birthplace of Shenandoah University,
which traces its origins to a school established
by the Rev. Abram P. Funkhouser in 1875. Known
in its early years as Shenandoah Seminary, the
coeducational institution benefited from . . . — — Map (db m173164) HM
The First Settlers
When Daniel Harrison and wife Margaret settled here about 1745, they were among the earliest wave of pioneers west of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Their home, along the banks of Cook's Creek, became a center of frontier . . . — — Map (db m280345) HM
Music, Sports, Drama & More
Music has played an important part in the social life of the Dayton community since shortly after the Civil War. The Rockingham Register newspaper reported that a "May Fest" had been held on the south edge of . . . — — Map (db m280305) HM
The Town of Dayton, formerly known as Rifetown, did not exist when Daniel Harrison and his family settled here in the 1740s. He chose to build his stone house overlooking the creek which served as a valuable water source for his farm.
Over . . . — — Map (db m280667) HM
This plaque designates the former location of Shenandoah College and Shenandoah Conservatory of Music and is dedicated in honor of the community that served the many students, faculty, and staff who passed through its halls. The new campus and . . . — — Map (db m238470) HM
English American settler Daniel Harrison owned
hundreds of acres in this area in the mid-18th century.
and Presbyterians built Cooks Creek Church near
here ca. 1750. German Baptist Brethren began moving
to the Shenandoah Valley from Maryland . . . — — Map (db m207784) HM
This is the approximate site where Union Lt. John Rodgers Meigs was killed in a fight with three Confederate scouts on October 3, 1864. In retaliation, General Philip H. Sheridan ordered that buildings over a large area, including the town of . . . — — Map (db m15140) HM
The Summer Kitchen, a reconstruction completed by Fort Harrison, Inc. in 1998, is the only remaining 19th-century outbuilding. The original structure was likely built in the 1860s or 1870s during the ownership of Solomon Burtner. The extended . . . — — Map (db m280651) HM
