I found this blurb quite a few years ago in the library of Univ. of West Florida in Pensacola, Florida. I thought it was all pretty interesting. Hope you enjoy it. I don't know if there was any more to the thesis but this is all that I found. Take care Marilyn THE VALLEY OF VIRGINIA 1763-1789 Ph.D. thesis by Freeman Honsfort Hart and published at University of North Carolina in 1942. "'The Valley,' as the expression is understood by those who live in it, denotes the tract of country in Virginia bounded on the east by the Blue Ridge and on the west by a parallel ridge called, in most of its extent, the North Mountain. The first settlers in this valley, with few exceptions, were from the north of Ireland. They were the descendants of the Scotch, who, for various reasons, had immigrated to this country, and had taken with them the Kirk and the school. They were decided Presbyterians. In passing from Staunton to Lexington along the road leading through Brownsburg, about twenty-two miles from Staunton, the traveler will notice a brick church a few hundred yards on his right, and near it a large graveyard. The house that is now occupied is the third in which the congregation of New Providence has worshipped. (My note: James and Isabell Callison worshipped at New Providence Church) The first was a wooden structure, and stood a short distance east of where the road to the church crosses the creek. The second was of stone, and occupied in part the ground that is covered by the present building. This house was built either in 1745 or 1746. At that time there was but one vehicle that moved on wheels in the congregation, and it was a one-horse cart. The heavy timbers for the roof and galleries were dragged to the place with one end resting on the axle of the cart and the other on the ground. The sand used in plastering the house was carried in sacks on horseback about ten miles, and this was done chiefly by the girls of the congregation. The people of that period were not infrequently disturbed by alarms of Indians, and the whole of a family would go to church on a Sabbath because they dared not leave any at home. The father and sons carried their weapons with them, prepared to defend their lives, and a large number of armed men were frequently seen at the church. The soil in the valley is primarily stiff, red-clay limestone formation that readily lends itself to grain and grass production.. Here in the Rev. era, farmers reaped fine crops of hemp, wheat, corn, flax, barley, oats and rye. Since pasturage was abundant, they pocketed easy profits from raising cattle, sheep, horses and hogs. The soil did not offer much promise for tobacco culture. The most acceptable estimate for the population in 1763 of the valley (Berkley, Frederick, Dunmore, Rockingham, Augusta, Rockbridge and Botetourt) was 20,000 whites. The population density was 3 to a square mile. There were six towns in the valley of 1763, Winchester, Mecklenburg, Staunton, Stephenburg, Strasburg and Woodstock. Five of these had been established in the 6 years before 1763 partly because of the theory that the "erecting of towns" might aid the inhabitants in defending themselves against Indian raids. From the standpoint of a "money crop", hemp was the leading product just before the Revolution. The amount of hemp was remarkably large. In 1767, 23 Augusta growers each raised between 1,000 and 8,800 pounds. One diary reports hemp 14 feet high and rivaled Russia in producing it for the English Navy. Hemp was priced at 30-50 shillings per hundredweight. In the decade 1763-1774 the county courts made provision for hundreds of local roads. The roads were usually opened by the labor of titheable persons who lived nearby and there was little expense involved since road building meant little more than clearing trees and leveling rough places. The "Great Road" as termed by some pioneers crossed the Potomac down to Staunton to Fincastle at the lower end of the Valley. There it had 3 forks: the south to the Carolinas, the center to the SW meaning Ky. and Tenn., and west to the trans Allegheny region by way of Greenbrier Valley. Less that 1/2 of the homes had kitchen utensils, only about 1/3 had beds and only 1 family in six had table and chairs. (These estimations were taken from records of estate sales). This did not signify destitution but merely the hardiness of these early pioneers. Meals were prepared Indian fashion and the family slept on the floor or bunks nailed into corners and used logs for table and chairs. One of the most prized possessions was a "rifle gun". The average inventory in Botetourt was 151 pounds mostly livestock and farm equipment.. Most of the houses were 1 story, built of stone, well constructed but not large or imposing. Comfort, warmth, and occasionally protection from Indians along with low cost and frugality were determining factors. There were a number of schools with teachers pay about 18 pounds/year. Tuition was 2 shillings per month per child and the schools numbered 15-30 children One of the pioneer Presbyterian ministers of the Valley, John Brown took his avocation seriously of teaching the youth of his church so that before 1763, he established Augusta Academy.