Name/Title
Letter from R. P. Tabb, Fairfax Camp, July 3, 1859Entry/Object ID
ARC921Scope and Content
Letter written July 3, 1859, by R. P. Tabb at Fairfax Camp to his friend Cris. In the letter, Tabb noted that he had gone to Fairfax Stone "to help run the line between Maryland and Virginia." Much of the letter is about life in the camp.
According to George E. Tabb, Tabb family genealogist, the letter was likely written by Robert Peyton Tabb (1839-1910), who was part of a group surveying the Mason Dixon line near the Fairfax Stone. (See photograph and other information on R. P. Tabb at https://www.tabbfamilyhistory.com/p2.htm#i71.)
According to JCM historian Doug Perks, a resurvey was done in 1859 to try to resolve a dispute between Virginia and Maryland about whether the North Branch or the South Branch of the Potomac was the western boundary of the line. In 1910, the U.S. Supreme Court settled the dispute and established the North Branch as the western boundary.Acquisition
Accession
601Source or Donor
Tabb, Jane for Virginia Tabb FamilyAcquisition Method
GiftCredit Line
Donated by the Virginia D. Tabb FamilyArchive Details
Date(s) of Creation
Jul 3, 1859Archive Size/Extent
One handwritten letterArchive Notes
Date(s): 1859 July 3