Old Fields, West Virginia
Encyclopedia
Old Fields is an unincorporated community on the South Branch Potomac River in northern Hardy County
, West Virginia
, USA.
According to the Geographic Names Information System
, Old Fields has also been known throughout its history as Indian Old Field, Indian Old Fields, and Oldfields.
, built in 1756 during the French and Indian War
. Fort Pleasant was one of the principal fortifications in Colonel George Washington
's chain of forts on the Virginia
frontier. Less than a mile to the east of the fort, the "Battle of the Trough
" was fought in the spring of 1756, on the banks of the South Branch, during which several local settlers were killed.
Hardy County, West Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 12,669 people, 5,204 households, and 3,564 families residing in the county. The population density was 22 people per square mile . There were 7,115 housing units at an average density of 12 per square mile...
, West Virginia
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...
, USA.
According to the Geographic Names Information System
Geographic Names Information System
The Geographic Names Information System is a database that contains name and locative information about more than two million physical and cultural features located throughout the United States of America and its territories. It is a type of gazetteer...
, Old Fields has also been known throughout its history as Indian Old Field, Indian Old Fields, and Oldfields.
History
The South Branch was being settled by whites in the 1730s and '40s. According to Samuel Kercheval, these settlers "On the Wappatomaka [South Branch]...discovered...considerable openings of the land, or natural prairies, which are called the 'Indian old fields' to this day [i.e., 1833]. Numerous Indian graves are to be seen in the neighborhood". This was the site of Fort PleasantFort Pleasant
Fort Pleasant, also known as the Isaac Van Meter House, is a historic home located near the unincorporated community of Old Fields north of Moorefield, Hardy County, West Virginia. The residence was completed by Isaac Van Meter and his wife Elizabeth Inskeep Van Meter by the late 18th century, and...
, built in 1756 during the French and Indian War
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War is the common American name for the war between Great Britain and France in North America from 1754 to 1763. In 1756, the war erupted into the world-wide conflict known as the Seven Years' War and thus came to be regarded as the North American theater of that war...
. Fort Pleasant was one of the principal fortifications in Colonel George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
's chain of forts on the Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
frontier. Less than a mile to the east of the fort, the "Battle of the Trough
Battle of the Trough
The Battle of the Trough was a skirmish of the early French and Indian War fought between Native Americans and British settlers in the valley of the South Branch Potomac River in what is now northern Hardy County, West Virginia, USA.-Background:After the defeat of General Edward Braddock at the...
" was fought in the spring of 1756, on the banks of the South Branch, during which several local settlers were killed.