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Caroline County's Commonwealth's Attorney Tony Spencer (right) on harmonica and Mike Ross of Stafford County team up to play a bluegrass tune one evening at Cafe on Main Street. Spencer's daughter Josephine joins in the fun.
Sharon Koski told her husband, Sam, she would move to America from England if she could have a big red truck. She got one.
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Summit Crossing plays a mix of rock 'n' roll and bluegrass music at Cafe on Main Street on a Saturday night. |
FOR THE FREE LANCE-STAR
SHARON KOSKI tools
She and husband, Sam, came to Bowling Green from England by way of Washington state and Fredericksburg.
"When we moved to America, we had no job and no house" she said. "We stayed at Sam's grandmother's house in the state of Washington."
Then Sam, an aeronautical engineer, landed a job at the Naval Surface Warfare Center at Dahlgren. So the couple packed their belongings into
The couple had met in Virginia Beach while Sam was in the Navy stationed at Oceana Naval Air Station. She was
"We fell in love and he followed me to England," Sharon said.
After their wedding, Sam, 31, wanted to return to the United States. "I told him I would only move to America if I could have a big red truck," Sharon said.
He agreed. Now she not only has her "big red truck," but also has a job of her own.
The former Sharon Coombs, born and raised in West Wickham in Kent, England, works as a neurodiagnostic technologist at Mary Washington Hospital. She performs brain scans and related tests that aid in the diagnosis of patients with disease or injury of the central nervous system.
Sam was born in Orlando, Fla. He has lived in Hawaii, California and Idaho. His father was
In the summer of 2007, the Koskis saw an ad in The Free Lance-Star about a home lot for sale in Bowling Green. They headed to the Caroline County town 20 miles south of Fredericksburg to check it out, only
"But we fell in love with Bowling Green and wanted
A local Realtor suggested they look at a vacant house,
On walking through the front door that first time, the couple knew they wanted to make the house their home. "We moved in on a Friday night and awoke the next morning to Harvest Festival 2007, which was the best way anyone could be welcomed into this town," Sharon said. Bowling Green's Harvest Festival draws thousands of people every October for a street festival featuring bands, antique cars and vendors selling food and arts and crafts.
"This house," Sharon said,
Collins gave the Koskis a sterling-silver serving spoon engraved with his uncle's initials and a scrapbook containing his uncle's family letters and records about the house.
"This is the only piece of the family silver he had left," Sharon said, showing the spoon at the kitchen table. "He gave the spoon to us because he said it was part of this house, and
So why did they take a liking to Bowling Green?
"My husband grew up in a small town, and he likes the idea of living in a small town again," Sharon said. "Everybody has been so friendly since we moved here, and we like the fact that everybody goes for walks about town. We feel part of this community."
The couple are now busy restoring their 19th-century home, but with all the 21st-century comforts.
Like the Koskis, others also delight in Bowling Green's small-town charm.
Walt Mahon, a retired Union Bank & Trust Co. president, said of Bowling Green: "I liked growing up in the small town with family and friends. Both of my parents' families lived on the same street. Later, coming back after college and military service, it was pleasant to again be a part of the community.
"Bowling Green retains its small-town atmosphere of well-preserved homes on tree-lined streets. It's one of the first small towns coming south from the megalopolis of Northern Virginia. We still have little congestion and friendly people."
Mary Frances Coleman also grew up in Bowling Green. She returned to her family home in 2000 after retiring as administrator of a Washington law firm.
"What I like about living in Bowling Green are the memories of life here," she said. "I like it because every day I see people I know, many of whom I've known all my life, others for less time but no less appreciated, with whom I can chat and keep ongoing friendships. In
Coleman remembers Bowling Green's "happy days" of the 1950s. "I do miss the fact that we no longer have a movie theater or a place like the old drug store on Main Street, where you could sit and have
Bowling Green even charms visitors. Joy N. Ferguson, a Henrico County certified promotional consultant, sees the town as "quaint, delightfully quiet, neat and clean and retro.
In contrast with a typical Fredericksburg-region subdivision, where all houses look the same, no two homes in Bowling Green are alike. Some date from Colonial times; others are from the Victorian period or in another architectural style.
Another feature of this small town (1.6 square miles, population 1,013), in contrast with a subdivision, is that it has its own post office, police department, banks, garages, stores, and town and county government offices, all within walking distance.
Moreover, Bowling Green may be one of the best-protected towns in Virginia.
The town has a police chief and another officer, both working part time, and six auxiliary certified police officers who "can be brought in for any reason at any time," Town Manager Stephen H. Manster said.
In addition, Caroline County Sheriff Tony Lippa commands 55 officers at his Bowling Green office. "Since Bowling Green residents pay county as well as town taxes, the sheriff is also responsible for the protection of the people of Bowling Green," Manster said.
