Notes
Reverend Patrick Henry Fontaine (1841–1915) was born on September 18, 1841, at Fontainebleau in King William County, Virginia. Rev. P. H. Fontaine is a great-grandson of Patrick Henry through Martha Henry (1755–1818). Fontaine died of pneumonia at his home in Bethel Hill, North Carolina, on March 29, 1915.
On August 10, 1863, Rev. P.H. Fontaine was appointed First Lieutenant and Chaplain of the 53rd Virginia Infantry Regiment and attached to the 1st Light King William Artillery.
Formed in 1861, the 53rd Virginia Infantry Regiment served in several major battles of the Civil War, such as Seven Pines, Cold Harbor, and Gettysburg. The regiment remained in active service until General Robert E. Lee's surrender at Appomattox Court House, Virginia, on April 9, 1865.
Rev. Fontaine's military appointment was recommended by Major Henry A. Edmondson (1833–1918) following a vacancy within the 53rd Regiment after the resignation of the unit's previous chaplain, Rev. William S. Penick (1836–1907), in 1862. Rev. Fontaine's appointment was also supported by Colonel William R. Aylett (1833–1900), a great-grandson of Patrick Henry through Elizabeth Henry (1769–1842).
According to Confederate service records, Rev. Fontaine was posted near Bermuda Hundred, Virginia, from August 10 to December 30, 1864.
During his time as Chaplain of the 53rd Virginia Infantry Regiment, Rev. Fontaine wore this red silk scarf. This is asserted through an attached handwritten note which says: "Scarf worn by Rev. P.H. Fontaine while an officer in the King Wm artillery in the beginning of the Confederate War." It may have been worn as a clergy vestment. In the 19th century, silk was a highly sought-after luxury textile owing to its pleasant texture and illustrious appearance.
This scarf was given to the Patrick Henry Memorial Foundation on May 3, 2023, by Monique and Philip Heller. They inherited this object and the others in this accession from her stepmother, Catherine Spotswood Fontaine Lawrence (1938–2015), a third-great-granddaughter of Patrick Henry. Reverend Patrick Henry Fontaine was her grandfather.