LEESYLVANIA STATE PARK HISTORY
The history of this park can be traced back to the first owners as it served as home to the well-known Lee family. Henry Lee II lived on the property from 1747 until his death in 1787. During that time his wife gave birth to the later known cavalry colonel in the Revolution Henry Lee III (Light Horse Harry), also the father of great Confederate General Robert E. Lee. In 1825 the property was sold to Henry Fairfax and later inherited by his son John, but burned in the year 1910.
In 1978, noted philanthropist Daniel Ludwig donated the land to the state for a park. Leesylvania State Park opened full time in 1992 named in reminisce of the Lee family once owners of the property and place of their family gravesite where both war heros Henry Lee III and Robert E. Lee are buried. Today the park still inlcudes remnants from the past such as Freestone Point which was the site of a Confederate force and gun emplacement during the Civil War.
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