Partlow, Virginia
Encyclopedia
Partlow is an unincorporated community–populated place
in Spotsylvania County
in the U.S. state
of Virginia
. Partlow is a small rural community located between Jefferson Davis Highway
(U.S. 1
) and Lake Anna
. It sits at an elevation of 400 feet, and appears on the Lake Anna East U.S. Geological Survey Map. Partlow's zip code
is 22534, and as of the 2000 census, it had a population of 2,083.
Partlow's primary historical significance is as the location of the plantation where Kunta Kinte
was enslaved. Partlow is also home to Wallers Baptist Church, a historically notable church founded in 1769, known for the notorious persecutions against its founding pastor, John "Swearing Jack" Waller, by the Church of England
.
Originally, the area was termed "Pea Ridge" and was the site of a slave auction. Part of the original slave block still rests directly on Rt. 738 between the Partlow Post Office and Mt. Olive Church Rd (Rt. 658). A tavern was established by Capt. John C. Partlow on the same corner as the slave block called "The Partlow Tavern". Capt. Partlow, along with Benjamin Waller, a descendant of John Waller (founder of Waller's Church) were persecuted for their religion and briefly jailed at one point for having services in their homes.
In the early 19th century, Benjamin Waller and John Partlow worked together to form the first Partlow Post Office. The family farm, although largely reduced in size, still exists on Shirleys Hill Road. The last direct descendant bearing the Partlow name, Anne Partlow Pemberton, died in January 2004.
Populated place
A populated place is a place or area with clustered or scattered buildings and a permanent human population referenced with geographic coordinates...
in Spotsylvania County
Spotsylvania County, Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 90,395 people, 31,308 households, and 24,639 families residing in the county. The population density was 226 people per square mile . There were 33,329 housing units at an average density of 83 per square mile...
in the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of 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...
. Partlow is a small rural community located between Jefferson Davis Highway
Jefferson Davis Highway
The Jefferson Davis Memorial Highway was a planned transcontinental highway in the United States in the 1910s and 1920s that began in Washington, D.C. and extended south and west to San Diego, California; it was named for Jefferson Davis, who, in addition to being the first and only President of...
(U.S. 1
U.S. Route 1 in Virginia
U.S. Route 1 in the U.S. state of Virginia runs north–south through South Hill, Petersburg, Richmond, Fredericksburg, and Alexandria on its way from North Carolina to the 14th Street Bridge into the District of Columbia...
) and Lake Anna
Lake Anna
Lake Anna is one of the largest freshwater inland lakes in Virginia, covering an area of 13,000 acres , and located 72 miles south of Washington, D.C. in Louisa and Spotsylvania counties...
. It sits at an elevation of 400 feet, and appears on the Lake Anna East U.S. Geological Survey Map. Partlow's zip code
ZIP Code
ZIP codes are a system of postal codes used by the United States Postal Service since 1963. The term ZIP, an acronym for Zone Improvement Plan, is properly written in capital letters and was chosen to suggest that the mail travels more efficiently, and therefore more quickly, when senders use the...
is 22534, and as of the 2000 census, it had a population of 2,083.
Partlow's primary historical significance is as the location of the plantation where Kunta Kinte
Kunta Kinte
Kunta Kinte is the central character of the novel Roots: The Saga of an American Family by American author Alex Haley, and of the television miniseries Roots, based on the book. Haley described his book as faction - a mixture of fact and fiction...
was enslaved. Partlow is also home to Wallers Baptist Church, a historically notable church founded in 1769, known for the notorious persecutions against its founding pastor, John "Swearing Jack" Waller, by the Church of England
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
.
Originally, the area was termed "Pea Ridge" and was the site of a slave auction. Part of the original slave block still rests directly on Rt. 738 between the Partlow Post Office and Mt. Olive Church Rd (Rt. 658). A tavern was established by Capt. John C. Partlow on the same corner as the slave block called "The Partlow Tavern". Capt. Partlow, along with Benjamin Waller, a descendant of John Waller (founder of Waller's Church) were persecuted for their religion and briefly jailed at one point for having services in their homes.
In the early 19th century, Benjamin Waller and John Partlow worked together to form the first Partlow Post Office. The family farm, although largely reduced in size, still exists on Shirleys Hill Road. The last direct descendant bearing the Partlow name, Anne Partlow Pemberton, died in January 2004.