Fredericksburg Dog Mart | |
---|---|
Genre | Dog show, family festival |
Date(s) | September or October |
Frequency | Annually |
Location(s) | Spotsylvania County |
Years active | 1698–1776; 1927–1941; 1948–present [1] |
Inaugurated | 1698 [1] |
Most recent | September 30, 2017 [2] |
Next event | September 25, 2021 [2] |
Attendance | up to 14,000 (1950s) [3] |
Organised by | Izaak Walton League – Fredericksburg-Rappahannock Chapter |
Website | fredericksburgdogmart |
The Fredericksburg Dog Mart is an annual dog show event currently held in Spotsylvania County, Virginia. The event first took place in 1698 to facilitate trading between the Manahoac Tribe of King William County, Virginia and settlers in and around the area that would become the city of Fredericksburg. [4] At the Dog Mart, the Manahoac (and later, the Pamunkey and the Mattaponi) would trade furs and produce for prized English hunting dogs. [1] Though it has not been held continuously, it is the oldest event of its kind in the United States. [5] [6] [7] [8]
In the early 17th century, American colonists raising tobacco in Virginia were concerned that the Native Americans were overhunting game. Gentleman farmers were having trouble finding game to hunt near their plantations for sport. Until that time, settlers in Virginia had traded and given dogs brought from England to the Native Americans who used them in hunting. In 1619, the Virginia Assembly passed a law forbidding the sale of, "any English dogs of quality as a mastiff, greyhound, bloodhounde, land or water spaniel, or any other dog". The penalty for breaking this law was a fine of 5 shillings. [9] [10]
The ban on selling or giving away dogs ended in the late 17th century. The House of Burgesses passed an act in 1677 that provided for the trade of dogs and other items with Native Americans. The act established a "marte" or "faire" where, during a truce of several days each year, the settlers and Native Americans traded dogs, livestock, and other goods in the settled areas of Virginia. [9] [11]
The first "Fredericksburg" mart (Fredericksburg was not established as a town until 1728) was likely held within the protection of a fort known as Smith's Fort established below the falls on the Rappahannock in what is now Spotsylvania County. A trading agreement was concluded between the Manahoac tribe and the settlers. As a result of this agreement, and to promote peace, an annual fair was held in Fredericksburg where settlers could trade English hunting dogs for the Native Americans' produce and furs. [9] This annual fair continued until the start of the Revolutionary War when it was stopped because of the settlers mistrust of the Native Americans during the fight for independence. [9] [11] [12] [13]
The Dog Mart was not held again until 1927 when the traditional event was known as Dog Curb Market. At that time the event was held at City Park in Fredericksburg. The mart was scheduled for October each year to coincide with the beginning of hunting season in the area. This provided hunters with the opportunity to purchase hunting dogs. At that time the event began to gain nationwide attention. It was the subject of a Pathe newsreel feature in 1928 and Time magazine featured the Dog Mart in an article in October 1937. In 1938, 7,000 people and 641 dogs attended the event. [1] [14] [15] [16]
After a suspension of the Dog Mart during World War II, the event was once again revived in 1948 by the Fredericksburg Chamber of Commerce under the auspices of the local chapter of the Izaak Walton League, a conservation oriented organization. [2] [17] The Dog Mart was held at the Maury School stadium in Fredericksburg. A delegation of 100 Pamunkey Indians from their reservation in nearby King William County and led by Chief T.D. Cook, attended the 1949 Dog Mart. [6] At the event in October 1949, the event drew an estimated 15,000 spectators and participants from 30 states, Canada, Mexico, and England. [1] [3] [4] In 1951, National Geographic magazine published a 16-page article about the Dog Mart in the June issue. [18]
The event was moved outside the town to a park owned by the Izaak Walton League in the 1970s. [2] In 1980, the Dog Mart was held for the only time without any dogs. The sponsors of the event made the decision to follow the state veterinarian's advice to exclude the dogs due to a canine epidemic. [19] Modern day Dog Marts have featured crafts, Indian events, rides, fiddling and fox-horn blowing contests, as well as a dog parade, show, auctions, and a reenactment of the first Dog Mart. [5] [20] [21] [22] The 2015 Dog Mart featured a police canine demonstration, archery demonstration, trapping exhibition and demonstration by local trappers, children's fishing tournament, large firearm exhibition, barrel train ride, plus a dog show with judging. The Dog Mart celebrated its 317th anniversary in 2015 and continues to be held each year at the Fredericksburg-Rappahannock Chapter of the Izaak Walton League in Spotsylvania, Virginia. [23] It is the oldest such event in United States. [5] [6] [7] [8] The Fredericksburg Dog Mart should not be confused with the Fredericksburg Dog Fair: a former charitable event held in Fredericksburg.
Spotsylvania County is a county in the U.S. state of Virginia. As of the July 2021 estimate, the population was 145,300. Its county seat is Spotsylvania Courthouse.
Fredericksburg is an independent city in Virginia, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 27,982. It is 48 miles (77 km) south of Washington, D.C., and 53 miles (85 km) north of Richmond. The Bureau of Economic Analysis of the United States Department of Commerce combines the city of Fredericksburg with neighboring Spotsylvania County for statistical purposes.
Caroline County is a United States county located in the eastern part of the Commonwealth of Virginia. The northern boundary of the county borders on the Rappahannock River, notably at the historic town of Port Royal. The Caroline county seat is Bowling Green.
Chatham Manor is a Georgian-style mansion home completed in 1771 by farmer and statesman William Fitzhugh, after about three years of construction, on the Rappahannock River in Stafford County, Virginia, opposite Fredericksburg. It was for more than a century the center of a large, thriving plantation and the only private residence in the United States to be visited by George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, and Dwight D. Eisenhower.
George Boxley (1780–1865) was an American abolitionist and former slaveholder who allegedly tried to coordinate a rebellion of enslaved peple on March 6, 1815, while living in Spotsylvania, Virginia. His plan was based on "heaven-sent" orders to free slaved people. He tried to recruit enslaved people from Orange, Spotsylvania, and Louisa counties to meet at his home with horses, guns, swords and clubs. He planned to attack and take over Fredericksburg and Richmond, Virginia. Lucy, an enslaved woman, informed her owner, and the plot was foiled. Six enslaved people allegedly involved were imprisoned or executed. With his wife's help, Boxley escaped from the Spotsylvania County Jail and, despite a reward, he was never caught.
The Manahoac, also recorded as Mahock, were a small group of Siouan-language Native Americans in northern Virginia at the time of European contact. They numbered approximately 1,000 and lived primarily along the Rappahannock River west of modern Fredericksburg and the Fall Line, and east of the Blue Ridge Mountains. They united with the Monacan, the Occaneechi, the Saponi and the Tutelo. They disappeared from the historical record after 1728.
Central Park is a shopping complex in Fredericksburg, Virginia, with 166 businesses. The complex is located near the intersection of Interstate 95 and State Route 3. Many national big-box stores, restaurants, and smaller local businesses occupy the Central Park complex. The complex has 2,200,000 square feet (200,000 m2) of leased retail space. The complex's developer, the Silver Companies, describes Central Park as "The East Coast's Largest Power Retail Center". In the 2004 rankings from the American Studies Department at Eastern Connecticut State University, Central Park was ranked as the largest unenclosed mall on the East Coast, and as the seventh largest mall in the United States.
Fredericksburg station is a passenger rail station in Fredericksburg, Virginia. It is served by Amtrak's Carolinian, Northeast Regional, and Silver Meteor trains, and the Virginia Railway Express's Fredericksburg Line. It is located on Lafayette Boulevard. The station has two side platforms serving the two tracks of the RF&P Subdivision.
