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1. SUBJECT:

Presbyterian Church. Originally the location of the home of Peter Henneberger—1819.

2. LOCATION:

Northside of Court Square, next to the Warren Hotel, Harrisonburg, Virginia.

3. DATE:

The Henneberger brick house was built about 1819 or 1820. What kind of house preceded his, and when built is not known, but presumably, it was frame or log, and one of the early houses in the town.

4. OWNERS:

Part of Thomas Harrison Inclusive Patent of 1773.

John Graham from_______________(burnt records do not disclose).

George W. Harrison from John Graham, June 27, 1815, Lot Number 12, on the original plat, including two dwellings B.R. Deed Book 3, Page 86.

Peter Henneberger from George W. Harrison, August 10, 1819, $1,200 for House and Lot BR. Deed Book 4, page 236. Henneberger had lived here before and at the time of this deed.

William H. Effinger from John Strother Effinger, March 15, 1867, $500.00 for house and lot. Deed book 2, page 116.

John Strother Effinger by marriage and from William H. Effinger, 1867.

C.M. Hollingsworth from John Strother Effinger, March 9, 1889, $2,800. Deed book 34, page 502.

Mrs. Josie Hollongsworth, widow

J.R. Lupton from Mrs. Josie Hollongsworth, June 2, 1904, $5,500. Deed Book 73, page 29.

Presbyterian Church, Trustees, present owner from J.R. Lupton, May 1, 1906, $11,000. Deed Book 79, page

93.

5. DESCRIPTION:

The first house built on the location is assumed to have been either log or frame. The house built by Heneberger was of brick, style of architecture is not known.

The church as it is today is of stone, and a better idea of its architecture may be had from the picture attached. More about the Presbyterian Church in Harrisonburg will be seen in a later write-up as a separate subject.

6. HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE:

Peter Heneberger was born_______and died in Harrisonburg, Virginia, late in 1866 or early in 1867. He came to Harrisonburg from near Lancaster, Pennsylvania. The family probably came to America from the Duchy of Brunswick, Germany. Their Coat of Arms was Three Hens on a Mountain.

Besides other business interests that engage his time and attention during the years of his life in Harrisonburg, his chief occupation was that of a Silversmith. Specimens of his workmanship are to be seen today in the form of silver spoons, and possibly in other tableware also, with his initials, P.H. indented on the back of the handle of the spoon. These I have both seen and handled.

These spoons were made for people from silver dollars or silver coin, furnished him for the purpose, and were so furnished by parties desiring to make a rather outstanding wedding fit, always greatly appreciated and prized by the bride all of her life.

It took four silver dollars to make one tablespoon, and twenty-four for a full set of six pieces, thus making a very desirable gift. These spoons are treasured today as heirlooms, handed down from one generation to

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another, the sets of ten being divided and distributed among members of the family possessing them and even one spoon could not be bought today for love or money.

In addition to his business as a silversmith, Peter Heneberger was active in other business affairs. He was one of the organizers of the old bank of Rockingham, and a certificate for one hundred and twenty five shares of stock in that institution is now in the possession of Mr. R. Grymes Heneberger, a descendent of property in the town of Harrisonburg. For that day and time he was considered as being rich, being worth not much if any less than seventy-five thousand dollars, a very comfortable fortune for a small community. He lost almost half of that amount during and by reason of the War Between the States, and this amount together with what he had advanced to his children before the war, and the devises made in his will added up to the amount his estate as suggested above. His will may be seen in Will Book 3, page 26, Rockingham Court House.

Peter Heneberger was twice married, his first wife being Elizabeth Baer, their children by this union being Andrew Eli, who married, first Mary Effinger, second Lucy Bailey, Mary Heneberger, married, _____ Danner, Frances married _____Ward. His second wife was Mary Gibbons and their children were Bettie who married _____Richardson and Susan who married Doctor Dold.

Mr. Heneberger built his brick house on the present location of the Presbyterian Church, which place he bought in 1819, though he had been and was living in the house preceding the one he built as the time of his purchase.

Mrs. Maria Graham Carr, in her My Recollections of Rocktown now knows as Harrisonburg, 1817-1820, says "I do not remember what kind of a house stood where Mr. Heneberger built his brick house. He had his silversmith shop in the front room and lived back of it, and also over it. I often went to see Mr. Heneberger make spoons and was always infatuated with his work and loved to stand by the counter and see the bowls placed in the moulds and manipulated into shape. People furnished their own coin to be made into spoons and were charged for the labor of making." The handle of the spoon was evidently a second operation as may be seen by the finished product, though it appears and is one solid piece.

There were several buildings on the location now occupied by the Church, two of which were brick, one of them being the Heneberger house. Under the church is an old passageway, running north and south and about three or four feet deep, and I am told connecting with the "Big Spring" at the southwest corner of the court house yard. This spring was used for many years by the people generally for drinking water and for washing clothes in the stream running out from the spring. For some time it was open, but later a canopy was built over it and steps were made leading down to the spring. It is now entirely covered over and is under the street, so that when you walk by this point, let your imagination run back to the early years and think of the tragedies that my have been enacted around or about the old spring, the beautiful romances and tender sentiments whispered in the ear of a "Queen" to be, the petty or serious gossip retailed from one to another as they "came hither to draw" and to engage in the necessity of washing clothes, and you will thus have before you the very epitome of life as it had been all through the ages past and will be through the ages to come. Let us occasionally read the beautiful love story of, was it Laban? Who served seven years and was compelled to serve seven more before he could claim his bride. When this passageway was made is not known, nor by whom. Doubtless it was made before any houses were built in the town.

Peter Heneberger was too old to take an active part in the War Between the States, neither did his son, Andrew, on account of physical disabilities, but they both did all they could in behalf of the cause of the Confederacy, Andrew employing a substitute.

 

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As said before Peter Heneberger passed to his reward late in 1866 or early 1867, closing a long, active and useful life highly respected by the community in which he had lived for many years.

7. ART:

Photograph

8. SOURCES OF INFORMATION: