Explore the 28 names inscribed on the memorial, the individuals they may represent, their family connections, and the historical evidence behind the research.
The memorial in Orlean, Virginia Tap a photo to enlarge
This project assembles the inscriptions and related historical research into one accessible collection.
The memorial at Orlean commemorates 28 individuals associated with military service from the American Revolution, War of 1812, and Civil War. The family connections are drawn in part from Brooke Payne’s The Paynes of Virginia (1937).
Historical research is ongoing. The identity of some inscribed men is provisional or unresolved; the associated units are reported from the memorial research record rather than independently established service for every individual.
Each name opens a dedicated page with the memorial inscription, military association, proposed identification, source references, and research qualifications.
A separate interactive family-tree view connects many of the individuals to their relatives while preserving uncertainty about proposed matches.
Read the research methodology →The Orlean-born-family lawyer and public servant who financed the Payne family memorial.
John Barton Payne grew up in the Orlean area and later served as a judge, U.S. Secretary of the Interior, and chairman of the American Red Cross. He is recorded as the memorial's donor, not as one of its 28 commemorated soldiers.
The exact year the memorial was erected deserves further examination: later published accounts give 1918, while the project's research notes cite a contemporary reference from October 1917.
Read about John Barton PayneFind John Barton Payne within the wider Payne family tree, examine his recorded parents and related branches, and follow the citations back to the genealogy.
View John Barton Payne in the family tree →
The family connections are derived from a selective research tree, not independently verified for every relationship.
Explore Brooke Payne’s 1937 family history through its original scanned pages, with clickable genealogical references.
Search names and entries, follow family connections across generations, and share direct links to individual pages. This interactive edition is based on the corrected v3 research links; some genealogical identifications remain uncertain.
Open the interactive book Try a family linkThe original 1937 pages are displayed individually, with clickable family references and a searchable OCR index.
No complete PDF is hosted here. Individual pages remain retrievable as web images.
Select a name to open the individual record. Use search or filter to browse the collection.
2 memorial names
25 memorial names
View the wider working tree, including ancestors and relatives needed to explain the connections among the memorial names. Entries show their documentary status and source references.
Open interactive family tree View complete family chartAdditional source material will be incorporated after review. Please preserve the original source, page numbers, repository information, and whether an identification remains uncertain.