27 Jul 1780: John Pitzer and Elizabeth, his wife, sold to Jacob Ruby for 1000 pounds current money of Virginia, the land granted to said Pitzer from the grant for the Proprietor's Office of the Northern Neck of Virginia.

Jacob Ruby, will dated June 25, 1788, probated January 27, 1791, devised his property to his wife, Elizabeth, and son Jacob Ruby, also to Elizabeth, Magdalena, John, Catarina, Henry and Barbary, his beloved children.

This house is built of logs. The partitions between the rooms are wide babitted boards, as also are the boards on the porch. The joists are babitted as also are the boards forming the ceiling downstairs. These boards are very wide. The mantel was hand carved and very elaborately molded. The shelf extends beyond the posts. The fireplace was torn out and the mantel placed in the dining room for an ornament. The latches on the doors are hand made iron.

In the kitchen was a trap door to the roof, which was cleverly concealed. During the Civil War, the people kept their valuables and supplies up there to hide them.

The soldiers camped in front of the house often, and Mrs. Kagey says that she remembers her mother telling of the soldiers bringing their horses around to the back door and water them, and her mother gave the soldiers food.

At one time the parsonage next door was a blacksmith shop, and the back of it was stables. This also was owned by this estate and was given for a parsonage in later years, the buildings having been torn down at the time.

This land was at one time a part of the Israel Allen estate.

In the house is (1937) a candlestick table which is in the hall. Mrs. Kagey does not know the age of the table, but it has been handed down from one generation to the other. It has a tilt top table made of mahogany or cherry with mahogany finish. There is also an old wooden rocker which has stamped on the back, Mrs. Jacob Kagey, Woodlawn, Shenandoah County, and a pen portrait of George Washington done by shading the words in the "Declaration of Independence." This work was done by W.H. Pratte, Davenport, Iowa.

Source: Virginia W.P.A. Historical Inventory Project, 1937

Return to Shenandoah County VAGenWeb