On April 22, 2017, the Piedmont Environmental Council hosted our sixth annual mountain heritage celebration at the Cecil Mission Chapel near Stanardsville. At least 100 people attended throughout the day – visitors learned about the rich culture and traditions of the families that once called these mountains home and some even walked the trails through Shenandoah National Park to see some of these former home sites in person.
Shenandoah National Park
PEC Donates Land to National Park Service
Shenandoah National Park just grew a little bigger and a little more beautiful. This past May, The Piedmont Environmental Council donated a 17.2-acre property it owned in Rappahannock County to the National Park Service. A forested and vacant parcel on a mountain slope south of Sperryville, VA, the land is within the legislative boundary of Shenandoah National Park.
PEC Donates Land to National Park
Shenandoah National Park just grew a little bigger and a little more beautiful. This past May, We donated a 17.2-acre property of ours in Rappahannock County to the National Park Service. A forested and vacant parcel on a mountain slope south of Sperryville, Virginia, the land is within the legislative boundary of Shenandoah National Park.
“The property is surrounded by the park on three of its four sides, so it’s a key puzzle piece,” says Carolyn Sedgwick, PEC’s Rappahannock County land conservation officer, who oversaw the donation from PEC to the National Park Service. “This great public-private partnership with the National Park Service has resulted in the expansion of one of the most important wildlife corridors on the east coast.”
The donated acreage is by an area in the national park designated as federal wilderness — the highest conservation designation for federal land — making it an important and strategic area to conserve.
Annual Mountain Heritage Events
Each spring since 2012, PEC hosts a mountain heritage day in a different location and different county surrounding Shenandoah National Park to recognize the history and heritage of the families that once lived in and around the mountains.
Madison’s Mountain Heritage: An Open House at Graves Chapel
On April 16, 2016, Piedmont Environmental Council hosted our fifth annual mountain heritage celebration at Graves Chapel in Graves Mill, Virginia. Nearly 300 attended over the course of the day – visitors learned about the rich culture and traditions of the families that once called these mountains home. Many even walked the trails through Shenandoah National Park to see some of these former home sites in person. It was a wonderful day, filled with music, memories, and a renewed appreciation for the Blue Ridge Mountain heritage. Thank you to all who took part!
Graves Mill historic sites map >>
Please consider becoming a PEC member or renewing your membership to help make events like this one possible!
Rappahannock’s Mountain Heritage: An Open House at the Thornton Gap Primitive Baptist Church
On April 11, 2015, PEC hosted our fourth annual mountain heritage celebration in partnership with Rappahannock Historical Society at Sperryville’s Thornton Gap Primitive Baptist Church. More than 250 people attended throughout the day – visitors learned about the rich culture and traditions of the families that once called these mountains home and many even walked the trails through Shenandoah National Park to see some of these former home sites in person. It was a wonderful day, filled with music, memories, and a renewed appreciation for the Blue Ridge Mountain heritage. Thank you to all who took part!
Please consider becoming a PEC member or renewing your membership to help make events like this one possible!
Hike Revisits Life in the Mountains
In the foothills of Greene County, on May 5, the woods were brilliant with lush spring growth. A gravel road led up and up into the hills; eventually it would end at the border of Shenandoah National Park. Down a long drive, set deep in the forest was an old house—a sturdy two-story frame cabin with a welcoming front porch, at the edge of a clear, rushing stream.