History of Halifax

History of Halifax is a Virginia historical marker in Halifax County, dedicated 2000.

Rte. 501, at Halifax

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The town of Halifax has been the county seat of Halifax County since 1777. It is named for George Montague, the second Earl of Halifax, an English statesman. Previously this community had been called Banister, Houston, and Halifax Court House. Portions of Gen. Nathanael Greene's troops were here in Feb. 1781. George Washington was in the region on 4 June 1791. During the spring of 1827, John Randolph of Roanoke spoke here to a large gathering of people. The present courthouse is a Classical Revival structure built in 1839, constructed by Dabney Cosby, Sr., one of Thomas Jefferson's master builders. Union Gen. George Custer camped in the region in Apr. 1865.

Maps this old were drawn largely by eye, so places on them can sit miles from where they really are. The pin is ours and marks the marker's location today.

TodayHistorical map

Slide toward Today to fade the historical sheet and see the modern map underneath.

David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries

Historical maps covering this location

1755 · Virginie, Maryland. (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
1778 · Il Maryland, il Jersey Meridionale, la Delaware. (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
1795 · North-Carolina. (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
1807 · Map Of Virginia (lower center sheet) (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
1823 · North Carolina (Lucas, 1823) (Barry Lawrence Ruderman Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)

Il Maryland, il Jersey Meridionale, la Delaware, 1778, covering the location of History of Halifax, with a pin at the marker's coordinates — Il Maryland, il Jersey Meridionale, la Delaware, 1778, covering this location. David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries. The pin is ours, placed from the marker's coordinates.

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For example, one family's tree showed the Articles of Confederation marker in Pennsylvania standing under a mile from where William Gabby lived in the 1760s.

What that marker records spans 1777 to 1789, overlapping William Gabby's years there.

From one family's 77-marker roster

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The marker isn't at this spotOur pin may be off. If you know where it stands, tell us.I couldn't find the markerWe record what the source recorded. We have not been to look.The sign reads differentlyThat would be an error, and we can pass it to the program.The historical map looks wrongThe period map behind the pin, not the marker itself.Something else

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Marker program managed by the Virginia Department of Historic Resources.

More markers nearby

On the National Register nearby

Halifax County Courthouse120 ft

Places within about 300 feet of this marker that are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. A nearby listing is not always the marker's own subject.