Martha Dandridge Hall Scott, 79, of Farnham, Virginia passed away peacefully at home on March 4, 2023. Martha was born in Ophelia, Virginia to the late Junius Monroe Hall and the late Dorris Helen Cockrell Hall. She was the wife of John Edward Finley of Manchester, England. Martha was a retired museum curator and a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Martha was an extraordinary woman who lived a full and fascinating life. As a teenager she was a professional model and loved dancing and acting. After graduating Marshall High School in Huntington, WV, her love of travel took her to Brisbane, Australia where she lived for seven years with her son Michael Allen Scott and former husband Dennis Karl Scott, Jr. While there she performed with several theater groups, recorded professional radio commercials, ran an art gallery, and represented America at the United Nations Ball in Brisbane.
After moving back to the United States, she settled in Farnham, VA with her family and worked at Rappahannock Community College. After the birth of her daughter Tiffany Scott, she began her career in history. She worked at Stratford Hall for seven years, George Washington Birthplace NM for seven years, and retired as museum curator for the Kinsale Museum.
Martha had a genuine love of people and treated everyone she met with a warmth and kindness that is rare and precious to those who became her friends.
Left to cherish Martha’s memory are her loving husband John Edward Finley; her devoted daughter Tiffany Scott; her son-in-law Michael Morris; her grandchildren Jane Dandridge Morris and Griffin Scott Morris; her sister Betsy Gayle Hall; and a host of friends, former colleagues and church family. Martha was predeceased by her parents, former husband Dennis Karl Scott, Jr., and her beloved son Michael Allen Scott.
A funeral service will be held for Martha at 2:00 p.m. on Thursday, March 9, 2023, at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Tappahannock, Virginia with Bishop Gregory Packett officiating. The family will receive friends one hour prior to the service in the church. Burial will follow the service in the Henderson United Methodist Church Cemetery in Callao where Martha will be laid to rest near her parents and grandparents.