While he was President of the United States, Woodrow Wilson returned to Staunton and placed a tablet on the wall of the First Presbyterian Church in memory of his father, Dr. Joseph Wilson, a former minister. The church in which Dr. Wilson used to preach and in which the President was christened serves now as the Chapel of Mary Baldwin College.
An interesting old home in Staunton is the Stuart House, located on Lewis Street. It was planned by the great architect and builder Thomas Jefferson. Mr. A. H. Stuart, the owner, was a member of President Fillmore's Cabinet.
The main building of the School for the Deaf and Blind is an unexcelled example of Doric architecture. During the War Between the States it was used as a hospital.
Waynesboro and Afton
"Mad Anthony Wayne," the Revolutionary hero, has a town named for him in Virginia—Waynesboro. This is a beautiful place which has become even more popular upon completion of the projected Skyline Drive southward from Swift Run Gap.
The State Conservation Commission has erected an historical marker which states briefly:
"Here on one of the first roads west of the Blue Ridge, a hamlet stood in colonial times. The Walker exploring expedition started from this vicinity in 1748. Here, in June 1781, the Augusta militia assembled to join Lafayette in the East. A town was founded in 1797. It was established by law in 1801 and named for General Anthony Wayne."
In 1854 the countryside was very much excited over the trip made by the first train travelling west of the Blue Ridge. Crowds gathered to see the phenomenon and half of them left in fright, we are told, as the iron horse chugged off. Incidentally, mules hauled the first passenger engine over the high mountains and set it down for its memorable exodus.
For the most part the buildings one sees in the town have been erected since 1861, for in that year a devastating fire wiped out the landmarks of pioneer days.