Shrine Mont and Edmund Lee Woodward

The outdoor cathedral at Shrine Mont is a special place. This is in the mountain town of Orkney Springs, a short distance from Bryce Resort. 

Plaque at Shrine Mont Honors the Woodwards

Recently, I learned of a connection between this stone shrine and the church in The Plains where I enjoy an annual art show. Upstairs at the church was a small collection of prints, including some of Shrine Mont. A booklet explained that collection was handed down from Rev. Dr. Edmond Lee Woodward, who spearheaded the construction of Grace Church of The Plains in 1918. After he served as rector of Grace Church, he went on to create Shrine Mont in Shenandoah County. 

Although both churches are built of locally dug stone, Grace Church was designed in 13th century English Gothic style, and Shrine Mont’s cathedral is so rustic it almost appears to have sprung out of the mountain. 

Grace Episcopal Church in The Plains

I was rather startled by the connection because these churches are over 70 miles apart, and it would’ve been quite a journey 100 years ago. Today I read that Rev. Woodward’s wife, Frances Gibson, was the daughter of the Episcopal Bishop of Virginia, who owned a cottage in Orkney Springs and held services in the town. The Shrine is still owned by the Episcopal Diocese of Virginia.

It’s an almost magical place, a peaceful setting among the trees.

Art Show in a Church

Today we went to the Piedmont Regional Art Show in The Plains, Virginia. It was held in beautiful Grace Episcopal Church, founded in 1855. The current stone structure was consecrated in 1918. 

The art show was held in the church's auditorium. We were impressed by the quality and variety of paintings and photography.

Click on image to see it larger.

The sanctuary was open to those who wanted to see it. I was glad to go in and admire the stained glass windows. There is something beautiful about light shining through colored glass.

The Plains is a small town once called White Plains. It is in Virginia's wealthy (and lovely) horse country.

Annual Art Show in The Plains

The Plains is a charming small town in Fauquier County. I've been to the art show at Grace Church before and found it delightful, so yesterday I invited Deborah and Frank to go with me. She and I took turns watching Charlie.

Collage of Paintings that caught my eye.

I walked Charlie around the back of the stone church building. The clerestory windows light up the upstairs room. 

A Montessori preschool meets in the church building and they have a playground. A bright floral mural is there.

Monday Murals / Garden Affair

Scarecrows in The Plains

One day we had lunch in the town of The Plains, Virginia because I wanted to check out a new restaurant. We found that the town had a scarecrow contest and many businesses were participating.

Since My Town Shoot Out has Halloween as a theme today, I'm linking up there, and also sharing with Orange You Glad It's Friday.

Even the fire department had a scarecrow!

By the way, the restaurant we went to check out was a bit disappointing. The food was okay but the noise level made it unsuitable as a place to meet Frank's daughter for lunch and conversation. Also, the menu was very limited, especially considering my food allergies. They did have a little message (pictured below) about allergens which would have seemed funnier if I had found enough to eat there.

Click to Make the Image Larger

Timberville Randoms

On our way from Orkney Springs to New Market, we passed through Timberville. I'm using the format of The Good, The Random, and The Fun to show photos from this Shenandoah Valley town.

The Good: I like public art, and this mural is the reason I stopped to take pictures. It's on a wall of the Plains District Museum. It is signed by Martha Henderson and Denver Fulk, 2013.

Sharing with Monday Murals

The Random: Thanks to PhotoCollage for making it simple to combine these Timberville scenes.

Sharing with Mosaic Monday

The Fun: What's fun about a World War II Lookout? Well, after the war it was taken down and became a play house in the Lantz family backyard! Now it is in the yard of the museum.

Long Branch Baptist Church

This limestone church stands on a hill in the small town of Halfway, Virginia. The town is so named because it is halfway between Middleburg and The Plains.

Bird Haven Factory Restored!

I saw a notice online that Bird Haven was having an open house at the old toy factory on Sunday. I was curious about how it looks now because we saw it eight years ago when it looked sadly dilapidated. It has an interesting history though, and was mentioned in a 1939 WPA guide as a place where "local craftsmen fashion furniture, toys, fireplace equipment, hooked rugs, and quilts, from patterns evolved by their ancestors."

