Henry H. Hill Collection

Access and use

Location of collection:
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Special Collections, University Libraries (0434)
Newman Library
Virginia Tech
P.O. Box 90001
560 Drillfield Drive
Blacksburg, VA 24062-9001
Contact for questions and access:
Phone: (540) 231-6308
Fax: (540) 231-3694
Restrictions:

The collection is open for research.

Terms of access:

The copyright status of this collection is unknown. Copyright restrictions may apply. Contact Special Collections and University Archives for assistance in determining the use of these materials. Reproduction or digitization of materials for personal or research use can be requested using our reproduction/digitization form: http://bit.ly/scuareproduction. Reproduction or digitization of materials for publication or exhibit use can be requested using our publication/exhibition form: http://bit.ly/scuapublication. Please contact Special Collections and University Archives (specref@vt.edu or 540-231-6308) if you need assistance with forms or to submit a completed form.

Preferred citation:

Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: [identification of item], [box], [folder], Henry H. Hill Collection, Ms1980-003, Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.

Summary

Extent:
1.0 Cubic Feet 5 boxes
Creator:
Hill, Henry Harris, 1880-1954
Abstract:
The Henry H. Hill collection consists of historical and genealogical research compiled by Hill during his lifetime in southwest Virginia. Hill (1880-1954) was an alumni and professor at Virginia Polytechnic Institute.
Language:
The materials in the collection are in English.
Preferred citation:

Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: [identification of item], [box], [folder], Henry H. Hill Collection, Ms1980-003, Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.

Background

Scope and content:

The Henry H. Hill collection consists of historical and genealogical research compiled by Hill during his lifetime in southwest Virginia. Research includes Hill biographical information (1941-1950), Blacksburg history and Montgomery County (1798-1951, n.d.), Virginia Polytechnic Institute (VPI; 1891-1952, n.d.), American Civil War history (1863-1963, n.d.), and genealogical information and biographical sketches (1821-1950, n.d.). These materials comprise almost exclusively of photocopies and typescripts, so the dates reflected above are from the original source of the typescript and not the actual dates of the material. The dates of the material are included in the contents list.

Additionally, glass plate negatives and film negatives depict VPI campus views, cadet life, individuals, art works, and VPI footballs players, teams, and events.

Biographical abstracts and copies of correspondence letters.

Contents
  • William Black's petition to the 1797 General Assembly (photocopy)
  • Assembly Act establishing town (January 13, 1798)(photocopy of typescript)
  • Letter from Joseph E. Penn to Harvey Black (1871)(photocopy of typescript)
  • "In Old Blacksburg," by Dr. Conway (typescript of 1916 reprint)
  • Notes from Mrs. Robinson's book "1833-1933" (photocopy of typescript)
  • "Customers of a Blacksburg Store in 1866-68" (photocopy of typescript)
  • Correspondence letters (1 original, 1936), typescripts of articles, and a newspaper article from the Montgomery News Messenger (1951) (photocopies)
  • Miscellaneous items (photocopy of typescripts)

Contents
  • Copy of the deed of Old St. Peter's (photocopy of transcript)
  • Excerpt taken from "Mineral Resources of Virginia," by Thomas Leonard Watson. (typescript)
  • "Issac Shelby, to his Uncle John," taken from the Draper Manuscripts (photocopy of typescript)
  • Miscellaneous notes (2 items)(photocopies)

Contents
  • J M. McBryde
  • Harvey Lee Price
  • Harvey Black
  • "The Big Four"
  • Colonel John Brown
  • Brig. General William M. Browne
  • Professor Jno. E. Christian
  • William Christian - pension plea (1821)
  • Major General Patrick R. Cleburne
  • Brig. General Xavier B. Debray
  • Francis Henderson
  • E. B. Kinzer
  • General James H. Lane
  • Colonel Heros von Borcke

Contents
  • "The Battle of Cloyd's Mountain" (typescript)
  • "My Horse Comet," by Lt. Col. W. W. Blackford (typescript)
  • "Soldiers and Daughters of the Confederacy, including World War I and II soldiers buried in the Blacksburg Westview Cemetary" (photocopy of typescript)
  • Newspaper article concerning McCormick's Civil War history (photocopy)
  • John W. Mallet (1950)(photocopy of reprint)
  • "Recollections of the Rebellion," by James C. Hill (1878)(photocopy of typescript)
  • Excerpt from the diary of John S. Apperson (April 29 to May 7, 1863) (typescript)
  • "Experiences as a Prisioner of War," by G. W. Finley (1908)(typescript)
  • "The Impending Clash" (1935)(typescript)
  • Miscellaneous notes and correspondence (photcopies of typescripts)

