Cooperative Living November/December 2022 - 7

HOLIDAY HABITATS
One in a series of holiday-inspired destinations
in co-op country. This month: Christmas
What's in a Name?
by Gregg MacDonald, Staff Writer
Small Virginia community has an interesting history
I
f you've ever driven through Powell
Valley Electric Cooperative's
Virginia service area between
Jonesville and Pennington Gap along
U.S. 58 Alternate, you have traveled
through one of only four localities
in the United States named after
what many consider to be the most
influential Christian novel of the
19th century.
Ben Hur is a small, unincorporated
community in Lee County that was
named - as were its namesakes in
Arkansas, California and Texas - for
the 1880 novel, " Ben-Hur: a Tale of
the Christ, " written by former Union
General Lew Wallace.
Wallace ultimately attained the
rank of major general during the Civil
War, after participating in the Battle
of Fort Donelson, the Battle of Shiloh
and the Battle of Monocacy.
He also served on the military
commission for the trials of
the Abraham Lincoln
assassination conspirators and
presided over the trial of Henry Wirz,
the Confederate commandant of the
Andersonville prison camp in South
Carolina.
His famous novel recounts the
adventures of Judah Ben-Hur of
Jerusalem, who is enslaved by Romans
and becomes a talented charioteer and
a Christian. Running parallel to Judah's
narrative in the book is the unfolding
story of Jesus, who is from the same
period and region, and is roughly the
same age.
The book is probably best known as
the impetus for the 1959 motion picture
starring actor Charlton Heston, which
won 11 Academy Awards including Best
Actor for Heston, and Best Picture.
ORIGINS
Ironically, a
Confederate colonel
decided to name
Lee County's small
unincorporated
community after Gen. Wallace's book.
That man was Auburn Lorenzo
Auburn Lorenzo
Pridemore
Gen. Lew Wallace
Pridemore, born in Scott County, Va.,
in 1837.
Dur During the CivilWar, Pridemore
raiised a volvolunteer infantry company
for the Pound Gap battalion ofthe
Confederate Army. He became its
capt
ra se
for th Pou
captain and
w
and was later promoted to full
colonel inin 1864, commanding the 64th
Virginia Cavalry until the end ofthe
war a year l
ar a year later.
Following the war, he was elected
to th Virg
in the
from 1877
to the Virginia Senate in 1871, where
in the U.S. House ofRepresentatives
he served user
ntil 1875. He then served
from 1877 until 1879 fromVirginia's
9th District. After losing reelection,
Pridemore continued his legal practice
in Jonesville until his death there in
1900 at the age of 62. He is buried in
Jonesville's Hill Cemetery.
THE MODERN BEN HUR
Ben Hur, Va., today is home to
the Lee County Career and Technical
Center, the Ben Hur Café and Lee
High School, whose Generals were
1990 AA State Golf Champions.
This accomplishment is still proudly
proclaimed on a big roadside sign
displayed on U.S. 58 Alternate, in front
of the high school. The Ben Hur Café
is located just down the road.
" The Ben Hur Café has been here
since 1918, " says co-owner Ana Paul.
" My mother-in-law bought it in the
1980s and then, when she passed away
in 2013, my husband and I took it over.
They say about 18,000 cars pass by here
every day, and we invite everyone to
stop in and try our lasagna, our secret
ingredient fire burger or our macaroni
salad, which is the best anywhere. " 
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November-December 2022 ● Cooperative Living ●
5
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Cooperative Living November/December 2022

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