Sincerely,

Recreation Manager, History Programs | Henrico Recreation and Parks

Long-time residents of Glen Allen might remember this fanciful piece of Americana from its former roadside home along Hungary Road, near the intersection of the RF&P railroad tracks. The Crystal Ice Company was started in 1971 by Mr. Paul Bruffey, Jr. and in 1973 moved to a storefront in the historic Laurel neighborhood. The company specialized in packaged ice, commercial ice machine parts and repair, all of which were prominently advertised on the side of the ice wagon. Henrico County acquired the wagon in 1985 when the company relocated its operations.

Ice, as an industry, started in the early 19th century with companies in the northern U.S. “harvesting” ice and shipping it to the southern, hotter regions of the country. With the expansion of the rail system in America, ice could be packed and transported farther and farther. Once the ice reached its local destination, it had to be transported from the depots to the customer via the ice wagon.

By the late 1800s, with the Industrial Revolution roaring in full force in the United States, scientists and other smart folks figured out a method for manufacturing “artificial ice.” Artificial ice, of course, just being the product of freezing water through mechanical means. With the ability to make ice on-demand, the traditional trade of “natural ice” quickly began to fade, and local manufacturers began to pop up around the country. Perhaps in an effort to get people to buy into the idea of “artificial ice” as opposed to natural ice from a pond, companies began to tout the health benefits and purity of this new scientific creation in their advertising. Companies also began to adopt names such as Crystal Ice and Translucent Ice to further imply the products purity.

Back to the Bruffey Crystal Ice Company wagon. This company isn’t connected to any of the earlier iterations that used the same name, it appears that they just recycled it. The days of the old-fashioned ice wagon ended in the first quarter of the 20th century with the introduction of the automobile and refrigerated trucks. So how did this ice wagon appear in the 1970s, some 50 years after most wagons had been retired and or destroyed, and why was it advertising a company and equipment that didn’t even exist when the wagons were in use?

Some of the answers to these questions were revealed in 2016 when Henrico County contracted the services of professional conservators to arrest the wagon’s deterioration. The wagon and all its parts appeared to be period appropriate. The undercarriage, the canopy, and all the hardware were indeed from the early 20th century. Upon closer inspection, ultraviolet light revealed that the lettering on the wagon and canopy were original; in other words, there were no signs of old paint that had been covered up or removed. We also realized that the siding of the wagon was made of plywood, a material that would not have been available at the time that the rest of the wagon was built. It was quickly concluded that the wagon had been pieced together with new and old parts as a curiosity piece to advertise the Bruffeys’ company. The Frankenwagon was born.

But where had the original wagon parts come from? As a result of heavy usage, most wagons had fallen into disrepair and been junked, while others unquestionably did not survive the salvage efforts of World War II. But, while continuing research on the history of ice wagons in Richmond, I came across a series of articles and images in the Richmond Times Dispatch from 1957. The articles were about a man by the name of George Seay, an independent ice dealer in Jackson Ward, who was still delivering ice the old-fashioned way. A closer look at the photo (below) revealed that the wagon in the image was the exact same manufacture as our wagon, but was advertising a company named the Richmond Ice Company. The articles went on to explain that the wagon was about 30 or 35 years old at the time and was one of the few remaining wagons in town.

An interview with the Bruffey family did indicate that they had picked up the wagon from a salvage yard in Richmond, but they didn’t recall the exact location. Nor did they have any further information about the condition of the wagon when they acquired it.

From all the evidence available, it appears that the Bruffeys acquired one of the last existing ice wagons in town, possibly even the exact one pictured in the 1957 article. The siding was either missing or was replaced with the plywood and the Crystal Ice wagon advertising was painted to match the feel and look of the original artwork of the wagon. After a good cleaning from the conservators, a signature became visible in the lower corner panel. Joe Francis was the artist. If you know Joe, ask him if we solved the mystery.

As the Virginia Center Commons area undergoes redevelopment, we thought we would highlight the history of a small carousel that had a short stint in the mall, but quite a remarkable life.

The story begins with the golden age of carousels between the 1890s and 1920s. During this timeframe, between 2,000 to 3,000 carousels with hand-carved and hand-painted animals were built and in operation around the country. The carousel that was at Virginia Center Commons (VCC) in the mid-1990s was built at the end of this golden age in 1922. Some estimate that only 150 of these carousels survive to this day. On several occasions, this carousel came close to becoming one of those that was lost to time.

The Spillman Engineering Company of North Tonawanda, New York built this 20-horse and two chariot carousel in 1922. The carousel was built to be used by a traveling fair, so it is smaller than most and constructed to be easily taken apart and transported. This attribute may have contributed to its survival.

The location of the carousel for its first twenty years is unknown. The first known location of the ride was at Playland Pier in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho in 1942. The small amusement park closed in 1974 and the rides were disassembled and put into storage. The pier burned down in 1975 in a suspicious fire, so this may be the first close call that the carousel survived. However, its exact location for the next ten years is unknown.

In 1986, the carousel turned up over 300 miles away in an auction in Puyallap, Washington. Carol and Duane Perron (pictured right), owners of Historic Carousels in Hood River, Oregon, placed the winning bid. They bought it not only because it was their passion and business, but also because Mrs. Perron worked at Playland Pier as a teenager and remembered the carousel fondly. However, when they purchased it, Mr. Perron said that “it was a bunch of heads, legs and other pieces.”

Fortunately, all the parts were there, but some of the mechanical parts needed to be replaced. After a year of renovation, the Perron family began leasing the carousel to localities around the country and even Canada.

Its first stop was Vancouver, B.C.’s dedication of their new Trade and Convention Center. A symphony orchestra surrounded the carousel along with champagne and roses. It later returned to the West Coast to Portland, Oregon to give children there a turn of the century experience.

It arrived at Virginia Center Commons sometime around 1995. It may seem odd that we cannot pin a definitive date for something so recent. VCC has had several different owners in recent times so records for a carousel from a few decades ago have been hard to locate. It operated for about 3 years before the lease was up and it went to another location.

The financial crisis of 2007-2008 affected many businesses including the carousel business. Bradford Perron, son of Duane and Carol, said that at that time they had 13 carousels at different locations around the country. Within a few years, it dropped to four. In 2010, the carousel from VCC was back in Hood River, Oregon in storage at Historic Carousels, waiting for its next chance to give children of all ages a ride.

But something unusual concerning the carousel began even before it ended up in storage, when it was still at VCC. A visitor from Coeur d’Alene saw the carousel at VCC in 1998 and managed to trace its roots back to her hometown. She began an effort to try to bring it back to Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. The Perron family was agreeable to the idea and loved the possibility of it going back to where it had been for a large part of its life. The initial effort consisted of a citizen’s committee tasked with figuring out how to bring it back, but logistics and financial problems stood in the way. Meanwhile, the carousel continued to be leased to other locations by Historic Carousels after it left VCC until it was put in storage around 2010.

A person from that initial citizen’s committee, Richard LeFrancis, was not deterred by the initial setback. He began another effort in December 2010 with financial help from John and Pat Foote and cooperation from the city government. Within a few months, the carousel was purchased outright and on its way to Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. It would take several years before fundraising, a decision on a location, and design could begin. Groundbreaking took place in May 2016 and the grand opening took place on June 7, 2017 with 1,800 people getting a ride. It continues to operate there to this day and hopefully for many years to come.

The name Perry Parks doesn’t conjure up the image of a prominent historical figure. Chances are you haven’t heard of him unless you have taken a tour of the Dabbs House Museum, located within Henrico’s Eastern Government Complex. Perry was one of at least nine children born into slavery at Arlington House to Lawrence and Patsy Parks. He was one of 198 enslaved individuals living on three properties inherited by Mary Custis Lee, wife of Confederate General Robert E. Lee. As executor to his father-in-law’s estate, Lee was required to manumit the slaves owned by Custis within five years of George Washington Parke (G.W.P.) Custis’ death in 1857. With one year remaining before the deadline specified in the will, Lee arranged for Perry Parks to leave his family at Arlington House to accompany Lee in his new role leading Virginia’s Confederate troops.

Parks’ story is shrouded in mystery, as were millions of his contemporaries born into slavery. No personal papers written in Parks’ hand exist to our knowledge, so pieces of a complex puzzle must be found buried within the personal and legal documents left by the Lee family and then assembled to create a basic framework of the life of Perry Parks. His story is fascinating on multiple levels and sheds light on how other events beyond his control continued to impact Parks in the background of wartime.

Perry’s father, Lawrence Parks, born about 1788, may have been among the enslaved at Mt. Vernon by George and Martha Washington. Martha’s grandson, G.W.P. Custis, owned Arlington along with two other properties: Romancoke in King William County and White House in New Kent County. Mr. Custis inherited approximately 60 people after the deaths of his father and grandmother. Most likely, Lawrence married Patsy Clark at the Arlington property. Perry Parks’ birth year is unknown, but we can generate an approximate age. Post-war documents indicate Perry’s brother, Lawrence, was born about 1839 and James, in 1843. Therefore, Perry’s birthdate is estimated to be somewhere between 1820 and 1850.

To some extent, individual duties of Arlington’s enslaved community can be pieced together as well. It’s likely that most of the Parks family labored outside the main house, which could explain why they are not as well documented as a few other families who performed tasks associated with the main house. Lee’s future wife Mary Custis Lee sketched Lawrence Parks standing beside a basket of vegetables. G.W.P. Custis permitted vegetables produced on personal plots of Arlington’s enslaved community and those grown for the Custis family to be sold locally and across the Potomac River at Washington City’s markets.

Based on the drawing of Lawrence Parks, he might have been one of the enslaved allowed to leave Arlington to sell fruits and vegetables. Before the war began, Perry Parks’ teenage brother, James, worked outside the house. Yet somehow Perry’s daily duties focused on working inside the main house, such as lighting the candles, closing-up the house for the night, and announcing guests.

By the early 1850s, G.W.P. Custis owned approximately 200 enslaved men, women, and children who lived and worked on his three properties. Based upon the Custis estate inventory of 1858, Arlington had 63 enslaved people. Perpetually cash poor, Mr. Custis’ wealth derived from owning land and people, though his management of both were fairly lax. His financial situation resulted in anxiety and an uncertain future for years amongst everyone on the Custis estates, but particularly the African American population.

The death of G.W.P. Custis in October 1857 generated new insecurity about the future for the Custis enslaved community. The estate passed to his daughter, Mary Anna Randolph Custis Lee, wife of Robert E. Lee, with the properties going to their three sons and $10,000 to each of the Custis granddaughters. Yet Mr. Custis died thousands of dollars in debt – what would have to be sold to settle his debts?

Custis designated Lee the executor of his estate, which was in such confusion and financial crisis that Lee requested leave from the U.S. Army for two years. The transition of management to Lee created additional upheaval within the enslaved community, with his stricter expectations of workload, behavior, and duties. Several of the enslaved house staff had the impression they would be immediately freed upon Mr. Custis’ death. Perry Parks, along with the nearly 200 others enslaved, had to work even harder to attempt to make the Custis farms profitable…and they had five years in which to do it. Seeking clarification of the provisions of his father-in-law’s will, Lee asked the county circuit court to intervene, which halted any immediate manumissions.

As tensions rose between North and South, so did tensions between the Custis heirs (particularly with R.E. Lee as manager) and the enslaved. Upset by delayed manumission or moving the enslaved away from family several enslaved individuals took freedom into their own hands. Escape attempts and refusals to work elsewhere were met with whippings and forced removal as far away as Richmond.

