lard became a lieutenant-governor of Virginia and an
Ambassador to Spain during the administration of Woodrow Wilson. He
had married Belle Layton Wyatt from Middlesex County who was a
distinguished hostess. Their home became the scene of many brilliant
affairs.

President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1943 attended the wedding of Mrs.
Willard's grand-daughter, Belle Wyatt Roosevelt, to John Palfrey of
Boston. Secret service men swarmed around the Willard home and a
special ramp was built from the flag-stone walk at Truro Episcopal
Church onto the sill of the church door, so the President could
attend the wedding in his wheel-chair.

The United Daughters of the Confederacy (Fairfax Chapter) dedicated
the chimes in the cupola of the Fairfax Methodist Church to Antonia
Ford, commemorating a small Southern girl who left a heritage of
unselfish love and devotion to the South in general, and to the Town
of Fairfax, in particular.

[Illustration]

XI. STEALING OF IMPORTANT PAPERS

During the time that the Union Army occupied Fairfax a group of
Blenkers Dutch held the court house in the spring or autumn of 1862.
They had been recruited in Pennsylvania from the most ignorant and
reckless German characters and could not understand a word of
English.

Due to the Blenkers Dutch, many important papers at the court house
were stolen or destroyed. These men broke open the safe and used
wills, deeds, or anything that came into their hands to keep their
fires going. It was only by luck that the will of Martha Washington
was saved.

A Lt. Col. Thompson who was in command walked in on the men burning
papers and made them stop. Reaching down to see what they were
burning, he picked out a paper at random. Finding it to be the will
of Martha Washington, he put it in his pocket and either mailed it
to his daughter or gave it to her after he returned home.

[Illustration]

Years later the people of Fairfax learned that the will had been
sold by Miss Thompson to J. P. Morgan and they set out to recover
it. In the Fairfax County Historical Society Year Book, 1952-53, is
an interesting account of the correspondence between Mr. Morgan's
son and the citizens of the Town, the Governor of Virginia, and
others. The will now rests beside that of George Washington in a
glass enclosed case in the Clerk's Office of Fairfax Court House.

It is also well known that Washington's will barely escaped being
burned in the fire at Richmond, wher