I have an article written by Rebecca Poe in the newspaper in 1985 on Gooney Manor. From the late 1700's when its first settlers established mills on Gooney Run through 1927 when a handle factory closed, its industrial and commercial output was unequalled in Warren County. It was the center of Lord Fairfax's 14,000 acre tract and took its name from the largest of seven creeks originating in the Blue Ridge and flowing north and west into the valley. Most of the creeks flow into Gooney Run which empties into the South Fork of the Shenandoah River at Karo on Route 340. My uncle Hilery Jennings worked at the barrel factory there and my grandparents Charles and Ollie Jennings attended the first church there. The house they raised their family in which was left to my grandfather by Samuel Hillary Rudacille is still there and in great shape. My grandfather delivered the mail from Front Royal to the first post office and met and married my grandmother there. It was about 1770 that a large amount of permanent settlers arrived there, but residents were not able to own their land until after 1812 when Lord Fairfax's heir sold the entire tract to James and John Marshall. There were a tannery, a stave factory, a hardwood factory, distilleries, a cooper shop and the handle factory. Before that Gooney Run was the power for at least eight mills ( one carding mill, several sawmills, and some grist mills). I hope this much of the article answers some of your questions.

Wasn't Gooney Run named after Lord Fairfax's favorite hunting dog? I think someone wrote once to say the dog drowned in the creek, and he named it after the dog in his memory. At 09:29 AM 8/19/03 -0400, you wrote: >I have an article written by Rebecca Poe in the newspaper in 1985 on Gooney >Manor. From the late 1700's when its first settlers established mills on >Gooney Run through 1927 when a handle factory closed, its industrial and commercial >output was unequalled in Warren County. It was the center of Lord Fairfax's >14,000 acre tract and took its name from the largest of seven creeks >originating in the Blue Ridge and flowing north and west into the valley. Most of the >creeks flow into Gooney Run which empties into the South Fork of the Shenandoah >River at Karo on Route 340. My uncle Hilery Jennings worked at the barrel >factory there and my grandparents Charles and Ollie Jennings attended the first >church there. The house they raised their family in which was left to my >grandfather by Samuel Hillary Rudacille is still there and in great shape. My >grandfather delivered the mail from Front Royal to the first post office and met >and married my grandmother there. It was about 1770 that a large amount of >permanent settlers arrived there, but residents were not able to own their land >until after 1812 when Lord Fairfax's heir sold the entire tract to James and >John Marshall. There were a tannery, a stave factory, a hardwood factory, >distilleries, a cooper shop and the handle factory. Before that Gooney Run was >the power for at least eight mills ( one carding mill, several sawmills, and >some grist mills). I hope this much of the article answers some of your >questions. > > >==== VASHENAN Mailing List ==== >Shenandoah Co VAGenWeb >http://www.rootsweb.com/~vashenan/vashenan.html >