To the Editor:

The Urquhart-Gillette Camp No. 1471 of the Sons of Confederate Veterans would like to sincerely thank the local community for supporting our fund raising efforts to pay for the historic Mahone’s Tavern in Courtland.

We are delighted to report that we have successfully raised enough money over the last few years to pay the mortgage in full. The camp worked very hard with various fundraisers including auctions, barbeque chicken dinners, fish fries and sausage sales.

There were also numerous citizens, businesses and foundations that made tax-deductible donations to the tavern that were greatly appreciated as well.

Now that we have met our first goal of paying for the building, the second phase of the project started in late 2012 to convert the tavern into a museum. This endeavor will be an extremely costly proposition as extensive renovations to the building will be required to restore it the 1840s authentic condition.

The Mahone’s Tavern and Museum Board of Directors has hired local historian and author John Quarstein as a lead consultant. Mr. Quarstein is one of southeastern Virginia’s foremost Civil War experts and will provide leadership in converting the tavern into a viable local museum in the near future.

The camp will continue to raise money to reach our final goal of renovating the tavern and opening the museum. We really appreciate the community’s generosity in the past and ask for more support going forward to complete this important project.

We could not have made such strides in such a short time without the help of the local citizens and businesses. Please remember that all donations are tax deductible. Thanks again.

Greg Bell
Adjutant
Urquhart-Gillette Camp 1471
Courtland