Powell Family papers, 1775/1929

Access and use

Location of collection:
College of William and Mary
Special Collections Research Center
Earl Gregg Swem Library
College of William and Mary
400 Landrum Drive
PO 8795
Williamsburg, VA 23187-8795
Contact for questions and access:
Phone: (757) 221-3090
Fax: (757) 221-5440
Restrictions:

Collection is open to all researchers. Manuscript collections and archival records may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations, such as the Virginia Public Records Act (Code of Virginia. § 42.1-76-91); and the Virginia Freedom of Information Act (Code of Virginia § 2.2-3705.5). Confidential material may include, but is not limited to, educational, medical, and personnel records. If sensitive material is found in this collection, please contact a staff member immediately. The disclosure of personally identifiable information pertaining to a living individual may have legal consequences for which the College of William and Mary assumes no responsibility.

Terms of access:

Before reproducing or quoting from any materials, in whole or in part, permission must be obtained from the Special Collections Research Center, and the holder of the copyright, if not Swem Library.

Preferred citation:

Powell Family papers, Special Collections Research Center, William & Mary Libraries.

Summary

Extent:
3.25 Linear Feet
Creator:
Powell, Cuthbert (1775-1849) and Powell, Charles Leven (1804-1896)
Language:
English
Preferred citation:

Powell Family papers, Special Collections Research Center, William & Mary Libraries.

Background

Scope and content:

Letters and papers of Charles Leven Powell, his wife Selina (Lloyd) Powell and children of Loudoun County, Virginia; Henry, Illinois; Winchester, Virginia; and Alexandria, Virginia.

There are also included papers of Charles Leven Powell's father, Cuthbert Powell. Prominent correspondents include Johns Hopkins, Eleanor Agnes Lee, Fitzhugh Lee, George Washington Custis Lee, Mary Anna Randolph (Custis) Lee, Hunter Holmes McGuire and James Monroe.

Letters concern Robert Young Conrad, Hunter Holmes McGuire, civilian affairs during the Civil War, the Kilpatrick-Dahlgren Raid, freedmen, Reconstruction, and the education of women. Many letters are written by women.

In addition, there are a number of letters from and concerning members of the Dupuy family of Prince Edward County, Winchester, Virginia including Robert Young Conrad (president of the Virginia Secession Convention) and his son Holmes Conrad (U. S. Congressman).

Included with the finding aid is "The Powell and Lloyd Families of Alexandria, Virginia" by Frank Snowden Hopkins (1988).

See also Southern Women and their Families in the 19th Century Papers and Diaries Series C Reel # 04,05,06,07 in Swem Library's microforms area, call number HQ1438 .V5 S68

Biographical / historical:

Cuthbert Powell (1775-1849) was born in Middleburg, Loudoun County, Virginia to parents Leven Powell (1737-1810) and Sarah (Harrison) Powell. He was one of eleven children. Cuthbert made his fortune alongside his brother, Leven Powell, Jr. (1772-1807), as a merchant and ship owner. He retired to "Llangollen," Loudoun County, Virginia in 1812 after a decline in business. Later he was elected to serve in both houses of the Virginia General Assembly; the Virginia State Senate in 1829 and the Virginia House of Delegates in 1840. In 1788, Cuthbert married Catherine Simms, daughter of Col. Charles Simms. The couple had ten children including; Anne Maria Powell (1800-1885), who married 1st cousin Dr. William Levin Powell; Dr. Llewellen Powell (1802-1870), who married cousin Sarah Elizabeth Harrison; Charles Leven Powell (1804-1896), who married Selina Lloyd; Mary Emily Powell (b.1807), who married cousin Cuthbert Powell and later Rev. George Adie; Ellen Douglas Powell (1813- 1862) who married Judge William H. Gray; Cuthbert Harrison Powell (1814-1897); and Jane Simms (Fanny) Powell, who married Wellington Gordon. Further information about this individual or organization may be available in the Special Collections Research Center Wiki: .

Acquisition information:
Gift: 682 items and 2 MsV., 1952.
Arrangement:

Organization: This collection is organized into 5 series. Series 1 contains papers of the Powell Family; Series 2 contains copies of historical letters; Series 3 contains legal papers; Series 4 contains cartes de visites; and Series 5 contains diaries, record books, and other miscellaneous volumes. Arrangement: This collection is primarily arranged chronologically by date.

Physical / technical requirements:

When available, microfilm, photocopies, digital surrogates, or other reproductions must be used in place of original documents.

See: Southern Women and their Families in the 19th Century Papers and Diaries Series C Reel # 04,05,06,07 in Swem Library's microforms area, call number HQ1438 .V5 S68

Physical description:
684.00 items