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“Economy Rules the Day:”
The Civil War Sacrifices of Judith Walker McGuire
by Tim Sheehan

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The McGuire and Brockenbrough Families

At the time the Civil War commenced, Judith and her husband, Rev. John Peyton McGuire, resided in Howard, Virginia, a hamlet that is now part of the City of Alexandria. Rev. McGuire’s success in building up the St. Anne’s and South Farnham Episcopal Parishes of Essex County, Virginia from 1826 to 1852 amazed others so much that they regarded him as “the Apostle of the Rappahannock.” (6) Throughout the 1840’s and into the early 1850’s, Rev. McGuire participated in numerous state and national conventions of the Protestant Episcopal Church, as well as serving on the Board of Directors of the Episcopal High School located in Howard. In 1852, the Church appointed him as Rector of the Episcopal High School, providing him and his family a spacious residence on the School’s property. In this position, Rev. McGuire managed the school’s accounts, curriculum, teachers, and student body. He had quite the reputation as a strict disciplinarian. (7) Rev. McGuire even issued two demerits to his nephew Robert Page for no particular disobedience on Page’s part. This measure was a scare tactic used by Rev. McGuire to prevent “indifference” to E.H.S. rules. (8)

Three years after the death of his first wife Maria Mercer Garnett, John McGuire married Judith Walker Brockenbrough in 1846. Being one of five daughters of respected jurist William Brockenbrough, Judith McGuire was raised amidst the social and political elite of Richmond, Virginia. (9) Specifics regarding her education are unknown, but in the 3 January 1864 Diary entry, McGuire mentions attending school thirty-four years ago. Throughout her marriage with John McGuire, she acted as the mother for his children, and as an aide in his works with the Episcopal Church. James Mercer Garnett, a student at the Episcopal High School from 1853–1857, wrote of his fellow classmates adoring Judith McGuire. “She was the guide, counselor and comforter of all the homesick lads, and when they were ill, it was she who nursed them with loving care.” These same motherly actions towards E.H.S. students would be provided to Confederate soldiers. (10)

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This page last updated 1 January 2008