Village of Accotink

Here follows an excerpt from the Fall 2007 edition of the "Franconia Legacies" newsletter published by the Franconia Museum:

ACCOTINK … by Marjorie E. Baggett Tharpe

Accotink United Methodist Church is located in the Village of Accotink, surrounded by the Fort Belvoir military base. Most of the property around the village was taken by the U.S. Government during World War I, and then even more in World War II. However, Accotink Village was spared.

Before I write about the church, I should tell a little bit of the history of Accotink Village. Long ago it was a quiet place, with families living there who were mostly related. I remember going there as a child with my parents and brother to visit my Uncle Jim and Aunt Etta Baggett. It seemed to us like going to a big city. Aunt Etta would always take my brother and me to her sister Lizzie France's store. There she would proudly show us off, and treat us to ice cream. It really was a treat for we didn't get ice cream then, as often as is the custom today.

At one time Accotink was a thriving little town with a Post Office, a blacksmith shop, a grist mill, and a little later a lumber mill. This was mostly due to the fact that a large Quaker group came from Philadelphia and New Jersey around 1847, to buy up lots of land in the Mount Vernon area. They built homes, and since there was lots of timber on the land, it was ideal to go into the lumber business. A lumber mill was built beside the grist mill in Accotink, to process the lumber.

Among family names of the Quakers familiar to many of us were Gillinghams, Troths, Waltons, Meros, Ballingers, and many more. Jacob Troth was one of the main businessmen of the Quakers. He and Chalkey Gillingham bought over 2000 acres, including Woodlawn Plantation, and formed a partnership named "Gillingham-Troth." Jacob Troth then bought the Grist Mill in Accotink, repaired it, and built a lumber mill beside it. The lumber was to be used for shipbuilding.

Jacob Troth had a son, Paul Hillman Troth, who became a prominent resident of Accotink Village, after moving from the Woodlawn Mansion. At the time, there were no churches or schools in the village. People probably had church services in their homes in Accotink, and some possibly attended Pohick Episcopal Church. Paul Hillman Troth gave land to build a church, and establish a cemetery under the Methodist Conference. The deed was signed in February, 1880, and recorded in the Fairfax County Land Records. A church was built, becoming known as Accotink Methodist Episcopal Church South. The church building was a two story building in the beginning. School was sometimes held in the church.

In a small room upstairs in the church, the Order of the Accotink Odd Fellows was chartered, and they met there until they built their own building across the road from the church. My grandfather and one of his brothers were charter members of the Order.

Later a school was built beside the church. The church building was later converted to a one-story building. When the school was torn down in later years, the bell was installed in the church. We still ring it on Sunday mornings.

My Dad attended Accotink Church before World War I. It was a place for many social activities including pie socials, ice cream socials, Christmas programs, etc. Attendance was good. Most of the people in Accotink Village attended. Years after World War I, my Dad contacted Rev. John Seay, one of the ministers who had moved on from Accotink, to have him come back and perform the wedding ceremony for my parents. I believe Rev. Seay had also served at Franconia Methodist Church, and he was the minister who baptized and christened me.

When Potters Hill School burned down, students were sent to Accotink to finish the school year. I was in the first grade at the time. The first, second, third, and fourth grades went to the Odd Fellows Hall for school. The fifth, sixth, and seventh grades finished the year in Accotink Church. The next year I was transferred to Franconia School, and a lot of the students went to Woodlawn School.

In 1978, after having been a caregiver to my family for many years, I decided to find a small church to become involved in. I chose Accotink United Methodist Church, and become involved I did! I have been Lay Leader since 1979, and this past June I attended the Virginia Annual Conference as a delegate for the 27th consecutive year.

The church has been involved in bazaars, fairs, dinners, and various fund-raising activities. Shortly after I joined I was put on the building committee. The sanctuary was very much in need of repairs. After an extensive search, we found a young man named Gary O'Neil, who was in the building trade. Even though several others had told us the building could not be repaired, Gary O'Neil was able to make the necessary repairs. He carefully took up half of the flooring in the sanctuary, saving it to be re-used. He then repaired the supports underneath, repaired the outside wall, put the original flooring back, painted, and did a very good job. We had several fund-raisers to obtain the money to pay for the repairs, and were quite proud of ourselves!

There are only a few of us at Accotink right now, and we love the church. Some of us are descendants of the original families, and somehow we feel a connection with the past when we are there.

The original Bible, Communion Set, and pump organ are still in the church. When Jean Reynolds, the wife of one of our former pastors comes to visit, she plays the refurbished pump organ. It reminds me of my Aunt Etta, who played that same organ for many years. It still sounds great!

My great-grandparents, John Baggett and Sarah Pettit Baggett, were probably among the first buried in Accotink Cemetery. Grandpap John Baggett was killed by a runaway team of horses in 1884, and Grandmother Sarah died in 1888. They are buried on the very back row. Other church members also have relatives buried in the church cemetery. Our Trustee Chairman, Clayton Dawson, has a grandfather buried there, who was a Civil War veteran. Marjorie Simms also has relatives buried there. Her grandmother lived in Accotink and attended the church, as did Clayton Dawson's family.

One of the most prominent residents of Accotink was Samuel Mason, who came from New Hampshire. He and his wife are also buried there in the cemetery. He started the first Sunday School at Accotink Church. We have a very large picture of him in the Fellowship Hall. He also had a blacksmith shop and a carriage shop years ago in the Village of Accotink. Some other familiar family names of folks who have attended the church and lived in or near the Village are Anderson, Dove, Cawman, Grimsley, Pettit, Shepherd, France, Deavers, Carver, and a number of others.

The attendance has dropped down considerably over the past year for several reasons. Two of our long-time members, Kathleen Pettit Lee and Jane Dawson Simms passed away, but things are definitely looking up! We had a new pastor appointed the first of August, Rev. Hilary "Pete" Costello, Jr., and everyone likes him very much. We hope this coming year will be one of revival for Accotink Church. Our new Pastor is laying the groundwork already. Keep us in your prayers!

For more on Accotink Village of long ago, I recommend you read the books, "Potomac Interlude" by Dorothy Troth Muir and "This Was The Potomac River" by Frederick Tilp.


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Here follows an excerpt from the "Backyard Mount Vernon" blog written by Tammy Mannarino:

Stacy H. Snowden: Mount Vernon Supervisor
Posted on February 1, 2019 by Tammy Mannarino

Before there was Dan Storck, before there was Gerry Hyland….a long time before these men, there was Stacy H. Snowden. The Quaker farmer, the inventor, the owner of Collingwood was the Mount Vernon Representative on the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors from 1883-1885.

Just a couple of years after his arrival from New Jersey in 1859, Snowden went to the village of Accotink to vote with his Mount Vernon neighbors on the issue of secession. It was May 23, 1861. Their precinct defeated the measure 76-19, one of only 3 areas to do so in Fairfax County which, as a whole, overwhelmingly approved the Ordinance of Secession 1231-289. More than a decade after the Civil War ended, Stacy Snowden would represent his neighbors, the citizens of Mount Vernon, in a structure of local government inspired, in part, by his home state.

At the time of Snowden’s election, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors was a relatively new institution. Its existence was mandated by Virginia’s new Constitution developed during the Convention of 1868. This document, sometimes referred to as the “Underwood Constitution” was a prerequisite, along with ratification of the 14th and 15th amendments, for readmission of the state of Virginia into the Union after the Civil War. In addition to establishing free public education and enfranchisement of all male citizens, black and white, over the age of 21, the Underwood Constitution sought to reform local governments based on the model found in New England civil townships.

When first constituted in December 1870, the Board of Supervisors had 6 members, one each from the townships of Centreville, Lee, Mount Vernon, Falls Church, Providence and Dranesville. The duties included setting tax rates, promoting the county’s agricultural development, appropriating funds for the care of the county’s less fortunate residents, building and operating a network of public roads and setting up and maintaining the required system for public education.

Stacy Snowden was well-qualified as the Mount Vernon Supervisor. At the time of his election, he had been farming in the area for 15 years. He was an active participant in and frequently hosted the Woodlawn Agricultural Society at his home. In the early 1870s he had donated some of his land for the building of a school to serve neighborhood children: The Snowden School.

Transportation was also on Snowden’s mind as he promoted steamboat travel on the Potomac to supply produce to Washington, DC and deliver tourists to Mount Vernon. The wharf at Collingwood was a popular stop for both. He applied to the county for roads connecting riverside farms to the Accotink Turnpike. Current area residents know a portion of that Turnpike as Sherwood Hall Lane. The road connecting his home, Collingwood, to this thoroughfare was for a long time known as Snowden Lane. It is currently referred to as Collingwood Road and as it nears the intersection with Sherwood Hall, it is Parkers Lane. It seems fitting that the office of the Mount Vernon Supervisor is now located there, on the path from Stacy’s place.