First Sgt. William C. Blydenburgh, commander of the Virginia State Police Area 44 office in Bowling Green, deploys 28 troopers in Caroline and King George counties. In the event of a major disaster, he could call in troopers to assist town and county officers.
nice place to walk
What's there to do in Bowling Green?
The town's Web site suggests: "Take a walk along our tree-lined streets. Stroll through the historic district and see the Colonial and Victorian homes. Visit the Civil War Trails sites and view Sidney King's Union Occupation Mural on the lawn of the 1835 Jeffersonian Courthouse. Dine at one of the restaurants, shop and spend the night at one of our inns."
Bowling Green encourages walking with its Walkabout project. A large sign on North Main Street across from the courthouse promotes a "Walk, Bike or Jog" exercise routine. The Walkabout sign shows distances on the various streets. Go from one end of Main Street to the other and back, for example, and the distance is 1.5 miles.
A touch of downtown Fredericksburg's Caroline Street, with all those specialty shops, may be found at Bowling Green's Shop-A-Doodle-Doo at Main and Milford streets. Lisa Pigg's boutique features fun jewelry, unique handbags, vintage clothing, assorted antiques and memorabilia.
And guess what?
Downtown Bowling Green now has night life on Saturday nights. Bands from the Fredericksburg region entertain from 7 until 10 p.m. at the Cafe on Main Street, beside Courthouse Square.
One Saturday night, Summit Crossing was playing--Art Singer of Sparta on drums, Mark Leigh of Spotsylvania County on lead guitar and Joel Torrey, also of Spotsylvania, on bass guitar.
They take turns singing lead, and all join in harmony vocals just like the Beatles and the Eagles. The songs they cover--1960s and '70s hits like "Wooly Bully" and "Runaway"--make one want to dance.
This particular night, Josephine Spencer, 18 months old, began dancing early and had free run of the restaurant, to the delight of a nearly full house of diners.
It wasn't long before she ventured forth with her dad, Tony Spencer, to the front of the restaurant to join the band, which was set up in the cafe's northwest corner. Spencer launched his part in the show by playing harmonica. Josephine seemed to be doing the same thing on a mouth harp of her own.
Tony Spencer, born in Fredericksburg and a former prosecutor in Richmond, is Caroline County's commonwealth's attorney. At one point he got in some dancing of his own, holding his daughter while moving
Later, Spencer sang the soulful lead on Sam Cooke's "Bring It on Home to Me." Then it came time for him
But when he looked around for his 42-year-old trumpet, Josephine was dragging it across the floor, heading toward the front of the restaurant as diners looked on with happy faces.
Spencer went to retrieve his trumpet, only to find Josephine engaging him in a tug-of-war for it. Her mother, Danielle, rushed forward with the tot's harmonica and coaxed her into letting Dad have his trumpet. Spencer then added the horn flavoring for the Godfather of Soul's big hit.
Listening to the music and watching Josephine from a table near the rear, William Roy Southworth of Milford said, "She's the star of the show!"
At one point, Summit Crossing's seasoned musicians--each with more than 30 years playing music--switched gears, from rock 'n' roll to down-home bluegrass, and Mike Ross of Stafford County, a friend of Leigh's, joined them on banjo for a spirited rendition of "Foggy Mountain Breakdown."
Singer lives in Sparta, and works for the Stafford County government as a code enforcement inspector. He's also chief of the Sparta Volunteer Fire Department.
Leigh and Torrey live in the Massaponax area of Spotsylvania. Leigh is an engineer at Dominion Virginia Power's plant at Dumfries in Prince William County, and Torrey is a manager at the Guitar Center in Spotsylvania Towne Centre.
Torrey lives near Summit Crossing in Spotsylvania--about three miles north of Guinea Station in Caroline--and suggested the CSX railroad crossing as a name when the three musicians formed their band six months ago.
Talking about their gigs
Whenever Summit Crossing plays at the cafe, for example, Mark and Lucy Garrah drive to Bowling Green from their home in Manassas. "We are going to come back and bring friends with us," Lucy Garrah said.
A crab-cake dinner is one of the cafe's specialties, and owner Dawn Harris cooks the cakes without any filler. Her husband, Bill, auditions and books the musicians for Saturday night entertainment.
The Bowling Green restaurant serves mixed drinks as well as beer, wine, soft drinks, tea and coffee. One can make a dinner reservation, and there's no cover charge for the entertainment. (To reserve a table,
With these rocking Saturday nights at the cafe, town and county residents no longer have to drive to Fredericksburg or Richmond to enjoy dining out and live music.
"We are Caroline County's entire night life," said a smiling Dawn Harris.
Jim Mason of Caroline County is a freelance writer. E-mail him in care of
Email: gwoolf@freelancestar.com.
