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b1bob Says: The New Point Comfort Lighthouse was commissioned in 1804 by President Thomas Jefferson. The 55-foot (14 m.) lighthouse is located on an island created by a hurricane in 1933. A keeper was needed until 1950 when the beacon was electronically timed. I dedicate this tip to...
b1bob Says: Kingston Parish was established in the middle of the 17th Century. During colonial times, the Anglican parish tended to religious and some civil affairs of the folks in this area later to become Mathews County. The main parish church is believed to be located here (just...
b1bob Says: Gwynn's Island Museum covers not only the history of the island, but rather the surprisingly rich history of the whole of Mathews County. The museum was originally a small scale community project, not unlike the one in South Boston, Virginia. With more tourism and people...
11 Opinions
Hyco House Inn: B & B right on the main drag
b1bob Says: Locals tell me this house may date as far back to 1830. On the outside, it may look like a fixer-upper, but they have remodeled the inside and opened the bed and breakfast. It has 3 bedrooms, all with private baths. Living room with fireplace. Wrap around porch and...
Food tents at Mathews Market Days festival: All kinds of food
b1bob Says: The food at the food court (a cluster of tents just off the main drag) sold things like oysters and crabs (locally caught, I'm sure) as opposed to fried chicken, Brunswick Stew, and barbecue served at the festivals in Southside.
Southwind Cafe: Great crab bisque
b1bob Says: This cafe was once Lee Miles' General Store from 1924 to the 1970s. I guess Sibley's or the Dollar General Store put them out of business. The original store shelves are still intact and hold local arts, gifts, and gourmet foods. In true Southern tradition, you can dine on...
Irish Cottage Pub & Eatery: Irish Pub in Mathews?
b1bob Says: The Irish Cottage Pub & Eatery is Irish in atmosphere only. The green carpeting and decor, complete with dartboard, certainly suggest Ireland, but country music over the sound system brings you right back to Virginia. Although American country music has its roots in Scottish...
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DIRECTIONS from Richmond: Take Interstate 64 east through to exit 220 (Rt. 33 east). Get on Route 33 and continue going east as Route 33 becomes Route 198 at Glenns. Follow Route 198 the rest of the way into Mathews.
Written Sep 9, 2003
graphixs1 Says: There are several wonderful art galleries in Mathews. The Bay School for Art is located in downtown Mathews and great place to start and get more info on artists in the area. The have a decent size gallery in the building. You may take several different classes there. Art,...
Gifts for Home and Garden: Like a yard sale
b1bob Says: This shop is in what once was a private home and it looks, for all the world, like an ongoing yard sale. All manner of small whatnots for the inside and things such as handcrafted bird houses and feeders for the outside.
Hudgins Pharmacy: Hudgins Pharmacy
b1bob Says: When the Rexall drug store and soda fountain closed, Hudgins Pharmacy took over for the drug store part. It is an old style small-town pharmacy, only without a lunch counter or soda fountain. However, when I was there, I was told that a soda fountain will go up nextdoor. The...
Sibley's General Store: The last real general store in town
b1bob Says: Sibley's is pretty impressive! The store (and some of the things in it, I'm sure) is more than 100 years old, opened since 1898. Just about anything and everything can be found here. I was especially surprised and heartened to find Confederate flags of all sizes on sale...
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On the weekend right after Labour Day (September), the town of Mathews has held its Market days festival. All of the same elements exist here as in the Virgilina Summerfest (carnival rides, live entertainment, food kiosks, raffles, etc.) However, while the live entertainment left a great deal to be desired, there were more arts and crafts kiosks and there were more choices at the food court- a cluster of tents selling seafood and other things. Although I didn't stay for the dance in the streets, locals tell me that it goes well into the night, unlike in Virgilina where they shut everything down at 9 pm.
Written Sep 9, 2003
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Boating is a popular sport for locals living there full time and for folks who own holiday property there. This photo was taken in at Winter Harbour in Port Haywood, just south of the town of Mathews. After hurricane Isabel, the place where I took this snap was under about 8 feet (2.5 m.) of water and Sammy's boat was placed bow down in the ground.
Written Oct 25, 2003
Richardson's Old Reliable (Rexall) Drug Store
b1bob Says: When I saw that Rexall sign, I thought about Moe Bandy's song Americana (with which some of you are familiar) and I next thought about going inside and taking a picture of that soda fountain. On trying to gain entry, I was crestfallen to learn that Richardson's Old...
b1bob Says: Just south of town, friends of my family- Sammy and Gaynelle own a holiday house right on Winter Harbour in Port Haywood. Finding it is quite the challenge for the outsider, but why have a weekend getaway if you can't get away? Sadly, the house was entirely flooded out by...
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A few weeks before I took a day trip to Mathews, Virginia, it never really occurred to me to go there, despite having an open invitation by friends of my family. However, a little more than a week...
Mathews County VA is a very small rural county located on the middle peninsula of Virginia. The county has a nice arts communtiy and some interesting Galleries in town. It is a great place to live as...
The Sleepy Tidewater Town of Mathews
My father's family is originally from Mathews, VA but our ancestors can be traced back to Jamestown, Williamsburg and all the way to Guernsey - one of the Channel Islands between England and...
Build your own Mathews page
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