Historic Pillow Talk

The Caleb Rector House has seen a lot of history over the last two centuries. From the coming of the Ashby’s Gap Turnpike to the modern highway system. During the Civil War it was a headquarters and a hospital, and was frequented by John Mosby and JEB Stuart. Today, it serves as the headquarters of the Mosby Heritage Area Association, but for 150 years it was home to generations of the Rector Family. The Rector legacy is written on the landscape, with Rectortown, Rector’s Crossroads, and Rector Lane all appearing on local maps at one time or another. The history of the Rectors can also be found in one of the most unusual artifacts to have come out of the Rector House.

Several years ago an object was discovered in the attic of the Rector House. Made of cloth and embellished with ribbons and buttons, it resembled a strange sort of pillow. A longtime resident of the house nearly threw the old moth-eaten pillow away, but thankfully brought it to the attention of the MHAA staff instead.

The pillow proved to be a fascinating artifact from one of the house’s earlier residents. It was quickly recognized that the pillow was made from portions of a military uniform from the early 20th century. The body was sewn out of the uniform cloth, while the cross-like design was made with a disassembled campaign hat. The blue hat cord – signifying the infantry – was arrayed over top, and in each corner there are buttons sewn onto ribbon. The back side of the pillow gave us a clue to the owner. Embroidered onto an epaulet are the initials MBR and the dates 1918-1919.

MBR was Maurice Bryant Rector, who spent most of his life here at the Rector House. Born in September, 1898, Maurice grew up in the village of Atoka, where his father operated a general store. Maurice came of age just as the United States entered the Great War. He was too young to be drafted initially, but in late 1918 the draft age was lowered from 21 to 18, and Maurice was called up for service. He was one of over 4 million Americans to be mobilized for the war effort.

Maurice reported to a depot in Warrenton and was inducted on October 23, 1918. From there he was sent to Takoma Park, Maryland for assignment at the Bliss Electrical School. The school had been commandeered by the Army for the training of electrical engineers, and Maurice was one of 700 men who studied there in 1918. Fortunately for Maurice, he was not among the 2 million Americans sent “over there” to the European front. He had barely begun his training when the armistice was declared on November 11th, and by 1919 he was back home in Fauquier County.

Maurice came back to Atoka, and by 1923 he had taken over running the general store and gas station. He and his wife Thelma continued to operate the store for the next 50 years, even after the new highway construction bypassed Atoka in 1957-58. The store lived up to it’s slogan of carrying everything “from beans to jeans” and both Jackie Onassis and Elizabeth Taylor made frequent stops when they visited horse country.

Maurice Rector passed away in 1982, and just a few years later the Rector House passed from family ownership. In 2019, the pillow was chosen by the Virginia Association of Museums as one of their Top 10 Endangered Artifacts. Thanks to a generous grant from VAM, we were able to send the pillow to a textile conservator, who stabilized the artifact for display. As we work on creating interpretive space inside the house, the pillow made from Maurice’s uniform will take a central place in our exhibit on the family who lived here. It certainly is a one of a kind reminder of one local man’s experience, however brief, of the First World War.

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MHAA would like to thank Alexander Barnes for his research into Maurice’s military records, and Newbold Richardson, for doing a tremendous job conserving the pillow.

Class Activity: In your own words, please answer the following questions:

1. What makes the Rector House unique or interesting?
2. Did Maurice Rector fight in any battles? Why or why not?
3. What is this unusual pillow made from? How was it saved?