Historical Marker Sought For Third Of Documented Lynchings In Loudoun County

LOUDOUN COUNTY, VA — A historical marker is being pursued to recognize one of Loudoun County's three documented lynchings. The lynching of Page Wallace happened in 1880 in northern Loudoun County.

On Tuesday, the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors approved an initiative to seek the historical marker for the Page Wallace lynching. There are already historical markers to acknowledge the 1889 lynching of Orion Anderson and the 1902 lynching of Charles Craven in Leesburg. The board member initiative was sought by Chair Phyllis Randall (D-at large), Supervisor Sylvia Glass (D-Broad Run) and Supervisor Koran Saines (D-Sterling).

According to Board of Supervisors meeting documents, Wallace was lynched on the Virginia side of the Potomac River near Point of Rocks without due process in a court. A Richmond Times-Dispatch article from 1880 noted Wallace had been accused of two assaults on women. After being held in the county jail in Leesburg for an accusation of raping a woman, the article noted he escaped and was accused of the second assault on a woman.

After a reward was out for Wallace's arrest, he was arrested on the Maryland side of the river days later, according to the Richmond Times-Dispatch article. On Feb. 17, 1880, Wallace was being transferred from Maryland jail to Virginia. When law enforcement and Wallace arrived on shore by ferry, a mob rushed them and took Wallace. He was hanged on a tree up the road where the second woman claimed Wallace assaulted her. The woman was the first to fire a shot at Wallace's hanging body, and 15 to 20 shots by others followed.

All three Loudoun County lynching victims are recognized on a slab at The National Memorial for Peace and Justice, also known as the National Lynching Memorial, in Montgomery, Alabama.

County staff will work with the Loudoun County Heritage Commission, Loudoun Freedom Center, and the Loudoun branch of the NAACP to evaluate getting a historical marker from the Virginia Department of Historical Resources. An update with recommendations will come to a future Loudoun County Board of Supervisors meeting.