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Pillory
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Brunswick County, Virginia was cut from Isle of Wight and Surry in 1720. At its creation the whole of the county was covered by St. Andrew's Parish. This being a frontier region, arms and ammunition were given to the settlers to aid in their protection from the Indians and other perils consistent with their wilderness locale. They were exempt from paying taxes for the first ten years, presumably to offset the time it would take to clear the land, establish their plantations, and begin earning returns on their investments. Funds amounting to five hundred pounds were also given to several men for building a church, courthouse, prison, pillory and stocks in locations that suited them. These respected and trusted men were Nathaniel and Henry Harrison, Jonathan Allen, and William Edwards. In 1732 Brunswick County gained additional land from its two mother counties, at which time its formation was complete and vestry books began to be kept. Among those early vestrymen were Nicholas and Samson Lanier, Francis Willis, Nathaniel and William Edwards, and John Wall.
Following the progression of chapel creations, one can understand that the population was growing rapidly and that the settlers were dispersed along the various waterways, as would be expected. By 1733, St. Andrew's Parish had one church of unknown name and location, later referred to in the vestry books as the Mother-Church, and another was to be built somewhere on the Meherrin River. By 1734 its location had been chosen and its name was to be Meherrin Church. Another was announced that year and called Roanoke Church and was to be built on or near Roanoke. In 1739 another church was needed and, three years later, a new church is mentioned in the vestry book. By 1744 it was decided that a church would be built on the south side of the Roanoke River, and another on the south side of the Meherrin River in 1746. By 1750 Duke's Chapel and Rattlesnake Chapel had been added to the mix. Reedy Creek Chapel appears in the vestry books in November of 1752 and Kettle Stick Chapel and the Red Oak Schoolhouse by 1754. It is assumed that Red Oak Church eventually stood at the latter location. In 1755 there was the Old Courthouse Church, and three additional chapels were needed. It is interesting to note that, at this time, the region had a minister, Reverend George Purdie, who was recorded as neglecting his duties and misbehaving in a scandalous manner.
St. Andrew's Parish was split in 1753, and Meherrin Parish was formed from a portion of it. Two of the aforementioned chapels were within the bounds of this new parish. Four more were built thereafter. One was near the North Carolina border, another on the Meherrin River three or four miles west of Hicksford, followed by the Grassy Pond and Poplar Mount Churches. As was the case with the majority of those early day chapels, these were built cheaply of the plentiful wood from the region, and they eventually rotted away.
It is interesting, also, to note that during the Revolutionary War the ministers of Brunswick County lost their salaries, and the records of the vestry books for that period of history are scarce. After all, most men were out patrolling for Tories or battling British enemies near and far. It can be assumed that church attendance became nearly impossible for many, and that their days were, of necessity, centered around the protection of their families and the pursuit of liberty.
Though tales are surely many, nestled in the memories of those long deceased ancestors of this region, several stories have survived. Tradition is that Fanning was a minister of Meherrin Parish, though his name was not found in the vestry books, and that he was also sympathetic to the British cause. Surely his views rubbed the settlers the wrong way, as a great hatred of the Tories grew like a fire in the wind in this area, as in many other regions of the South and elsewhere. In fact, there is a place near one of the churches in Meherrin Parish that, many years later, was still called Dry Bread because dry bread was all that the people there would give the British or Tories to eat when they passed through during the Revolutionary War!
As one story goes as follows: Lord Cornwallis was on his way northward in May of 1781, and Colonel Tarleton and his Tories were part of his advanced guard. Tarleton, when he and his men neared Emporia, sent his cavalry about twenty miles west on the Old Fort Road to forage for provisions. Since the residents were warned ahead of time of the enemies' approach, they hid their livestock and food, knowing that it would be seized if they didn't. The Tory cavalrymen later complained that they received nothing but dry bread from the settlers. This story was passed down through the ages, and the Old Fort Road eventually became known as Dry Bread Road.
Another possible source of the legend of Dry Bread Road, originated from the following story. John Vick and Sarah2 Brewer (George1) operated a stage coach tavern out of their house, which was located along this road. The British raided up and down this road, and on one occasion the army of Earl Cornwallis became mired in the muck near Vick's Tavern, which was situation along this road. On that day, John Vick had little choice but to allow Cornwallis and his staff to eat at his inn. John and his family wholeheartedly supported the Patriot cause during the Revolutionary War, and surely playing host to the British went against the grain. Cornwallis may have insisted upon being fed, but we can assume from the legend of the dry bread, that the food was not to his liking. The tavern was also known thereafter as "The Cornwallis House", surely much to the Vick family's dismay. For anyone curious what happened to the treasured old Vick's Tavern on Dry Bread Road, it remained intact until the 1960's. Sadly, by then it had decayed to the point that it had to be torn down.
St. Andrew's Parish was split in 1753, and Meherrin Parish was formed from a portion of it. Two of the aforementioned chapels were within the bounds of this new parish. Four more were built thereafter. One was near the North Carolina border, another on the Meherrin River three or four miles west of Hicksford, followed by the Grassy Pond and Poplar Mount Churches. As was the case with the majority of those early day chapels, these were built cheaply of the plentiful wood from the region, and they eventually rotted away.
It is interesting, also, to note that during the Revolutionary War the ministers of Brunswick County lost their salaries, and the records of the vestry books for that period of history are scarce. After all, most men were out patrolling for Tories or battling British enemies near and far. It can be assumed that church attendance became nearly impossible for many, and that their days were, of necessity, centered around the protection of their families and the pursuit of liberty.
Though tales are surely many, nestled in the memories of those long deceased ancestors of this region, several stories have survived. Tradition is that Fanning was a minister of Meherrin Parish, though his name was not found in the vestry books, and that he was also sympathetic to the British cause. Surely his views rubbed the settlers the wrong way, as a great hatred of the Tories grew like a fire in the wind in this area, as in many other regions of the South and elsewhere. In fact, there is a place near one of the churches in Meherrin Parish that, many years later, was still called Dry Bread because dry bread was all that the people there would give the British or Tories to eat when they passed through during the Revolutionary War!
As one story goes as follows: Lord Cornwallis was on his way northward in May of 1781, and Colonel Tarleton and his Tories were part of his advanced guard. Tarleton, when he and his men neared Emporia, sent his cavalry about twenty miles west on the Old Fort Road to forage for provisions. Since the residents were warned ahead of time of the enemies' approach, they hid their livestock and food, knowing that it would be seized if they didn't. The Tory cavalrymen later complained that they received nothing but dry bread from the settlers. This story was passed down through the ages, and the Old Fort Road eventually became known as Dry Bread Road.
Another possible source of the legend of Dry Bread Road, originated from the following story. John Vick and Sarah2 Brewer (George1) operated a stage coach tavern out of their house, which was located along this road. The British raided up and down this road, and on one occasion the army of Earl Cornwallis became mired in the muck near Vick's Tavern, which was situation along this road. On that day, John Vick had little choice but to allow Cornwallis and his staff to eat at his inn. John and his family wholeheartedly supported the Patriot cause during the Revolutionary War, and surely playing host to the British went against the grain. Cornwallis may have insisted upon being fed, but we can assume from the legend of the dry bread, that the food was not to his liking. The tavern was also known thereafter as "The Cornwallis House", surely much to the Vick family's dismay. For anyone curious what happened to the treasured old Vick's Tavern on Dry Bread Road, it remained intact until the 1960's. Sadly, by then it had decayed to the point that it had to be torn down.
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