The Carrs, who now own the property, have done an incredible job of bringing these buildings back to life. Exhibits tell the story of the factory, which provided much needed income to people in the Basye area during the Great Depression.

It happens that my most popular blog post ever is "Timberville, Bird Haven, and the WPA" written in 2008.  Blogger recorded over 14 thousand hits for that page, basically from people who searched for "Bird Haven" and "Shenandoah Community Workers" and found very little else about the place. Once in a while I hear from someone who owns an item made by Shenandoah Community Workers or someone who remembers their parent working there.

When I arrived there on Sunday, I was surprised that when I told our hosts that I had written about Bird Haven on my blog, they exclaimed, "You're the Squirrel Ridge blogger!" It's not often that my reputation precedes me.

We enjoyed seeing the restored buildings and a video of people reminiscing about the factory.  It was small but well-equipped and enjoyed by the workers, who took pride in the polished wooden products they crafted.

The factory is not open on a regular basis but if you are interested, follow "Bird Haven Farm" on Facebook.

The entrance on Alum Springs Road leads to the farm but also a small community of homes.

See all my posts about Shenandoah Community Workers (and notice the comments).

Some of the links I mentioned on my blog in past years are now broken, but the construction company that rehabbed the factory has an interesting page about it.  An excellent article by Carole Alexander is linked on her site but it's the entire March 2015 issue of Shenandoah Living so it may take a while to view.

I have seen displays of items made by Shenandoah Community Workers at the Plains District Museum in Timberville and in the Mount Jackson Museum.

Piedmont Art Show, 2025

The annual art show in The Plains, Virginia, is always worth seeing. It’s in the beautiful Grace Episcopal Church, and stained glass windows amplify the beauty of the art.

I took these pictures on October 4. Here are some paintings that caught my eye. 

The beagle, of course, reminds me of Charlie. 

Broadway Reflections

Rockingham County

Broadway is a small town in an agricultural area. Don’t be fooled by the sign advertising axe throwing. It’s a quiet town with a bit of an artsy vibe.

Black and White Weekend / Street and Reflections

The town is located where Linville Creek enters the North Branch of the Shenandoah River. It became an important shipping point in the 1800’s. At that time it was called Kuster’s Mill.

I always assumed it earned the name Broadway because it was on a broad plain along the Shenandoah. This is particularly noticeable when you enter from the mountains of West Virginia through a rather narrow pass, and find yourself in comparatively flat land. Local legend tells a different tale, as I saw posted in the Plains District Museum in nearby Timberville.

After the Civil War, the railroads came to town and it “became a ‘boom town’ noted for its ‘merry making’ by those who congregated to deliver their products.. Some of the local residents stated that these ‘ruffians’ were on a broad way to destruction.”  

That’s an interesting theory, but I think mine is more logical.

Trying to Focus on Bright Things.

Well, it's been a tiring week. Ballots are still being counted from Tuesday's election and voters are stressed from uncertainty and unpleasant threats coming from people who should know better.

I'm trying to stay positive. After all, there is work to be done. We need to work for justice and try to undo some of the damage that humans have done to the environment. 

I appreciate our natural world and I know most other photo bloggers do too.

Willy Nilly Friday / Friday Bliss 
 

For today's black and white photo, I chose one from September. I showed up at the end of a Civil War living history event, having felt trepidation at being in any large group during a pandemic. Most folks had left but I got a few pictures and enjoyed strolling on the Third Winchester Battlefield for a few minutes. 

Weekend Reflections: Low Gap in Shenandoah National Park is a lovely spot to see tall trees. Here they are reflected on my windshield. 

I also turned my camera downward to show some of the leaves that had fallen on the ground. 

 

Skywatch: This is the post office in The Plains, Virginia. 

Art Show, Grace in the Plains

The annual Piedmont Regional Art Show is one of my favorites because it is in a lovely venue. This was a busy weekend, with a meeting at our state park yesterday morning, but I managed to make it to the Piedmont show yesterday afternoon and one in Berkeley Springs today.

Here’s a few pictures of yesterday‘s art show and be lovely church where it’s held. 

For pictures of the church interior, see my 2017 post.

Garden Affair / Sunday Best