Patrons of annual event celebrated till the cows came home
PRINCE GEORGE — The Great Beefsteak Raid that took place on the banks of the James River at Coggins Point on Sept. 16, 1864 was commemorated once again by the Prince George County Regional Heritage Center, PGCRHC, at Scott Memorial Park on Wednesday.
PGCRHC member Rose Frye of Prince George created a diorama that has become symbolic and a centerpiece for the annual event.
“This has appeared every year.” Frye added while laughing, “I couldn’t get enough cows for it! I confess, I did not carve the cows, but I painted them and made the soldiers out of clothespins.”
In her own words, Frye gave the history of the Great Beefsteak Raid. “The Union soldiers were outside of Petersburg to disrupt the line, because from Petersburg all the supplies went to Richmond. Well, the ultimate goal was to take Richmond, but first they had to take Petersburg.
“The Union soldiers who were outside of Petersburg had to be fed. The locals wouldn’t feed them any more because they had deprived them of everything thing they had. So, the Union soldiers brought in 2500 head of cattle from ... somewhere.”
According to Frye, the cattle were corralled at Coggins Point which is in the county.
“The Confederate soldiers were closed off pretty much from anywhere by the Union troops who were starving, too. They knew the pass through the county unlike the Union soldiers who were from up north.
“They came at night ... Lt. Gen. Wade Hampton was the officer that led them. They overpowered the few soldiers that were guarding the cattle and took those cows through the county going their ways that they knew better than the Union soldiers.”
Frye concluded her history lesson, saying, “The Confederate soldiers drove the cattle all through the county and down the main street into Petersburg. The cows were slaughtered and fed to the Confederate soldiers ... not the Union soldiers.”
“We grilled right around 250 steaks today,” said Disputanta Ruritan Club member Thomas Bendall of Prince George. “We’ve volunteered from the very beginning for this fundraiser because the Heritage Center didn’t have enough volunteers.”
At the event, attendees watched and listened to the bluegrass Bracey Junction Band, played horseshoes and cornhole, visited special exhibits, bid on auction items and pet a couple of horses that made a special appearance.
Ticket holders enjoyed steak, potatoes, salad, rolls, chips and a homemade dessert.
Bendall explained, “I’m the ‘potato man’. Both Heritage Center members and Ruritan Club members met this morning at 8:30 a.m. to prepare 300 potatoes. We washed, oiled, and foiled them so we could toss them on the grill.”
PGCRHC Treasurer Gillian ‘Gil’ Young prepared a Paw Paw Pound Cake to serve.
“I gathered them in the woods. They’re a tropical sort of fruit that grows here in the county. The critters like them, but I got to them first,” boasted Young. “They ripen very quickly, fall off the tree, and then over-ripen very quickly. That’s why you don’t see them sold in grocery stores or even at farmers markets that often.”
Young even added decorative Osage Orange apples to the tables. According to him, the Osage Orange apples, which are actually light green in color, are produced by trees or large shrubs and are referred to as “hedge apples.” Old-timers used them around the foundation to keep pesky bugs away.
“The Osage Orange tree branches have mean thorns on them, and in the midwest, the cattle ranchers used them for fencing,” he said.
He continued, “We once used the branches as firewood. We were caught off guard when they started to spark’ it created quite a fireworks display, and we’ll never burn Osage Orange branches indoors again.”
While holding his 15-month-old daughter Baileigh, who was petting a Tennessee Walking horse named Pride owned by Veronica and Jessica Becker of Dinwiddie, Kevin Childrey of Prince George commented, “Baileigh loves horses. We have been coming for the past five years. We like the food and camaraderie. It’s great seeing everyone in one place.”
The 50/50 raffle winnings of $104 were presented by PGCRHC member Tanju Benson of Prince George to Florida resident Patricia Roe who was in the area visiting her brother Lynn Tucker of Petersburg.
James Parks of Disputanta placed the winning $705 bid for the commemorative engraved Henry rifle similar to that carried in the Raid.
“This is a Christmas present for my 16-year-old grandson who lives in Maryland. He’s fired mine, but it’s a 45-caliber; this is a 22-caliber.
The Heritage Center gift shop was present selling local homemade items that feature the county and its history.
Prince George resident Edwina Daniel stated, “The country music is fabulous, meal is superb, and the company is outstanding!”
“The band played a great rendition of ‘Wagon Wheel,’” said Jimmy Kaiser of Prince George.
Prince George County Board of Supervisor Chairman Donald Hunter shared, “It was a lovely event ... well attended. I’m proud to be a part of it. I’m a charter member of the Heritage Foundation. Carol Bowman [PGCRHC Executive Director] is a great leader who has a heck of a group of volunteers.”
“This has been successful beyond our expectations. We’ve got this down; and, we try to add something new each year. We appreciate our volunteers and couldn’t do it without them,” said PGCRHC board member Ann Easterling.
All proceeds will be dedicated to the center’s newest project, the Prince George Fire and EMS Museum.
“The new museum to be housed in the Historic Old Jail also known as the Food Pantry Building, has been long in coming,” Bowman stated. “It has taken some time to develop history and plans so as to create a museum of interest and one of the highest quality. Funding is now the issue at hand,” said Bowman.
By Kristi K. Higgins, Progress-Index Staff
Kristi K. Higgins can be reached at 804-722-5162 or khiggins@progress-index.com.