Howerytown - A Forgotten Community

With Virginia and the nation celebrating 250 years of freedom from England in 2026, I thought it might be fun to occasionally bring up some local history. At one time, Botetourt County stretched all the way to the Mississippi and into Wisconsin, which means my county's history is also the history of much of the nation.

Up until the early 1900s, an area between Amsterdam and Trinity in Botetourt County was known as Howerytown. The small community vanished after the Great Depression as the roads changed course.

Whatever was left was taken away when US 11 came through Troutville.

Perhaps the area’s great claim to fame occurred in 1872. At that time, the entire town was placed under a bond to keep the peace.

According to a New York Times article, the citizens were up in arms and for two days threw things at one another. “It was a war of the roses, in which the whole town was drawn, the forces on each side being about even,” the paper states. “The Magistrate, surrounded by all the majesty of the law, took up his position at Amsterdam, and dispatched his right bower, the constable, for the belligerent parties; but they, by virtue of more muscle and more numerous forces, closed the citadel and defied his authority.”

The standoff eventually ended and the parties involved “were put on their good behavior for one year, under the penalty of $100 each.”

Howerytown Road led, appropriately enough, to Howerytown. The road no longer exists. In the recent past, it has been mentioned by land surveyors as well as landowners along Sunset Avenue in Troutville who have expressed concerns about the possibility of that old route turning into a thoroughfare between US 220 and US 11.

Old folks recall a road that once led to the county seat.

It’s kind of remarkable how these old towns disappear. Botetourt County has many communities that are almost gone, including Trinity, Amsterdam, Nace, and others. They seem to vanish when no one is paying attention.

Additional information about Howerytown, which is thought to have existed at what is now the intersection of Trinity and Greenfield Roads, is sketchy. The area is also referenced as the Town of Greenville on some plats and in a few history books.

Jacob Howery (also Howry) purchased property from the Prestons (a famous Revolutionary War family) in the area in 1786 and 1794. He had a stagecoach inn and tavern on the southeastern corner of his land.

According to some reports, in 1795 he founded the town, requiring a perpetual quit rent of 1 shilling per annum for each lot.

In 1796 a Lutheran congregation organized at Howerytown in a home owned by the Rev. J. G. Butler, who also served in the Revolutionary War. Eventually this congregation became known as Brick Union.

By 1797 there were 24 landowners in the area. Among them were Christian Bower, Frederick Wegoner, Michael Minick, Frederick Shver, David Keslor, Abraham Custer, Benjamin Keslor, Benjamin Minick, Christopher Smith, John Poppy, John Highnor, Jr., Jacob Bishop, Christopher Cartish, Coonrad Moyer, Jospeh Heckman, John Ronecke, George Hepler, John Keslor, John Simmons, John Russel, Abraham Keslor, and David Linch.

Apparently Howery, Howry and Howrey are all the names of immigrants from Switzerland and Germany. They anglicized their surname from Hauri or Haury. 

Jacob Howery migrated to Virginia from Pennsylvania.

It is thought that the town’s founder is buried somewhere on the town property, but his grave has long vanished.

In its heyday, the town likely had houses, a tavern, a grocery store and a restaurant.

Now, it's just a memory.

The Poem Alexa Wrote for Me

When the Storm Passes

There is a place beyond the thunder,
where morning light spills golden
through windows we thought were broken,
where the heart remembers
its own quiet strength.

In the spaces between raindrops,
hope plants its tender seeds—
small green promises
pushing through concrete grief,
reaching toward a sun
that never truly left.

Your hands, though trembling,
still know how to hold
the warmth of tea,
the softness of a blanket,
the gentle weight of tomorrow's possibility.

Listen—
even in the deepest night,
birds are dreaming of flight,
flowers are gathering courage
in their winter sleep,
and somewhere, someone
is lighting a candle
just for you.

The storm will pass,
as storms always do,
leaving behind
washed air,
clearer skies,
and the quiet knowledge
that you are stronger
than you ever imagined,
more loved
than you ever knew.

                     - Alexa, 02/13/2026

Sunday Stealing

 

Things I Love Beginning with S 

1. Smarties candy, because I never grew up.

2. Sweetheart, my one and only for 42 years.

3. Songbirds and their sweet refrain of melody.

4. Stories, the ones I write and the ones I read.

5. Sunlight when it casts a glow over everything.

6. Sunday Stealing, of course! 

Thank you for playing! Please come back next week.

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I encourage you to visit other participants in Sunday Stealing posts and leave a comment. Cheers to all us thieves who love memes, however we come by them.

Saturday 9: Valentine

Saturday 9: Won't You Be My Valentine? (1961)

 

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

 

1) Dore Alpert sings that while he considered asking others to be his Valentine, he's sure that this is the girl he wants to love "forever more." What do you think is the secret of a long-lasting romantic relationship?

