Fifty people representing 33 countries took the Oath of Allegiance to become citizens of the United States at a naturalization ceremony June 25, 2016, at Chatham Manor.
It was the second annual naturalization ceremony held at Chatham. The first came about through the efforts of former Friends of Chatham board member Bob Fonger. The 2016 ceremony is one of 100 naturalization ceremonies being hosted by the National Park Service in honor of their 100th anniversary.
Kristen Talken-Spaulding, superintendent of Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park, welcomed the candidates, telling them her mother was a naturalized citizen.
U.S. Representative Rob Wittman (VA-1) was the keynote speaker. Other speakers included Sarah Taylor, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Washington District director; Rebecca Sheehy, USCIS Washington Field Office section chief; and Lynda Baer, past president of Friends of Chatham and a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution.
Friends of Chatham and the Washington-Lewis Chapter of the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution hosted a reception in the newly refurbished Chatham summer house.
Chatham Manor, part of the Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania County Battlefields National Military Park, was built in 1771. It is the only private home in the nation to be visited by Washington and Lincoln. During the Civil War, it was used as by the Union Army as a field hospital and headquarters.
From Twitter
.@RobWittman speaking at Naturalization Ceremony #Chatham @FredSpotNPS pic.twitter.com/yivgYRtpLs— Fredericksburg.Today (@Fxbg2day) June 25, 2016
Presentation of Colors at Naturalization ceremony at Chatham @FredSpotNPS pic.twitter.com/yvUfIiULZw— Fredericksburg.Today (@Fxbg2day) June 25, 2016
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50 Candidates for U.S. Citizenship to Attend Naturalization Ceremony at Chatham Manor
