Goochland County Z28
Area 287 Square Miles Formed in 1727 from Henrico, and named for William Gooch, Governor of Virginia, 1727-1749. Cornwallis and Lafayette passed through this county in 1781.

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Goochland County Z25
Area 287 Square Miles Formed in 1727 from Henrico, and named for William Gooch, Governor of Virginia, 1727-1749. Cornwallis and Lafayette passed through this county in 1781.

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Goochland Courthouse SA10
Near here the ancient trail used by the Iroquis Indians in their raids crossed James River. This trail later became the main north-south road through Virginia. In 1781, Lord Cornwallis, in his invasion of Virginia, marched by this point and his cavalry, under Simcoe, passed here going to Point of Fork. A cavalry skirmish took place here, March 11, 1865.

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Scotchtown W214
A mile north is Scotchtown, Patrick Henry’s Home, 1771-1777. Dolly Madison, President James Madison’s wife, lived here in her girlhood. Lafayette was here in May, 1781, retreating northward before Cornwallis. Cornwallis passed here in June, 1781, moving westward.

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Campaign of 1781 V16
The roads through Henrico County were important routes for the Revolutionary War campaign of 1781. To avoid British Gen. Charles Cornwallis’s troops advancing from Petersburg, the Marquis de Lafayette left Richmond by 27 May and marched northward through Henrico. Cornwallis bivouacked at White Oak Swamp on the 27th, before continuing the pursuit of Lafayette. In mid June, Cornwallis joined Lt. Gen. Banastre Tarleton near Richmond, where they occupied the city by 16 June. The British troops left the city for Williamsburg on the 20th marching east through Henrico County. Lafayette advanced through Henrico County on 22 June in pursuit of Cornwallis.

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Revolutionary Campaign of 1781 Mechunk Creek W205
After reinforcements from Brig. Gen. Mad Anthony Wayne arrived on 10 June 1781, the Marquis de Lafayette moved south from his camp on the Rapidan River to prevent further raids by Gen. Charles Cornwallis’s British troops encamped at Elk Hill. By 13 June, Lafayette had occupied a position along the Mechunk Creek to challenge any British advance toward Charlottesville and Stuanton. Lafayette and his troops reached this position be secretly repairing an abandoned road and were able to travel undetected. Cornwallis and his army left Elk Hill on 15 June marching toward Richmond, and Lafayette followed on a parallel course north of the British.

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Battle of Green Spring V39
Nearby, late in the afternoon of 6 July 1781, Gen. Charles Cornwallis and cavalry commander Col. Banastre Tarleton with 5,000 British and Hessian troops clashed with 800 American troops commanded by Brig. Gen. Mad Anthony Wayne and the Marquis de Lafayette. Believing that the main British force was across the James River, and that he was attacking Cornwallis’s rear guard, Wayne soon realized that he was facing far superior numbers. He startled the advancing forces by charging them, exchanging volleys, and then withdrawing his troops from encirclement and certain defeat. Dusk prevented Cornwallis from pursuing the Americans.

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New Kent County NK2
Established in 1654 from York and named for County Kent, England. In it are Chestnut Grove, birthplace of Martha (Dandridge) Custis, White House, home of Martha Custis, Poplar Grove, where Martha Custis met George Washington; St. Peter’s Church, where Washington was married to her; Eltham, where John Parke Custis, Washington’s stepson, died in 1781; Barhamsville, where Patrick Henry received money to pay for powder seized by Lord Dunmore, 1775; Providence Forge, remains of one of the oldest iron forges in America. New Kent County was traversed by Cornwallis and Lafayette in 1781.

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New Kent County NK1
Established in 1654 from York and named for County Kent, England. In it are Chestnut Grove, birthplace of Martha (Dandridge) Custis, White House, home of Martha Custis, Poplar Grove, where Martha Custis met George Washington; St. Peter’s Church, where Washington was married to her; Eltham, where John Parke Custis, Washington’s stepson, died in 1781; Barhamsville, where Patrick Henry received money to pay for powder seized by Lord Dunmore, 1775; Providence Forge, remains of one of the oldest iron forges in America. New Kent County was traversed by Cornwallis and Lafayette in 1781.

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Golden Ball Tavern QA2
Here stood a dwelling house, constructed about 1764 by prosperous tobacco merchant, Richard Hanson, who, as a fervent Loyalist, fled Virginia in 1776. During the latter part of the Revolution, the structure became known as the Golden Ball Tavern. According to tradition, British officers serving under Cornwallis were quartered here in 1781. When Petersburg was incorporated as a town in 1784, the town council and the courts used the tavern as their first meeting place. The structure was enlarged by 1820 and utilized as a hotel until after the Civil War whne it was used for a number of retail ventures. The building was demolished in 1944.

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