The Free Lance–Star is the principal daily newspaper distributed throughout Fredericksburg, Virginia, United States, with a circulation area including the city of Fredericksburg and all or parts of the counties of Spotsylvania, Stafford, King George, Caroline, Culpeper, Fauquier, Louisa, Orange, Prince William and Westmoreland.
The Patawomeck are a Native American tribe based in Stafford County, Virginia, along the Potomac River. Patawomeck is another spelling of Potomac.
Richard Marc Edward Evonitz was an American serial killer, kidnapper, and rapist responsible for the deaths of at least three teenaged girls in Spotsylvania County, Virginia, and the abduction and rape of 15-year-old Kara Robinson in Richland County, South Carolina.
The Spotsylvania Towne Centre is a mall located in Spotsylvania County, Virginia, on Virginia State Route 3, less than a mile west of Interstate 95, and directly across from the Central Park shopping and dining complex. The mall is owned and developed by Cafaro Company. The property was renamed as "Spotsylvania Towne Centre" at the beginning of a $12 million renovation project. The project, completed in 2009, included an extensive remodeling of the mall's interior and exterior. At the same time, construction was begun on an outdoor lifestyle center called "The Village." The mall's anchor stores are Guitar Center, Dick's Sporting Goods, Belk, Costco, JCPenney, and Macy's. There is 1 vacant anchor that was once Sears. The Splitsville Bowling Alley is connected to a movie theater. The mall also houses over 150 specialty stores and restaurants.
5th Maine Light Artillery Battery was an artillery battery that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
Kenmore,, is a historic house in Spotsylvania County, Virginia, United States. It was built in 1829 by Samuel Alsop, Jr. (1776–1859) for his daughter Ann Eliza and her husband, John M. Anderson. The home bears the same name as the home of Fielding and Betty Lewis in nearby Fredericksburg, Virginia. To distinguish the houses, Kenmore in Spotsylvania County was renamed Kenmore Woods. Samuel Alsop, Jr. designed a number of homes in Spotsylvania County. In addition to Kenmore, he also designed and built "Oakley" for another daughter as well as his own home, "Fairview". In all, Alsop designed and built 10 homes.
Fall Hill is a plantation located near the falls on the Rappahannock River in Fredericksburg, Virginia. Though the Thornton family has lived at Fall Hill since the early 18th century, the present house was built in 1790 for Francis Thornton V (1760–1836). The land on which Fall Hill is located is part of an 8,000 acres (3,200 ha) land patent obtained by Francis Thornton I (1657–1727) around 1720. The present-day town of Fredericksburg, Virginia is located on that original patent.
Oakley is a historic plantation and home located in Spotsylvania County, Virginia, Virginia. The Federal/Georgian style, 2+1⁄2-story home was built in 1828 by Samuel Alsop, Jr. as a wedding present for his daughter, Clementina. Alsop built several notable houses in Spotsylvania County including Kenmore, Spotswood Inn, and Fairview.
The Matthew Fontaine Maury School, in Fredericksburg, Virginia, is an historic school building noted for its Colonial Revival architecture and design as well as its significance in the entertainment and cultural life of Fredericksburg. The architect of the building was Philip Stern. Built in 1919-1920, the school was used from then until 1952 for both elementary and high-school students. After the construction of James Monroe High School, the building was used as an elementary- and middle-school. The school was closed in 1980. Maury School was added to the National Register of Historic Places in March 2007.
Walker–Grant School is a historic school in Fredericksburg, Virginia. The school was built in 1938 and was the first publicly supported black high school in Fredericksburg. The school was named for Joseph Walker and Jason Grant (1861–1951) who worked to establish the school. The Art Deco designed school was added to the National Register of Historic Places in October 1998.
Spotsylvania is a commuter rail station on the Virginia Railway Express Fredericksburg Line, located off US Route 17 in Spotsylvania County, Virginia, about 5 miles (8.0 km) south of downtown Fredericksburg in the unincorporated community of Olive. It opened on November 16, 2015 – the first extension of VRE service since its opening.
The 115th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War.