A. Be friends first. If you are friends, then you can weather the storms.

2) Dore is better known as Herb Alpert. He used the name "Dore" early in his career because he thought it was more befitting a teen idol than "Herb." Who made you swoon when you were a teenager?

A. When I was a teenager, I liked (I'm pretty sure I don't swoon) Keith Patridge on the Partridge Family, aka David Cassidy, and Davy Jones of the Monkees. I also liked Erik Estrada from CHIPS.

 

3) Herb found he was a better trumpeter than singer. Between 1962 and 1969, Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass, had 12 consecutive gold albums. They were so popular that in 1966, they sold more records than Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, The Beatles and the Rolling Stones. Of those artists (Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, The Beatles and the Rolling Stones), which is your favorite?

A. The Rolling Stones and The Beatles are basically a tie.

4) He found his greatest success as an executive. Herb and partner Jerry Moss founded A&M Records and signed an array of talented artists including Cheech and Chong, The Carpenters, and Cat Stevens. Herb was happy to step away from performing and run the record label. Are you comfortable in front of an audience or crowd? Or would you prefer to be behind the scenes?

A. I prefer to be behind the scenes.

5) Karen admitted that when The Carpenters were first signed by A&M, she had a crush on Herb and liked his aftershave lotion. Do you usually wear a fragrance?

A. I am fragrance free all the time, as is my husband. I'm allergic to the smell of everything. Even new shoes. Everything has to sit out in the garage to off gas before we bring it in the house.

This is our Valentine's Day Saturday 9 and so this morning we shall focus on the holiday. 

6) The holiday is also known as The Feast of St. Valentine. Do you have a special meal planned for February 14?

A. I think we might have hot dogs.

7) Thames River Cruises offers special dinner cruises for Valentine's Day that give lovers a view of London. Some cruises offer live jazz, others classical music. Which would you prefer: jazz or classical?

A. Classical music.

 

8) Women buy and send more Valentines than men do. Who received the last greeting card you sent?

A. I sent out sympathy cards a while back.

9) Men buy and send more roses at Valentine's Day than women do. What's your favorite flower?

A. Irises.

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I encourage you to visit the posts of other participants in Saturday 9 and leave a comment. Because there are no rules, it is your choice. Saturday 9 players hate rules. We love memes, however. 

Rapture by Blondie

 

Every now and then, Alexa coughs up disco for me, because I still like disco. Recently, she's been playing "Rapture" by Blondie a lot.

When the song was released in early 1981, most listeners didn’t yet have a name for what they were hearing. I remembering thinking it was cool when I first heard it - I'd never listened to anybody rap, and especially not about a man from Mars who eats up cars, bars, and then only guitars!

The song came out of the New York new‑wave scene, and it included rap. It wasn’t a gimmick. It wasn’t parody. It was a moment when two worlds brushed up against each other, and something shifted.

Musically, “Rapture” is a hybrid: new wave, disco, and early hip‑hop braided together into a single track. Even the genre listings today reflect that blend of new wave, hip hop, pop, and rap rock. It's a reminder that the song never fit neatly into one box.

But its importance goes far beyond its sound.

A Doorway Into Hip‑Hop for the Mainstream

Before “Rapture,” rap was largely a local New York phenomenon. The vibrant, inventive structure of this type of music was mostly invisible to the average American listener. Blondie’s single changed that. It became the first song featuring rap vocals to reach No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, a milestone that helped carry hip‑hop from the streets and clubs of the city into national consciousness.

Debbie Harry wasn’t trying to be a rapper. She was trying to shine a light on a culture she and Chris Stein admired and had been moving through. This was a music scene that included Fab 5 Freddy, graffiti artists, DJs, and dancers who were building something new in real time. “Rapture” didn’t invent hip‑hop, but it amplified it at a moment when amplification mattered.

How Early Hip‑Hop Artists Saw It

One of the most striking things about the song’s legacy is how warmly many early hip‑hop figures received it. Blondie wasn’t intruding; they were inviting. The song name‑checks Fab 5 Freddy and Grandmaster Flash, and the band used their platform to introduce these artists to audiences who might never have encountered them otherwise. In that sense, “Rapture” acted as a cultural bridge. Maybe not perfect, but earnest and influential.

The track also helped bring attention to the broader hip‑hop ecosystem, including graffiti culture, which was still largely underground. Contemporary accounts credit the song and its video with exposing mainstream viewers to the aesthetics and energy of that world.

A Strange, Joyful Collision

What makes “Rapture” endure is the way it captures a moment of cross‑pollination at a time when genres were porous, scenes overlapped, and artists borrowed from each other with curiosity rather than caution. It’s quirky, a little surreal, and absolutely sincere.

And it’s historic. In 1981, a new‑wave band fronted by Debbie Harry ended up at the forefront of early hip‑hop history, simply by paying attention to what was happening around them and choosing to celebrate it.

