Washington
New Inn spots
According to Eater Washington DC: “After years of being without a four-legged host to formally welcome visitors, the tony Inn at Little Washington has rectified the situation by welcoming three-yearold rescue dog, Luray, to the family.
Chef and founder Patrick O’Connell, who outfits the kitchen staff at his Michelinstarred restaurant in Dalmatian-print gear in honor of two pups that previously graced the grounds, tells
Eater Luray officially joined the fold on May 7. And the mascot is well on his way to following in his predecessors’ famous footsteps.
‘Luray will begin greeting guests in the lobby this week,’ O’Connell said. His late dog, Rose had been trained to escort guests from the front door to the dining room — wearing a string of pearls, no less — while companion, Desoto, occasionally trotted about sporting a bow tie.
Staff presented O’Connell with the first Dalmatian nearly three decades ago; he estimates that both dogs lasted about 12 to 13 years. Although O’Connell had recently been searching for a younger animal, Luray evidently charmed everyone. ‘We met him at a meet and greet and just knew,’ O’Connell said.
At least for now, O’Connell seems inclined to stick with a single house pet. ‘He is still skeptical around the llamas, but he’s friends with Blue, the old farm dog that wanders around outside. They run around together,’ O’Connell said of Luray’s built-in social network.”
HISTORICAL SOCIETY
I often get phone calls regarding history on the county or about people who lived in Washington or elsewhere in the county years ago, or out of the blue someone calls about a piece of land owned by their ancestors. I always tell them the best place to search for history is the Rappahannock Historical Society.
The Rappahannock Historical Society is widely recognized as one of the premiere county historical societies in the area through unrivaled collections, innovative, dynamic programming, imaginative leadership and a general commitment to excellence in fulfilling its mission.
One needs only to visit the historical society behind the stone wall at 328 Gay Street in Washington to discover all dimensions of Rappahannock County from the early 1700s to present.
In addition to meeting dedicated volunteers who are proficient historians and researchers, the wealth of information contained within its walls is unparalleled in this area. Examples of projects and contents are: over 1,000 family files; cemetery project with over 400 graveyard/cemeteries, most of which are located on private property, with over 15,000 residents in those graveyards/cemeteries identified; files on the 6 villages and some of the old post office areas; files on slave schedules and a slave list by owner and slave name; cohabitation records; slave birth and death records; churches; schools; mills; government; personalities; businesses; wars; named properties; oral history project; poor farms; creation of Shenandoah National Park; contracted property searches; book publications; programming of relevance to all.
A singular work in progress at the society is digitizing holdings that are then entered into a collections management system accessible on our website www. rappahannockhistsoc.org. Click on Digital Archives to browse our collections entered to date.
According to Judy Tole: A museum tour is offered to all visitors who will experience a journey to an earlier time in the county’s history. The Rappahannock Historical Society has been collecting, preserving, interpreting and disseminating all its holdings with interested parties who choose to search our resources. Research is very time consuming but so enlightening and fulfilling.
Please look to the Rappahannock Historical Society to answer your queries and curiosities along with factual information about Rappahannock County, its people and places.
BIBLE SCHOOL
Vacation Bible School is the week of June 12-16 from 9 a.m. to noon at Washington Baptist Church. The theme this year is “Old Testament Heroes” and the fellowship hall will be decorated as a desert. Several churches come together to host this fun week, and Pre K to grade 6 are welcome. There will be crafts, music, games and snacks. There will be a carnival scavenger hunt on Friday. For more information, call 540- 675-3716 or email contactus@trinwash.org.
SUMMER READING
Registration is ongoing for the Rappahannock County Library’s Summer Reading Program for Children and Teens. It's easy — children and teens register and set reading goals at the library, record books/hours read on the reading log provided, and earn prizes for meeting reading goals before the program ends on July 28.
The program and its special events are sponsored by the Friends of the Rappahannock County Library. Their first Summer Reading Program Special Event will be on Saturday, June 10, at 12:30 p.m. Sciencetellers will be there with an exciting pirate adventure infused with live science experiments. Arrive early to get a good seat in the library’s Jamieson Room!
Questions? Call 540-675-3780, or stop by the library to find out more information about the fun we are having this summer!
STORY TIME
Rappahannock County Library has Preschool Story Time Wednesdays at 10:30 a.m. Children and their caregivers are invited to enjoy stories, music, and crafts with us every Wednesday morning. There is no registration required.
TRINITY TIMES
Trinity Church id changing its service times for the summer. The change started June 4, 8 a.m Rite I Eucharist; 8:45 a.m.-9:10 a.m. Breakfast; 9:10 a.m. 9:50 a.m. Forum; 10 a.m Rite II Eucharist.
NEW EXHIBITION
Gay Street Gallery’s new exhibition opens on Saturday, June 10. Beverages and refreshments will be served during the reception from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Paintings by Ruthie Windsor-Mann focus on the landscapes of Rappahannock County and the Blue Ridge Mountains; while Kevin H. Adams’s collection of works include both his popular mountain forest scenes and classic Virginia architecture that is set in landscape of the commonwealth. In addition, there will be sculpture works by Jan Kirsch in bronze, resin, fiberglass and stone. This is Jan’s first exhibition to be shown in Rappahannock County.
Feel free to stop in at the gallery and take a look at these fine artists work. The show will run through Aug. 14.
FLAG DAY
According to timeanddate. com, “People across the United States will celebrate Flag Day on Wednesday, June 14, each year to honor the United States flag and to commemorate the flag’s adoption.
Flag Day falls within National Flag Week, a time when Americans reflect on the foundations of the nation’s freedom. The flag of the United States represents freedom and has been an enduring symbol of the country’s ideals since its early days. During both events, Americans also remember their loyalty to the nation, reaffirm their belief in liberty and justice, and observe the nation’s unity.
Many people in the United States honor this day by displaying the American flag at homes and public buildings.”
Fly your flag high and be proud of it!
Have a wonderful week!