A Memorial At W&L-Megan Fricke

Today I was on a run when I discovered a very important memorial.  I was running through back campus, up near the athletic fields and the freshman parking lot when I ran by this memorial that commemorates a very significant part of Washington and Lee's history.  This memorial recognizes Liberty Hall, the original school that would soon be known internationally was the university that it is today.  The University was originally known as Augusta Academy and served as an institution for higher learning at a different site approximately 20 miles north of Lexington.  In 1782, however, the school relocated to this site and was officially chartered by Virginia legislature as Liberty Hall Academy.  After two extremely destructive fires, the original wooden buildings were completely destroyed.  In 1793, the stone structure that is seen on the memorial plaque and whose ruins stand on site today was officially constructed.  Yet, in 1803, the school fell victim once again to a destructive fire.  It was after this fire that the the school relocated to its present location.

Here you can see the ruins that have preserved as a reminder of the beginning of Washington and Lee University.  Our school is proud and reminiscent of its history, as tradition is a very important and revered aspect of life on campus.  Today, visitors can walk up and directly observe the ruin.  This memorial shows just how proud Washington and Lee is of its history and of its past.  Parties and events are often held in the grass directly under the shadows of the ruins and the memorial, so that attendees are aware of the past and the building that made today's school possible.  The memorial itself is built into the hill in front of the ruins.  There are 3 plaques installed in this hill that offer information about the ruins and commemorate the site as an important historical landmark.  Here are pictures of these 3 plaques: