Lewis Leigh, Jr. is a lifelong resident of the western Fairfax-Loudoun County area of Virginia, with family roots dating back to 1608, Jamestown, Virginia. He raised his family on a small historic farm in the heart of Centreville known as “Mount Gilead”. He has served as president and board member of the Fairfax and Loudoun county historical societies, the Friends of Thomas Balch Library; one of the founders of The Sully Foundation, and has served as a past or present officer or board member on a number of local and national advisory and/or historical groups. Mr. Leigh is nationally recognized in the education, collection and preservation of the historic material culture of our nation’s past and believes in a balance of historic preservation and respect of individual rights. He served his country as, 1st Lieut. in the 793rd Military Police Battalion, U.S. Army, Germany in 1964-1965.
Lewis has been a serious collector of Civil War memorabilia for over 60 years. He has concentrated in collecting Confederate and Virginia made objects, preferably “as found in unadulterated condition”, now called “attic mint” in some collecting circles. The Virginia Manufactory and Richmond Arsenal Weapons offered herein are in their “as found,” untouched conditions, rarely found nowadays. The surfaces on these items are such that there is no need to take them apart to know that they are in the same configuration as they were when the war ended!
Lewis hopes that as his collection (this being only “part one”) is disbursed in the future, that the recipients will respect, enjoy and treasure each object as much as he has in the past! Best wishes and happy collecting to all!!!