About the
Society
The purpose of the Society of Colonial Wars in the State of Virginia is to recognize the importance of American colonial history, commencing with the settlement of Jamestown on May 13, 1607 and leading up to the Battle of Lexington, April 19, 1775.
The Society was formed to commemorate the events of that colonial period and commemorate the military and naval personnel and high civilian officials during that period who assisted in the establishment, defense and preservation of the American colonies, and were the founders of this Nation.
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Origin
On June 28, 1894 a group of distinguished Virginians gathered at the State Capitol Building in Richmond to organize the Virginia Chapter of the Society of Colonial Wars. There were sixteen original members of the Virginia Society. Joseph Bryan was the first Governor and Gustavus A. Walker the first Deputy Governor. A charter from the General Society was received on November 12, 1894. The Virginia Society held its first Court on December 20 of that year at the headquarters of the Virginia Historical Society.
House of Delegates Bill H037 of the 1895-1896 session of the Virginia General Assembly gave the Society its charter and inspiration. This charter established the purpose of the Society to perpetuate and honor the “memory of the men who assisted in establishing the Colonies of America and imperiled their lives and interests.”
Society Historic Activities
The Virginia Society has three meetings a year: The Cy Nicholas Memorial Luncheon, held each February at the Commonwealth Club; the Spring Court, held in April at the Country Club of Virginia; and the Fall Court, held each October at the Virginia Museum of History and Culture in Richmond. The Society publishes a bi-monthly newsletter available to members and non-members with news and activities of our group. Sign up below.
The Virginia Society also co-hosts an Oyster Roast each November along with the Sons of the Revolution and The National Society of the Colonial Dames of American.
The Society participates in other special events or ceremonies throughout the year, often with other lineage and historical societies.
Annual Events
The Council of the Virginia Society conducts its affairs through regular meetings. The Spring Court is held annually and commemorates the general time period of the Jamestown landing; ladies are invited and the Court features a speaker and a dinner. The Fall Court that includes the primary business meeting of the membership is held in October to memorialize the initial Court of the Society in 1894 and is followed by dinner and a speaker.
In 2012, the Society recovened a mid-winter luncheon in Richmond at the Commonwealth Club. Spearheaded by Past Governor Cy Nicholas, his passing on the very day of the luncheon occasioned the decision to name the annual February event in his honor. Starting in 2014, the Virginia Society began co-hosting an Oyster Roast with the Sons of the Revolution in the Commonwealth of Virginia, now occurring at Wilton House Museum with The National Society of the Colonial Dames of America.
Historic Preservation & Education
The Virginia Society has contributed to the restoration and acquisition of documents, publications and portraits pertaining to Colonial Wars. The Society has been active in marking and preserving historic sites of Colonial War significance, donated a stand of four Colonial Colors to Colonial Williamsburg, rebuilt the Gates and Gate House at Stratford, and gave the Chancel Rail in the restored Jamestowne Church as well as the Jamestown Tricentennial gift of a horse watering trough near the church.
The Virginia Society has in the past offered awards to outstanding students of history and annually contributed financial support for education about colonial history to organizations such as the Virginia Historical Society (Virginia Museum of History and Culture), Wilton Museum House, Henricus Foundation and the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities.
In 2009, the Virginia Society funded the publication through the Virginia Genealogical Society of a book titled The Effects of the French and Indian War on Civilian Life in the Frontier Counties of Virginia, 1754–1763 by Chester R. Young.
In 2013, the Virginia Society (with financial assistance from the General Society) restored the tablets originally placed by the General Society in 1936 at Stratford Hall, the ancestral home of the Lee family. The two matching bronze at the gatehouse honor Thomas Lee and reflect the role of the General Society of Colonial Wars in the original restoration of the mansion in 1936.
On March 22, 2014, the Society erected (with financial assistance from the General Society) a granite marker at Henricus Historical Park on the James River below Richmond to commemorate the Indian Massacre that took place on March 22, 1622. The surprise attack was a coordinated effort by the Powhatan Indians against English settlements along the James River.
House of Delegates Bill H037 of the 1895-1896 session of the Virginia General Assembly gave the Society its charter and inspiration. This charter established the purpose of the Society to perpetuate and honor the “memory of the men who assisted in establishing the Colonies of America and imperiled their lives and interests.”
Seal of the Society
The Seal of the Virginia Society consists of the royal arms of King James I within a circle containing the name “SOCIETY OF COLONIAL WARS IN THE STATE OF VIRGINIA”; the dates of the Colonial period 1607-1775; and the phrase “EN DAT VIRGINIA QUINTUM”, which was taken from the coat of arms of the Virginia Company of London hailing the Virginia colony as “the fifth part” of the King’s dominions. The others were England and Wales (considered as one), France, Scotland, and Ireland.
