Margaret Ann Martin

Margaret Ann Martin

Margaret Ann Martin was born 4 September 1836.[341] [342] Margaret and her brother Bob married a brother and sister. Margaret married James H. Childs and Bob married James’ sister Mary Virginia Childs.

The Childs’ farm was only about a mile north of the Martin “home” farm, thus the children grew up as neighbors. Margaret and James were married 20 December 1866.[343] [344] [345] He was 33 and she was 30. Margaret and her husband are both buried in the Childs Family Cemetery in Casanova.

Margaret’s Husband James H. Childs

James H. Childs was born 15 April 1833 and died 19 July 1878 at age 44.[346] [347] He was the son of William H. Childs and Nancy Ann Lewis. (See Appendix 2 for details of his family.)

James H. Childs served in the Black Horse Cavalry along with his brother Francis A. Childs, and with his three famous Martin brothers-in-law. Military records mention that he was a 2nd sergeant, and was captured and imprisoned at the notorious Union prison at Morris Island, South Carolina He became blind while a prisoner.[348] [349]

The Early Death of Margaret and Children

Margaret died age 37, 22 May 1874 in childbirth of her fourth child.[350] [351] The child survived only a few months, succumbing, according to family tradition, along with two siblings, in a typhoid epidemic. [352]

Margaret Martin and James Childs had the following children:

John W. Childs, born 17 June 1869, died 5 October 1874, aged 5. Ernest Lee Childs was born 24 August 1870 and died 2 February 1954 Ida May Childs, born 22 December 1871, died 8 December 1874, aged 3. James H. Childs, Jr., born 22 May 1874, died 27 September 1874 aged 4

months.

Only Ernest Lee survived his siblings.

Ernest Lee Childs

Ernest Lee Childs was born 24 August 1870 and died 2 February 1954 at age 83. On 3 April 1912, he married Anna Montgomery Strother, who was born 29 April 1876, and died, 2 April 1968, a few days short of her ninety-second birthday.[353] [354]

Ernest Lee’s was orphaned when he was eight and lived the rest of his childhood with his Uncle William and Aunt Mary Virginia and then cared for Mary until her death in 1912. He was a banker.

[Need personal sketches. Ask Alice Jane#]

His obituary read:

E. L. Childs Dies at 83; Rites Today. Ernest Lee Childs, 83, prominent Fauquier farmer and banker died Tuesday night, February 2. He had been in ill health for several years. Mr. Childs was the last surviving charter member of the Fauquier National Bank’s board of directors. He had been associated with the bank since its organization in January 1902, and since 1981 had been a vice-president. He operated a prosperous farm at Casanova, where he was born and had spent his lifetime, and was active in agricultural and community work, having served on numerous boards and committees. He was a member of the Fauquier School Trustee Electoral Board and had been with the Production Marketing Association. He was born August 24, 1870, at Casanova, son of Mr. and Mrs. James Childs. He attended county schools and a business college in Poughkeepsie, N. Y. He is survived by his wife, the former Anna Montgomery Strother, and two children, Ernest Lee Childs, Jr. of Casanova, and Mrs. James B. Nixdorff of White Sands, N.M. Funeral services will be conducted at 3 p. m., Thursday at the Warrenton Methodist Church, of which he was a member. Burial will be in Warrenton Cemetery.[355]

His wife Anna’s obituary reads:

Mrs. Anna Montgomery Strother Childs 91, died April 2 at the District Nursing Home after a long illness. She was the wife of Ernest Lee Childs who died in 1954. Born at Broad Run, Mrs. Childs was the daughter of the late Alfred W. and Agnes Conway Smith Strother and had spent most of her life in Fauquier.[356] Mrs. Childs was a graduate of the Alexandria Hospital School of Nursing and was one of the founders of the Woman’s Auxiliary of Fauquier Hospital. She is survived by a daughter Mrs. James [Barr] Nixdorff, Pasadena, Md., a son Earnest Lee Childs, Jr., Casanova, a sister Miss Jane Strother of Washington and four grandchildren. Funeral services were conducted April 4 at the Warrenton Methodist Church by the Rev. Jack Minnick assisted by the Rev. Charles R. Allen of Grace church, Casanova. Burial was in Warrenton Cemetery.[357]

Both Ernest Lee and Anna are buried in the Warrenton Cemetery.[358] [359]

[Need more bio see Fauquier Bank anniv. Issue article by Shield.#]

Ernest Lee Childs and Anna Strother had Ernest Lee Childs, Jr. and Agnes Conway Childs.

