Dinwiddie County

Sesquicentennial Planning Committee

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

February 20, 2015 Contact: H. Edward Mann Updated Information (757) 343-5539

Living History Lecture to Commemorate 150th Anniversary of the Pegram/Cary Wedding and General Pegram’s Untimely Death Three Weeks Later

Dinwiddie, VA – The Dinwiddie County Sesquicentennial Planning Committee, in conjunction with the City of Petersburg Department of Cultural Affairs, Arts and Tourism , will host a commemorative lecture on Sunday, March 1 , 2015 at 3:30 p.m. The event will be held at Blanford Church , 319 Crater Road , Petersburg, .

The topic of the lecture will be the wedding of Petersburg native General , and the beautiful and lively , which was held at St. Paul ’s Church in Richmond on January 19, 1865. This was considered the social highlight of an otherwise bleak winter in the capital of the Confederacy and boasted several notable guests, including President and Mrs. . The couple’s honeymoon was cut short due to the General’s military responsibilities, yet the new Mrs. Pegram accompanied her husband and stayed at his headquarters in Dinwiddie County.

On February 6, 1865, General Pegram was killed leading his men at the Battle of Hatcher’s Run. His funeral was held in the same church in which he had been married three weeks earlier.

This program will use costumed interpreters to recreate aspects of both ceremonies and showcase marriage and funeral customs of the mid-19th century. It will also address the i mpact the war had on the traditions and rituals of these two important social events, including customs, appropriate dress, decorations and the role of family, friends, etc…

Tickets for the lecture are $10 each and may be purchased on-line at: www.PlayDinwiddie.com.

Proceeds will benefit the Dinwiddie County Sesquicentennial Planning Committee and the Ladies Memorial Association of Petersburg.

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