Fox Hollow Rock Piles: Things Left Behind

People moved these rocks here long before the foundation of the Park.

There is not much left of the Foxes and their lives here. These rock piles are one of the few large, visible artifacts of the Fox's farm. What could these rocks be? A wall, a fence, part of a barn, a house?
Lemuel Fox Jr. said that he would add rocks to the piles as he found them while plowing the cornfields. The original purpose of these rock piles is unknown.

Where do these rocks come from?

The rocks piled here are greenstone, volcanic rocks found in much of Shenandoah. Greenstone formed hundreds of millions of years ago when tectonic plates drifted apart and created rifts in the earth's surface. Ancient lava flows rose through these rifts, covering valleys and lapping up against hills and older mountains. The lavas were composed of basalt. Eventually heat and pressure metamorphosed the rock and new minerals like chlorite and epidote grew within the basalt. These minerals give the rock the greenish color that they have today and distinguish greenstone from unaltered basalt.
Greenstone is found on some of the most well-known peaks in the Park, including on Hawksbill and Stony Man. Greenstone also forms rich soil - an attractive feature for settlers looking to farm. Today, much of this greenstone is covered by lichen with trees growing through the crevices. Does the plant life surrounding the rock piles give you a clue as to how long it has been since people moved these rocks?
When you find evidence of human habitation along this trail - look at the surrounding forest. Think about how quickly the forest grows and what other artifacts from the lives of the Fox family may have been lost for good.