Blue Ridge Country January/February 2022 - 27

The white post of White Post,
Virginia, has been standing,
in various rebuilt and repaired
iterations, since 1750. Undated
inset photo shows a much
earlier construction of the oftendamaged
post.
which it was named. Along two intersecting
colonial roads, villagers gradually
erected houses, shops and churches. After
the arrival of paved roads and automobiles,
the post did not budge. Standing
like an awkward centennial in the
middle of the road, Washington's marker
remained the village's dearest claim to
fame.
The post has often been replaced due
to wood rot or accidents. There is no record
of the original design, but Washington's
journals mention markers made of
locust.
Old photographs show variations of
the octagonal post and its four directional
paddles (Battletown, Greenway Court,
Berry's Ferry, Stephens City). Some photos
show a simple finial at the top, and
others show a lantern.
Thompson says that when the interior
post needs total replacement, they
use a locust tree from Mount Vernon.
" We have a contact there to help us with
that. "
The post can never be relocated, because
it is listed on the National Register
of Historic Places, which some motorists
apparently find inconvenient.
Thompson lost count of the number
of accidents, but his business has rebuilt
the post 13 times. About 20 years ago,
a SUV hit the post with such force that
it destroyed the post and totaled the
flipped vehicle. The driver, a physician,
told police " he didn't see " the large post.
" A daytime accident in a 25-mile speed
zone, " shrugs Thompson. Other accidents
involved snow plows, street pavers,
tractor trailers, and pick-up trucks.
One repair went to court when the
responsible party refused to pay for damages.
That's when the Virginia Department
of Transportation claimed ownership.
Now Thompson conducts repairs
as a contractor to VDOT, and he says a
complete redo takes about 30 hours and
costs $5,000.
The latest damage to the post was a
late-night hit-and-run encounter in December
2020. " We have a security camera, "
says Thompson, whose primary
business is renowned automobile shop
White Post Restorations (see our Sept./
Oct. 2021 issue for a profile). " A service
truck was pulling a trailer, and the trailer
caught the edge of the post, spun it a bit
and broke a few of the boards, but we
couldn't catch the license plate number. "
Thompson has the drill down pat,
and repairs were promptly scheduled.
" White Post residents love this post, " he
says. " It's what we're known for, and we
don't want it to ever go away. "
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2022 27

Blue Ridge Country January/February 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Blue Ridge Country January/February 2022

Blue Ridge Country January/February 2022 - 1
Blue Ridge Country January/February 2022 - 2
Blue Ridge Country January/February 2022 - 3
Blue Ridge Country January/February 2022 - 4
Blue Ridge Country January/February 2022 - 5
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