Ernest Lee Childs, Jr.

Ernest Lee Childs, Jr., was born in Casanova, Virginia 12 May, 1914. He married Alice Jane Buchanan 4 March 1947 in York, South Carolina. Alice Jane was one-half third cousin, once removed to her husband.

His Wife Alice Jane

She was born in Opal, Fauquier County, 20 May 1926 at the home of her parents. Her father was James Clinton Buchanan and her mother was Louise Mabel Johnson, both born in Opal. Louise was the daughter of Howard Johnson, of Opal, Virginia and Alice Shumate. Alice was the daughter of Mary Weaver who married John W. Shumate at St. James Episcopal Church in Warrenton in 1863. (See Appendix 6). She attended Bealeton School and after graduating she returned to Washington and attended Strayers College. She was employed by the American Red Cross during World War II. She then went to work in the Commissioner of the Revenue Office in Fauquier County in 1951. In 1966 she was appointed the Commissioner. She then ran for election for this position seven times. She was the first woman elected as a constitutional officer in Fauquier County. After 44 years she retired in March of 1995. She is one of the first women to serve on a bank board.

Ernest Lee attended public school in Fauquier County and Washington & Lee University in Lexington, Virginia. He was with the Fauquier National Bank and a fertilizer plant in Alexandria before returning home to become a partner in the farming operation with his father. In 1941 he enlisted in the Marine Corp and served in the battles of Okinawa, Guam and Iwo Jima with the 3rd Marine War Dog Platoon. Upon his discharge from the service in 1945 he returned to the farm.

Earnest Lee’s Death

Ernest Lee Childs, Jr. died 8 August, 2002. His obituary read:

Ernest Lee Childs Jr. was farmer and WWII veteran. Ernest Lee Childs Jr, 88, of Casanova, died Aug. 8 in the home where he was born and raised. Born May 12, 1914, he was the son of Ernest L. and Anna Strother Childs and spent his entire life in Casanova, with the exception of this college years at Washington Lee University and service to the nation in World War II. Upon returning home from college, he was employed by the Fauquier National Bank. After a short period working in Alexandria, he returned to the farm of his ancestors, which had been in the family since the early 1800s, and operated it in partnership with his father until his father’s death in 1954. In 1943, he enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps and served with distinction in the Pacific Theater with the 3rd Marine Divisions 3rd Marine War Dog Platoon, with action at Guam, the Marianas, Iwo Jima and the Volcano Islands.Mr. Childs was well-known in Fauquier County for his dedication to children and baseball. He and his wife built a baseball diamond on the family farm that is still used by Fauquier County’s youth. He himself was an outstanding pitcher. He was preceded in death by his parents and a sister, Agnes Conway Nixdorff. Survivors include his wife of 53 years, Alice Jane Childs of Casanova; one son, Dale S. “Chip” Childs of Casanova; and a granddaughter. A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. Wednesday, Aug. 14, at Moser Funeral Home, Warrenton, by the Rev. J. Richard Winter. Interment will be in the family plot at the Warrenton Cemetery. Memorial contributions may be made to …”[360]

The Catlett neighborhood column in the Times Democrat reported on his funeral:

On Wednesday at Moser’s visitation and a memorial service was held for Ernest Lee Childs, with a large crowd in attendance. An interesting photo-collage of his life as well as his Marine uniform, and a Marine flag were displayed. The Rev. Dick Winter led the service and the music included the Marine Hymn and “Take Me Out to the Ball Game.” A very touching part of the service was when two World Ware II Marine comrades came in to give tribute to “Uncle Joe” and tell some anecdotes of their Iwo Jima days. Many gave tribute to Child’s lifelong interest in sports in the county, particularly for furnishing Childs Field on his farm for a place to play baseball (the flag there was at half-staff all week.) Burial at Warrenton Cemetery was accompanied by a marine detail doing a beautiful salute ending in “Taps” (wearing those dress wool uniforms.) Afterwards, there was a gathering of friends and family at the Childs home, arranged by the ECW group at Grace Church in Casanova and other neighbors. He will be missed from that community, where he spent his entire life in the same house.[361] [Need photos#]

Dale Strother Childs

E. L. Childs, Jr. and his wife Alice Jane had Dale Strother “Chip” Childs, born 25 July 1958, in _____#_. He attended Highland School in Fauquier County and Episcopal High School in Alexandria, Virginia. On _____ he married Kathy Haworth, daughter of ___ and ___ who was born _____ in ______ . and they have one daughter Casey Viģe Childs.

Agnes Conway Childs

Agnes Conway Childs was born 2 January 1916 in Casanova, Virginia and died 4 March 1998 in Largo, Florida in an automobile accident. She married James Barr Nixdorff 26 January 1946 in Culpeper, Virginia. He was born 20 March 1918 in Des Moines, Iowa the son of Glenn Hepner Nixdorff who was born 3 November 1887, in Mendon, Illinois, and Mabel Claire Barr Nixdorff Who was born 26 August 1882 in Perry, Missouri and died: 4 May 1940, in Mendota, Illinois. She is buried in Restland Cemetery, Mendota, Illinois. They were married 4 June 1917 in Des Moines, Iowa.[363]

James Nixdorff died 23 October 2000 in Destrehan Louisiana. Agnes and her husband are buried in Warrenton Cemetery. They had: James Barr Nixdorff, Jr., Charles Lee Nixdorff and Michael Mead Nixdorff.

[Need photos#]

Their son James wrote about his parents:

My Dad, Nix to his friends, was stationed at Vint Hill Farms Station off and on during the 1940s, serving also at Fort Shafer, Hawaii during the attack on Pearl Harbor, and Asmara, Ethiopia. While at Vint Hill he was pretty well known in sports circles in Fauquier County. He was 6’4” and a very good athlete playing on a number on basketball and baseball teams in the county. His picture hangs in Rhodes Drug Store as a member of a Fauquier Springs baseball team. After my Mom and Dad were married, they lived in Warrenton. They served Army tours in Fort Monmouth, New Jersey; White Sands, New Mexico; Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, Tokyo, Japan; Fort Meade, Maryland at NSA; and Fort Devens, Massachusetts. After retiring in ___ as a Lt. Colonel in 1962, my Dad held a variety of jobs before he and my Mom retired to Florida in 1971. My youngest brother Mike was 10 when they moved to Florida so a lot of their time was spent raising him. My Dad coached a lot baseball teams Mike played on and both watched a lot of his games. My Mom died in a car accident in 1998 in Largo, Florida and my Dad died of colon cancer while living with my brother Charlie in Destrehan, Louisiana in 2000. Mom attended Warrenton High School, graduating in 1934. She then worked as a secretary for the County Agent, Walter Nourse, until she married. During that time she continued to live at the Childs farm in Casanova. My Mom was a good athlete, playing basketball in high school. She also played a lot of tennis. She also had a lot to do with teaching my brothers and me baseball and was always willing to go and play catch with us. Both my parents are buried next to my Mom’s parents in Warrenton Cemetery.

His obituary read:

James B. Nixdorff U.S. Army retired. Lt. Col. James Barr Nixdorff, 82, of Warrenton died Oct. 23, in Louisiana. Lt. Col. Nixdorff retired from the Army after 22 years of service. He and his wife Agnes Conway Childs Nixdorff, who predeceased him, lived in the Largo, Fla., area for 26 years. She was a daughter of the late Mr. and Mrs. Ernest Lee Childs Sr. of Fauquier County. Lt. Col. Nixdorff is survived by three sons, James B. Nixdorff Jr. of Warrenton, Charles L. Nixdorff of Destrehan, La., and Michael M. Nixdorff of Kenner, La.; and two grandchildren. Funeral services will be held Oct. 27 at 11 a.m. at the Moser Funeral Home in Warrenton. Interment will be at Warrenton Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the American Cancer Society, P.O. Box 1747, Culpeper, Va. 22701. (Wife’s OBITUARY)

James Barr Nixdorff, Jr.

James Barr Nixdorff, Jr., great grandson of Margaret Ann Martin, was born

June 1947 at Walter Reed Hospital in Washington, D. C. He received his

B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in 1970. He received his MBA from University of Florida in 1974. He married Janet Lynn Czolgos 1 May 1976 in Lincoln, Nebraska. She was born 23 February 1949, Grand Island, Nebraska. She is the daughter of Glenice Evelyn Black Czolgos___ and Leonard Jacob Czolgos. She married first, ______ .[364]

I was born at Walter Reed Hospital in Washington, DC but my first home was in a little house where the Ryder Construction Company [on Marshall Street in Warrenton] is now. At Virginia Tech, I was a member of the Corps of Cadets and was the last company commander of H Company before the Corps reorganized. The company symbol was a black horse in the form of a chess piece…. After graduating from Tech, I served at Ft. Carson and Ent Air Force Base, Colorado; Fort Gordon, Georgia; and in 1975 I was assigned to ROTC duty at the University of Nebraska at Lincoln, where I met and married Janet. From there we were stationed in Frankfurt and Hanau, Germany; Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas; Arborfield, England (where I was an exchange officer with the British Army, and Janet and I were the only Americans on a British Army garrison); Arlington Hall Station, Virginia; National Communications System, Arlington, Virginia; and NATO Headquarters, Brussels Belgium. I’ve worked the last ten years at Booze Allen Hamilton, a technology and management consulting firm in McLean, Virginia. Janet and I moved to Fauquier County in 1984 and, except for three years in Belgium, have lived here since. During this time Janet has worked for Fauquier County Social Services, Vint Hill Farm Family Services, gotten her MBA at George Washington University, and is currently a PhD student there in the School of Business and Public Management. [Need photos]

Charles Lee Nixdorff

He was born 02 December 1953 in El Paso, Texas. He graduated from

University of Florida in 1975 with a degree in Civil Engineering. On 16 October 1981 he married Cynthia Mary Robichaux who was born 30 April 1952. Their son Daniel was born 14 January 1986 and their son Brian was born 1 February 1989, both in New Orleans, Louisiana.

After I was born I lived in White Sands, New Mexico; Tokyo, Japan; Severna Park, Maryland; and Ft. Devens, Massachusetts. I graduated from Severna Park High School in 1971. My father retired from civilian work at that time and we moved to Largo, Florida. I attended the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida, and graduated with a BS degree in civil engineering in 1975. Since that time, I have worked in New Orleans, Louisiana, for the Minerals Management Service, a bureau in the Department of the Interior, as a petroleum engineer. We have the responsibility for regulating oil and gas operations in the Gulf of Mexico. [Need photos#]

Michael Meade Nixdorff

Michael Mead Nixdorff was born at the U. S. Army Hospital in Shirley, Massachusetts 14 April 1961. He graduated from Louisiana State University in 1984 with degree in Petroleum Engineering.

I attended Pasadena Elementary School in Severna Park, Maryland. In 1971 we moved to Seminole, Florida, where I attended Oakhurst Elementary. I attended Seminole Jr. and Sr. High Schools, graduating in June 1979. I spent the following year at Florida College in Tampa, Florida. In September 1980, I enrolled at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. I received my Bachelor of Science degree in petroleum engineering in June 1984. I live in Kenner, Louisiana and work for Minerals Management Service of the U.S. Department of Interior.

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