Culpeper County, Virginia: History
=== Native American presence ===
At the time of European encounter, the inhabitants of future Culpeper County were a Siouan-speaking sub-group of the Manahoac tribe called the Tegninateo, allies to the Monacans and other central Virginian tribes further west. Captain John Smith mapped the area between the Rappahannock and Rapidan rivers in 1608, locating 4 Sioux villages therein.
The Manahoac were known to clear large tracts of forest to attract big game to their territory, and built impressive burial mounds. Though the tribe was initially sheltered from European encroachment by their position west of the fall line, they were steadily wiped out by disease and gradually increased conflict with settlers. The remnants of the tribe were first driven south towards the upper Mattaponi, then westwards into the Blue Ridge; they had largely disappeared from the Piedmont region by the time that Culpeper was intensively settled by the colonists.
In May 1749, the first Culpeper Court convened in the home of Robert Tureman, near the present location of the Town of Culpeper. In July 1749, Tureman commissioned 17-year-old George Washington as the first County surveyor. One of his first duties was to lay out the county's courthouse complex, which included the courthouse, jail, stocks, gallows and accessory buildings. By 1752 the complex stood at the present northeast corner of Davis and Main Streets. The courthouse village was named Town of Fairfax for Thomas Fairfax, 6th Lord Fairfax of Cameron (1693–1781).
During the Virginia convention held in May 1775, the colony was divided into sixteen districts. Each district had instructions to raise a battalion of men "to march at a minute's notice." Culpeper, Orange and Fauquier, forming one district, raised 350 men in "Clayton's old field" on the Catalpa estate; they were called the Culpeper Minute Men. In December, the Minute Men, marching under their flag depicting a rattlesnake and inscribed with the words "Liberty or Death" and "Don't Tread on Me", took part in the Battle of Great Bridge, the first Revolutionary battle on Virginia soil. The Culpeper Minute Men reorganized in 1860 in response to the impending Civil War and became part of 13th Infantry's Company B, fighting against the US Government forces. The Culpeper Minutemen were again organized for World War I, and joined the 116th Infantry.
In 1833, based on the county's growing population and the need of those in the northwestern area for easier access to a county seat, the upper 267 square miles (690 km2) of Culpeper County was partitioned off to create Rappahannock County, Virginia, which was founded by an act of the Virginia General Assembly.
The Battle of Cedar Mountain took place during the Civil War on August 9, 1862, and the Battle of Brandy Station occurred on June 9, 1863, in Culpeper County. Culpeper was the boyhood home of General A. P. Hill, who fought against Union forces. …