Contents
  • "Recollections of Scottsville, 1870-1886," by John C. Hill (1943)(typescript)
  • "John A. North House (Star Tavern)" (1942)(typescript)
  • "The Star Spangled Banner and the Printer's Apprentice" (typescript)
  • "The Praying Kernels" (typescript)

Biographical / historical:

A native of Scottsville, Virginia, Henry Harris "Bunker" Hill was associated with Virginia Polytechnic Institute (VPI) as a student and professor for more than half a century. He received his B.S. in Chemistry in 1907, and his M.S. in the same subject in 1909. In 1907, Hill was appointed Assistant Chemist, and in 1913 Associate Chemist of the Virginia Agricultural Experiment Station. Before retiring from VPI in 1950, he served seven years as the head of the Agricultural Chemistry department.

Henry Hill was involved in the community, serving as Elder in the Presbyterian church, as well as being an officer in the Montgomery County Democratic Committee for several years. Hill also served as the Executive Secretary of the VPI Alumni Association, along with being the publicist for the Athletic Association.

Hill was born to Richard Allen and Mary (Harris) Hill on May 31, 1880, in Scottsville, Virginia. He married Olivia C. "Dibbie" Tutwiler (1899-1974) on June 13, 1922, and they had a daughter, Meta Turwiler Hill (1923-2017). He died on December 24, 1954, and is buried alongside his wife in Westview Cemetery in Blacksburg.

External Sources:

"H. H. Hill" in the Virginia, U.S., Select Marriages, 1785-1940, Ancestry.com, https://www.ancestrylibrary.com/discoveryui-content/view/2756449:60214, accessed April 2, 2024.

"Henry Harris Hill" in the Virginia, U.S., Death Records, 1912-2014, Ancestry.com, https://www.ancestrylibrary.com/discoveryui-content/view/2094725:9278, accessed April 2, 2024.

"Henry Harris 'Bunker' Hill", Findagrave.com, https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/111532411/henry-harris-hill, accessed April 2, 2024.

Acquisition information:
The collection was donated to Special Collections in May 1980. Additional materials were received in the early 2000s.
Processing information:

The processing, arrangement, and description of the Henry H. Hill Collection was completed in 2004. Additional materials were integrated in 2017, and the arrangement was updated.

Arrangement:

In 2017, this collection was arranged into series based on the previous organzation by material types.

Series I: Henry H. Hill Biographical Information, 1941-1943, n.d., includes a folder of biographical materials about Hill, created in the early 1940s.

Series II: Blacksburg History and Montgomery County, 1936-1951, n.d., contains compliled research notes on local history, primarily photocopies.

Series III: Virginia Polytechnic Institute, 1895-1913, 1950-1952, n.d., includes research files on the history of the university, in particular, the case of three dismissed faculty members in 1891. This series also contains the collection of glass plate and film negatives.

Series IV: Genealogical Information, 1821, 1939-1950, n.d., consists of photocopies and typscripts of research on a number of local/regional families, including, but not limited to: Appersons, Blacks, Prices, and Prestons.

Series V: Subject Files, 1863-1963, n.d., comprises research materials (again, mostly photocopies and typescripts) realting to local Civil War history and other topics of interest to Hill.

Contents
  • "History of the College" through 1891 (typescript)
  • Notes on the Henderson Infirmary (typescript)
  • Article: "Virginia Tech's 'Highty Tighties'" by H. H. Hill (photocopy)
  • "The Virginia Tech Campus is Rich in Historic Memory" by H. H. Hill (photocopy of typescript)
  • "The Marauding Cadet and the Presbyterian Pastor" (photocopy of typescript)
  • Roster of the second Virginia Regiment Band (VPI Cadets) (photocopy of transcript)
  • Correspondence letters (1950-1952)(photocopies)

Glass plates and negatives are of varying sizes and as a result, not all items depicting the same subjects could be placed together in the same boxes. The list below groups images by subjects and indicates the box-folder for each item. All items are glass plate negatives, unless otherwise noted in the title.

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard