Jetersville is a mostly rural unincorporated community in southwestern Amelia County in the U.S. state of Virginia, just off 
US 360 (Patrick Henry Highway). The town is centered around the intersection of SR 671 (Jetersville Road, a short loop segment of old US 360) and SR 640 (Perkinson Road). The Norfolk Southern Railway runs along the main roads.[1]
Jetersville, Virginia | |
|---|---|
  Jetersville, Virginia Location within the Commonwealth of Virginia  Jetersville, Virginia Jetersville, Virginia (the United States) | |
| Coordinates: 37°17′37″N 78°05′44″W / 37.2935°N 78.0955°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Virginia |
| County | Amelia |
| Elevation | 457 ft (139 m) |
| Time zone | UTC−5 (Eastern (EST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−4 (EDT) |
| ZIP code | 23083 |
| Area code | 804 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1495758 |
History
editOrigins
editJetersville, at first called Perkinsonville,[2][3] was named for John "Black Jack" Jeter, according to local lore.[4] Other sources hold that it was named for John's father, Rodophil Jeter (for whom the community of Rodophil was also named).[5] Apparently the Jeters originally were French Huguenots who fled persecution, eventually coming to America around the beginning of the 1700s.[6] Rodophil Jeter was a delegate to the state legislature and a prominent figure in Amelia County government in the early 1800s,[7][8] and several members of his family established businesses in the area. The town's post office, one of the earliest in Amelia County, was called "Jetersville" (or, later, "Jetersville Station") beginning about 1826 or 1827.[9][3]
Civil War
editJetersville lies close to the route followed by Confederate general Robert E. Lee and his army in their retreat during the final days of the Civil War, before the surrender to Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox on April 9, 1865. The last major battle fought by Lee's army occurred just a few miles west at Sayler's Creek, on the border of Amelia and Prince Edward counties, on April 6. Numerous roadside historical marker signs line the route, including one on old US 360 that reads as follows:[10]
Jetersville: April 5, 1865: Lee found Union cavalry and infantry across his line of retreat at this station on the Richmond and Danville Railroad. Rather than attacking the entrenched Federals, he chose to change direction and begin a night march toward Farmville where rations awaited the army.
Mining
editIn the late 1800s and early 1900s, the Schlegel (or Schlegal) and Keystone mica mines near Jetersville were among several lodes developed into profitable operations in Amelia County, although they were quickly depleted. The area around Jetersville and Amelia contains some of the most extensive mica and feldspar deposits in Virginia.[11][12]
Tornadoes
editAmelia County is located in a small Central Virginia tornado alley and has had numerous tornado touchdowns. Tornadoes of note include the April 30, 1924, twister that passed east of the courthouse area, traveling from the Jetersville vicinity to Chula, killing one person and injuring seven others.[13]
Rosenwald School
editJetersville School, built around 1923 or 1924, was among several Rosenwald Schools in Amelia County constructed between 1917 and 1928. The design for Jetersville called for a 4-acre campus with a building to accommodate two teachers.[14] During the early 20th century, the Rosenwald School project was a collaborative effort that erected thousands of facilities across the South primarily for the education of African American children. A property on US 360 named Jetersville School was advertised for sale in the 1960s,[15] after desegregation.
Present-day Jetersville
editJetersville remained a small but prosperous railway stop well into the 20th century. The railroad now carries only freight trains, however, and the older section of town, centered around the former rail station, has fallen into decline, as the depot has closed and development has shifted northwest toward the four-lane US 360 bypass.[2] The town still has its own fire station (Amelia County Volunteer Fire Department Co. 3), as well as its own post office (ZIP code 23083), which serves most of western Amelia County.
References
edit- ^ "Front of rail map print" (PDF). Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation (DRPT). September 24, 2019. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 18, 2019. Retrieved April 27, 2023.
- ^ a b Hingley, Audrey T. "Jetersville: An oasis of calm amid encroaching development". Archived from "Crossroads", Cooperative Living Magazine, October 2018. Retrieved April 27, 2023.
- ^ a b Hadfield, Kathleen Halverson. Historical Notes on Amelia County, page 62. Amelia County Historical Committee, 1982. Retrieved June 30, 2023.
- ^ Watson, Walter A. Notes on Southside Virginia, Bulletin of the Virginia State Library, Richmond, August 1924, Volumes 15-16, Nos. 2-4, page 63. Edited by Henry R. McIlwaine. Retrieved November 15, 2021.
- ^ History of Virginia, Volume 4, page 388. Chicago and New York: The American Historical Society, 1924. Retrieved November 28, 2021.
- ^ Thomasson, Curtis. "Jeter ancestors were of French Hugenot(sic) descent, later Virginia", The Andalusia [Alabama] Star-News, December 17, 2011. Retrieved November 28, 2021.
- ^ "House History: Rodophil Jeter", Virginia General Assembly, Richmond. Retrieved November 15, 2021.
- ^ "Ingleside 1997 Final Nomination", National Register of Historic Places, Virginia Department of Historic Resources. Retrieved November 15, 2021.
- ^ Hall, Virginius Cornick Jr. "Virginia Post Offices, 1798-1859", The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, vol. 81, no. 1, Virginia Historical Society, 1973, page 71. Retrieved December 4, 2021.
- ^ "Jetersville Historical Marker: Lee's Retreat", The Historical Marker Database, J.J. Prats, editor and publisher, Powell, Ohio. Retrieved November 15, 2021.
- ^ Sterrett, Douglass Bovard. Mica Deposits of the United States, US Geological Survey, Bulletin 740, Issues 740-744, pages 307, 317-318. Washington: Government Printing Office, 1923. Retrieved December 2, 2021.
- ^ Brown, William Randall. Mica and Feldspar Deposits of Virginia, pages 4, 6, 10-11. Virginia Div. of Mineral Resources, 1962. Retrieved December 19, 2021.
- ^ Sammler, Bill (July 1, 2008). "Tornado History". Virginia Department of Emergency Management (VDEM)-Vaemergency.gov. Archived from the original on March 17, 2014. Retrieved March 17, 2014.
- ^ National Register of Historic Places Multiple-Property Documentation Form, Rosenwald Schools, Virginia Department of Historic Resources, page 81. Retrieved December 14, 2021.
- ^ "Auction Sale: Surplus School Property In Amelia County, Va.", Classified advertisements, The Farmville Herald, Volume 77, Number 50, 17 March 1967, page 8C. Retrieved from the Virginia Chronicle, Library of Virginia, July 6, 2023.
U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Jetersville, Virginia
External links
edit- Current photo of old section of Jetersville, Railfire Photography, Jeff Hawkins