Mustering the Troops
Here at Buffalo Presbyterian Church on May 13,
1861, Confederate Capt. William E. Fife mustered
the Buffalo Guards, the militia company he had
raised in 1859. The families of church members
who served in the company included the Alexanders,
Bronaughs, Bryans, Craigs, Fraziers, and
Sterrets. Soon, the unit was designated Company A in
Col. John A. McCausland's 36th Virginia Infantry
(Fife later rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel
of the regiment). The company assembled in the
church shortly before marching away, and a "Rev.
Neely" delivered a farewell sermon. Later during
the war, the pews were removed and stored in
a nearby barn when the church served as a military hospital.
The 36th Virginia Infantry at first was
posted in this area, at the time the western part
of Virginia, and fought at the Battle of Carnifix
Ferry on September 10, 1861. It was also at Fort
Donelson, Tennessee. When the fort was surrendered
in February 1862, the regiment was captured
but soon exchanged. The Guards fought at Cloyd's
Mountain and Piedmont in Virginia in 1864.
The unit's last battle was at Waynesboro,
Virginia, on March 2, 1865. Of 52 original Guards,
3 were killed, 6 were wounded, and 3 died later.
(sidebar)
During the first half of the 19th century, Presbyterian membership
grew
in this part of the state. Ministers from neighboring Point Pleasant Church conducted services regularly in Buffalo between 1834 and
1855, when the Presbyterian governing body in Greenbrier recognized
the need for a church building here. This structure was completed
in 1857 and dedicated on August 22, with 20 charter members. The Greek Revival-style building, constructed with separate entrances for men and women as was typical for Presbyterian churches of the time, still has its original interior including a slave balcony and stairs. The organ, though not original, is more than a century old.
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