2026 SESSION
ENROLLED
HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 103
Commending Saint Martin's Parish.
Agreed to by the House of Delegates, February 9, 2026
Agreed to by the Senate, February 12, 2026
WHEREAS, for 300 years, Saint Martin's Parish has played a central role in community life in Hanover County, offering opportunities for joyful worship to parishioners and generous outreach to all local residents; and
WHEREAS, Saint Martin's Parish traces its origins to 1726, when members of the Slash Church in Ashland decided to create a new church community closer to their homes in western Hanover County; and
WHEREAS, Saint Martin's Parish was formed from part of Saint Paul's Parish and included the Chapel in the Forks, a 20-foot by 36-foot wooden structure located between the North Anna River and the South Anna River that served as the mother church of the new parish; and
WHEREAS, as Saint Martin's Parish grew, the community saw the need for a larger church building, and a new Fork Church was completed at some point between 1735 and 1740; the historic, one-story, gable-roofed brick structure has been in continuous use since that time and stands as an elegant example of Anglican architecture and Colonial-era churches; and
WHEREAS, the Reverend William Swift served as the first minister of Saint Martin's Parish and guided the early development of the church community; at the time, many functions now ascribed to local governments, from surveying property lines to clearing and maintaining roads, were performed by members of parish vestries; and