When war erupted in the spring of 1861, Lee debated what side he should join. Once Lee cast his lot with the Confederacy, he discussed plans with his wife for the evacuation of Arlington, which included everything from the fate of the Washington heirlooms, their pet cats, and some of the enslaved people. On May 2, 1861 Lee wrote to Mary from Richmond: “Make your preparations quickly, to be ready for any emergency…I must have someone with me & unless Perry can be of use somewhere I will take him.” By May 25th, Lee noted that “Perry & the horse has arrived. The former looking very badly.” Unfortunately, Lee does not elaborate upon the details of Perry’s forced separation from his family and home to join Lee in Richmond. Perhaps some of his siblings had already been sent to work at either the Romancoke or White House estates. Only one sibling, James Parks, is documented remaining at Arlington throughout the war.

Lee chose Perry to work as his “body servant,” which primarily meant seeing to Lee’s personal needs. While we don’t know all of Parks’ duties, Lee does provide a few hints in letters. Perry’s duties varied greatly – from building a chimney for winter quarters to caring for Lee while sick and helping pack traveling trunks. In late August 1861, Lee told his daughters that “Perry is my washerman, & [my] socks & towels suffer.” Lee did complain a few more times about his laundry and Parks’ lack of skill. Laundry in the 19th century was a difficult, exhausting, and time-consuming task in the best of circumstances, let alone under wartime conditions. It’s a fair assumption that Parks’ did not train in how to do the laundry most likely because Arlington had some other enslaved worker(s) designated for that task. Other possible duties may have included cleaning and maintaining Lee’s leather accouterments such as his boots, belt, and saddle. It doesn’t appear that Parks’ cooked for Lee, since his letters mention at least two other enslaved men, Meredith and George, filling that role. Lee used several different horses over the course of the war, so Parks’ may have overseen their care.

Though Perry appears in at least 19 of Robert E. Lee’s wartime letters, most references were incredibly basic, stating that Perry sends greetings to the Lee family. Lee indicated a somewhat contentious relationship, telling his wife: “Perry is very willing & I believe does as well as he can. You know he is slow & inefficient & moves much like his father Lawrence, whom he resembles very much. He is also fond of his blankets in the morning. The time I most require him out. He is not very strong either.” 

To some extent, Lee’s letters allow us to track Parks’ movements as well. During the winter of 1861-1862, Perry traveled with Lee down to South Carolina and Georgia to inspect coastal fortifications. However, there is a gap from March-May 1862, where no letters (that we are aware of) mention Perry Parks.

Robert E. Lee accepted command of the newly renamed Army of Northern Virginia on June 1, 1862 after the commander, Joseph E. Johnston, was severely wounded at the Battle of Seven Pines the day prior. Soon thereafter, Lee secured the use of High Meadow (now known as Dabbs House) for his headquarters.

Conveniently located between Confederate defensive lines and the city, High Meadow on New Bridge Road (now called Nine Mile Road) provided a comfortable living space for the men and horses. In early May 1862, the recently widowed Mary Dabbs sold her household possessions and relocated to Richmond. The property was vacant of everything – livestock, carriages, farm equipment, and furniture. Lee, along with seven staff officers and an unknown number of support staff occupied the farm throughout most of the summer – from about June 1 to August 15, 1862. One letter from Lee to his wife, dated June 10, revealed Parks’ presence at the headquarters telling her that, “Perry says Custis [Lee’s son] packed up his flannel pants in his trunk. I hope he may find them there, but P[erry] is not entirely reliable.” It is possible, especially due to the Seven Days Battles (June 23-July 1), that Parks’ remained with Lee at his High Meadow headquarters for the entire time, but no further letters during the summer of 1862 mention him.

As the deadline for Custis estate slaves’ emancipation approached at the end of 1862, Lee frequently wrote to his family to discuss details. At times, Lee demonstrated a concern for the enslaved he oversaw for the previous five years. On December 7, Lee wrote to his wife from his Fredericksburg headquarters: “I hope he [Perry] will do well when he leaves me & get in the service of some good person who will take care of him.” On January 2, 1863, Lee executed a deed of manumission, which was filed at the Henrico County Courthouse; one day after Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation.

Now freed, Perry Parks, along with his family and life-long friends, faced an important decision: to stay or go. That would have been an incredibly challenging decision, but the choice was complicated by the fact that much of central, northern, and eastern Virginia was enveloped in brutal fighting with control constantly shifting between the two sides. Yet we do know of Parks’ decision, though not his reason(s) for making it. In early February 1863, Lee noted in a letter to his wife: “P.S. I have George as a cook now…I give him & Perry each 8.20 per month. I hope they will be able to lay up something for themselves.”

The last reference to Parks in Lee’s letters appeared on February 6, 1864, writing from winter quarters at Orange Court House. Lee explained to his wife that, “[w]e have had to reduce our allowance of meat one-half, & some days we have none. But I believe our servants complain more of it than anyone else, & Perry…has been taken sick.” 

Here, Perry Parks’ story comes to an abrupt end. Or does it? Did he get better and Lee no longer mentioned him? Are there missing Lee letters which could reference Parks’? It’s likely. New letters are discovered periodically. Did Parks’ die since Lee’s letter references reduced food and Perry’s weakened state? Did he stop working for Lee and go elsewhere? Did he maintain communication with his siblings? Documents indicate that his father, Lawrence Parks, his sister Amanda, and at least two of his brothers survived the war, so it’s possible Perry Parks reconnected with them.

Recently, a potential lead surfaced after revisiting the 1880 census for Alexandria County which listed James and Lawrence, brothers of Perry Parks. An initial census database search did not show any matches. However, a page by page search before and after the brothers revealed a 42-year-old man named Perry Parke. It is quite possible this is the same person for two reasons. First, the location is a clue: his presence within the Arlington district (probably residing within the Freedman’s Village of the Arlington property) and the proximity of the brothers’ households, enumerated nearly in succession. Second, the year of birth lines up. We know James and Lawrence Parks’ birth years as mentioned at the beginning of the article, so if the person listed on the census falls within a reasonable range, that also increases the likelihood of a match. The 1880 census recorded Perry Parke’s birth in 1838. However, census ages can be unreliable and show great variability amongst enumerations, which is certainly the case for Lawrence Parks, Jr. Unfortunately, searching the 1870 and 1900 censuses did not locate another Perry Parks (nor did it find his brothers in 1870). Another potential avenue of research not yet thoroughly explored are other Custis-Lee family documents.

At this point Perry’s fate remains unknown, however our history team remains in contact with the National Park Service staff at Arlington House regarding any discoveries of the enslaved community. Although the mystery of Perry’s life after the war remains just that, a mystery, staff continues their work to explore the lives of countless enslaved, whose narrative is central to our nation’s history.

Archeologists identified two areas of Native American occupation in Meadowview Park. The earliest site, located southwest of the house, was used for seasonal hunting around 10,000 B.C. and closer to the dwelling, a settlement was discovered dating back to 400 A.D. In the early 19th century, a country residence of Chief Justice John Marshall stood nearby, known as Chickahominy Farm. Marshall wrote that farming the land within walking distance of his Richmond home provided many hours of "laborious relaxation." During his 34-year tenure as Chief Justice (1801-1835), Marshall continued his interest in farming, spending many weekends on his Henrico County farm. Additional archeology revealed Civil War rifle pits near the Chickahominy Bluffs where Confederate General Robert E. Lee observed the beginnings of the Seven Day’s Battle.

Edmund Christian purchased the land at Meadowview ca. 1910 when he was unable to acquire nearby Craighton Farm, his boyhood home where he was born in 1856. As a young man he moved from Henrico to Tidewater and managed a creosote manufacturing company. In 1913, he met and married Sallie Braxton Saunders, a widow with three children.

Upon retiring from the creosote business, Christian moved his family, his wife Sallie and her three children – Sallie, William, and Josephine, to Henrico County. The house construction began around 1916. The family lived in cabins on the property until construction was completed in 1918. Edmund Christian died in 1920. Sallie Christian continued to live at Meadowview with her son William and his family, and her daughter Josephine Saunders Brenaman and her family.

In 1938 the family sold the property and moved to Richmond. At this time, Sallie Christian also sold twelve acres of land where the cabins stood to Hugh Crawford Brenaman, the brother-in-law of her daughter, Josephine. Hugh Brenaman founded a camp for boys on the property called Camp Arrowhead. The camp was also used for college alumni outings, home demonstration club dinners, oyster roasts, picnics, and swimming parties. The camp remained in operation until the 1970s. Hugh C. Brenaman, who died in 1974, was a former football coach, athletic director, and business manager for St. Christopher’s School where he had worked since 1923.

Over the next several years, the property was sold several times. In 1946, Alex Armour acquired the property. He lived at Meadowview with his wife Ruth Smith Armour and their two children, Robert and Janet. Armour rose through the ranks at Davenport & Co., a Richmond stock brokerage, where he was hired in 1920 at the age of 14. During his life, Armour served as president of the Richmond YMCA, director of the Richmond Home for Ladies, and was the Fairfield District representative on the Henrico County Planning Commission. In 1989, Ruth Smith Armour died. Alex Armour continued to work as a stockbroker until his death in 1998 at the age of 93.

In 1999, the County of Henrico purchased Meadowview Farm from the Armour family. The Armour House at Meadowview opened to the public as a recreation facility on October 6, 2007. (Pictured above, present day.)

Forest fire detection and control has always been a concern for local leaders and the Virginia Department of Forestry. To address these issues during the 1930s, the Virginia Department of Forestry constructed two fire lookout towers in Henrico.

The Upper Henrico Fire Tower, a.k.a. Short Pump Fire Tower, stood in what is now the median strip of West Broad Street (Route 250), west of Tom Leonard Drive. The land for the tower was acquired from property belonging to C. A. Bowles in 1934. The Board of Supervisors appropriated $165 for the construction of the tower, and the state furnished the remaining funds. The Virginia Department of Forestry released the property to Brookhollow of Virginia, Inc. in 1987 and the tower was demolished soon after.

The second tower still stands east of Sandston on Williamsburg Road (Route 60) near Meadow Road. The county acquired this property from Grover Cleveland Madison in 1933. Currently, the land is owned by Harvest Baptist Church. Both towers were products of a coordinated effort between Aermotor Company and the U. S. Forest Service. International Derrick and Equipment Company built these models. The Meadows tower stands at 100 feet tall and is topped with a 7 by 7-foot room called a cab. Characteristic of this model, which was added to the National Lookout Historic Register in 2021, are the nine individual windowpanes in each of the cab’s eight windows. The 1933 and 1936 designs of the International Derrick Fire Towers are arranged so that the flights of stairs, except for the lowest and highest, are oriented from one corner of the tower towards the corner diagonally opposite from it.

While we can find no documentation of who built these towers, we know they were built during the Great Depression when the Civilian Conservation Corps built many other lookout towers. President Franklin D. Roosevelt formed the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), consisting of veterans of World War I and young civilian men. The U.S. Forest Service frequently utilized the CCC workforce and initiated a massive program of construction projects, including fire lookout towers and access roads.

To staff the towers, a fire lookout (also called a fire watcher) was assigned to look for fire from atop the tower. Fire watchers usually manned the towers in the spring and fall. At the East Leake tower in Goochland in 1947, the job paid $5 a day. During WWII, an estimated 50 percent of the State’s 100-odd towers were occupied by women. The towers were usually staffed part-time by local residents.

By the mid to late 1980s, fire towers were steadily being removed from service due to budget and personnel cuts to the State Division of Forestry. While the Short Pump fire tower was removed, the Meadows fire tower remained active until the late 1990s. It was then converted for use as a radio transmission tower for the Department of Forestry as well as other local and state agencies.

WHINNY HEEEEE HAAAWWW! Hello everyone, my name is Molly and I’m a draft mule. If you’ve ever been out to Meadow Farm, I’m the big beautiful brown young lady living in the equine pasture. Now normally, I know ladies don’t like to talk about their weight or size, but I’m here to tell you, it’s not always a bad thing. Because of my size, mules like me were often preferred over horses. George Washington himself used to breed mules at Mount Vernon. Mules like me have been used to pull plows, move armies, even tour the Grand Canyon!