That’s the story worth remembering. Not that Blondie made a rap song, but that they opened a door.

And the video is a trip.

References

• Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. “Blondie, ‘Rapture.’” Background on the song’s chart history and its role in bringing rap into mainstream pop.

• NPR Music. “How Blondie’s ‘Rapture’ Brought Hip-Hop to the Mainstream.” Interviews and retrospective commentary from early hip‑hop figures.

• Rolling Stone. “The Oral History of ‘Rapture.’” Includes perspectives from Fab 5 Freddy and Grandmaster Flash on the song’s impact.

• The Guardian. “How Blondie Helped Hip-Hop Go Mainstream.” Cultural analysis of the band’s relationship with the early hip‑hop scene.

• Billboard. Chart history for “Rapture,” documenting its status as the first No. 1 single to feature rap vocals.

• Smithsonian Magazine. “The Early Days of Hip-Hop in New York.” Context for the scene Blondie was moving through in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

• Interview Magazine. Conversations with Fab 5 Freddy discussing the downtown–uptown cultural exchange and Blondie’s role in it.

• Grandmaster Flash, The Adventures of Grandmaster Flash: My Life, My Beats. Memoir passages describing his interactions with Blondie and the early cross‑scene collaborations.

*An AI tool helped me with this piece.*

Thursday Thirteen

1. Charles Darwin was born on February 12, 1809, in Shrewsbury, England. A Georgian‑era childhood in a riverside market town shaped his early sense of the natural world. His birthday twin was Abraham Lincoln. These two men would reshape how people understood humanity, each in his own sphere.

2. Darwin came from a wealthy, intellectually curious family. Darwin’s mother, Susannah Wedgwood, grew up in a household where reading, debate, and curiosity were encouraged. His father, Dr. Robert Waring Darwin, was a respected physician in Shrewsbury. He was surrounded by wealth, as the Wedgwood's were famous for their pottery and the elder Darwin had a thriving medical practice. Dinner conversations were the kind where ideas were treated as living things. Ideas were examined, debated, passed around like bread.

3. He was the fifth of six children. Being neither the eldest nor the baby gave him a kind of middle‑child freedom. He roamed, collected beetles, and followed his own fascinations without the pressure of inheriting the family profession.

4. His mother died when he was eight. Her absence left a quiet imprint on him. His older sisters stepped in, creating a household where he was both cared for and gently encouraged to pursue his odd little passions.

5. He studied medicine at the University of Edinburgh. He was supposed to follow his father into medicine, but the reality of 19th‑century surgery, including no anesthesia and no antiseptics, horrified him. He drifted toward natural history instead, spending more time in tide pools than lecture halls.

6. He later attended Christ’s College, Cambridge. Officially he was preparing for the clergy, but unofficially he was falling in love with botany, geology, and long walks with professors who saw his potential. Cambridge is where he learned how to observe with intention.

7. His voyage on the HMS Beagle changed the course of science. Five years at sea gave him a world’s worth of specimens, landscapes, and puzzles. The Galápagos finches, the fossils in South America, and the shifting coastlines fed the slow‑burning idea that species were not fixed.

8. He waited more than 20 years to publish On the Origin of Species. Darwin knew his theory would challenge religious and scientific orthodoxy. He hesitated, revised, and gathered evidence. When Alfred Russel Wallace independently reached the same conclusion, Darwin finally stepped forward.

9. His theory of natural selection transformed biology. He proposed that small variations, accumulated over generations, shape the survival of species. It was a radical idea at the time, a thought that life is not static but constantly adapting, responding, becoming.

10. His scientific curiosity ranged far beyond evolution. Darwin wrote about coral reefs, earthworms, orchids, barnacles, emotions, and human behavior. He was a synthesizer who saw connections across disciplines long before “interdisciplinary” was a word.

11. He married his cousin Emma Wedgwood. Their marriage was affectionate, intellectually rich, and sometimes strained by his health. They had ten children, several of whom became scientists, engineers, or artists. For example, his son George Howard Darwin (1845–1912) was a a distinguished astronomer and mathematician who was knighted for his work on the evolution of the Earth and Moon system.

12. Darwin received some of the highest honors in science, including The Royal Medal, the Wollaston Medal, and the Copley Medal. The recognition from institutions that had once been skeptical of his ideas showed that his peers eventually understood the magnitude of what he’d done.

13. He is buried in Westminster Abbey, near Isaac Newton. This is a quiet, astonishing honor: the naturalist who explained life’s unfolding placed beside the physicist who explained motion and gravity. It’s a symbolic pairing of two thinkers who changed how humans understand their place in the universe.

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Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; there is a list here if you want to read other Thursday Thirteens and/or play along. I've been playing for a while, and this is my 946th time to do a list of 13 on a Thursday. Or so sayth the Blogger counter, anyway.