Roy Bird Cook, Collector, Papers regarding the Civil War in Southern West Virginia

Access and use

Location of collection:
West Virginia and Regional History Center
West Virginia & Regional History Center
West Virginia University
P.O. Box 6069
1549 University Avenue
Morgantown, WV 26506
Contact for questions and access:
POC: Lori Hostuttler
Phone: (304) 293-3536
Restrictions:

No special access restriction applies.

Terms of access:

Permission to publish or reproduce is required from the copyright holder. For more information, please see the Permissions and Copyright page on the West Virginia and Regional History Center website.

Preferred citation:

[Description and date of item], [Box/folder number], Roy Bird Cook, Collector, Papers regarding the Civil War in Southern West Virginia, A&M 0895, West Virginia and Regional History Center, West Virginia University Libraries, Morgantown, West Virginia.

Summary

Extent:
0.33 Linear Feet 4 in. (1 document case, 2.5 in.; 1 large flat storage box, 1.5 in.)
Creator:
Cook, Roy Bird, 1886-1961
Abstract:
Papers mainly related to the Civil War in southern West Virginia, including correspondence, maps, photographs, newspaper clippings, muster rolls, and other material. Highlights of the collection include material regarding Captain John V. Young of the 11th West Virginia Volunteer Infantry; Captain James S. Cassady of the 7th West Virginia Cavalry; Captain W.D. Thurmond and his company of Partisan Rangers; and the 8th and 13th West Virginia Volunteer Infantry units. The collection is organized into seven series, including: 1. Correspondence (1841-1888, undated); 2. Maps (1861-1935, undated); 3. Miscellaneous (1851-1867); 4. Photographs (undated); 5. Sketches (1898, undated); 6. Newspaper Clippings (1861-1938, undated); and 7. Muster Rolls (1864, undated).
Language:
English .
Preferred citation:

[Description and date of item], [Box/folder number], Roy Bird Cook, Collector, Papers regarding the Civil War in Southern West Virginia, A&M 0895, West Virginia and Regional History Center, West Virginia University Libraries, Morgantown, West Virginia.

Background

Scope and content:

Papers mainly related to the Civil War in southern West Virginia, including correspondence, maps, photographs, newspaper clippings, muster rolls, and other material. Highlights of the collection include material regarding Captain John V. Young of the 11th West Virginia Volunteer Infantry; Captain James S. Cassady of the 7th West Virginia Cavalry; Captain W.D. Thurmond and his company of Partisan Rangers; and the 8th and 13th West Virginia Volunteer Infantry units.

The collection is organized into seven series, including:

Series 1. Correspondence; 1841-1888, undated; box 1, folder 1-5 (69 items)
Series 2. Maps; 1861-1935, undated; box 1, folder 6 (8 items)
Series 3. Miscellaneous; 1851-1867, undated; box 1, folder 7A-7B; (20 items)
Series 4. Photographs; undated; box 1, folder 8 (5 items)
Series 5. Sketches; 1898, undated; box 1, folder 9 (15 items)
Series 6. Newspaper Clippings; 1861-1938, undated; box 1, folder 10A-10C (17 items)
Series 7. Muster Rolls; 1864, undated; box 1, folder 11 and box 2 (3 items)

This series consists of personal and official correspondence, the majority of which dates from during the Civil War. Includes Union and Confederate letters, orders, receipts, and other material. Also includes a number of items regarding Captain John V. Young.

This series consists of Civil War-era maps of West Virginia and maps of Civil War battlefields in West Virginia, including Rich Mountain and Carnifex Ferry.

This series consists of addresses, letters, lists, poems, a notebook, a broadside, and other material. Contains items related to the Civil War, including a muster roll and lists of soldiers and prisoners. Also contains material regarding Captain James S. Cassady's postbellum career in the Fayette County School District.

This series contains preservation copies of Civil War photographs, including images of Union and Confederate encampments and soldiers.

This series contains preservation copies of illustrations from the book Official and Illustrated War Record Embracing Nearly One Thousand Pictorial Sketches, etc.

This series contains articles regarding the Civil War in West Virginia. Includes clippings describing the early events of the war in western Virginia, mostly dating from 1861. Descriptions of items include transcriptions of key phrases and terms from article titles and body of text. Also contains several articles from the 1930s recounting West Virginia Civil War history

This series consists of three muster rolls, one from the 10th Company, 14th Regiment, Virginia Militia under Captain J.S. Cassady; one from Company G, 11th Regiment, West Virginia Volunteer Infantry under Captain John V. Young; and one from Company F, 7th Regiment, West Virginia Cavalry Volunteers under Captain Edgar B. Blundon.

Biographical / historical:

Roy Bird Cook was born at Roanoke, Lewis County on April 1, 1886, the son of David Bird and Dora Elizabeth Conrad Cook. In 1905, at age 19, he received his pharmacy license, the youngest person to ever do so in West Virginia. His pharmacy career spanned fifty-six years. During his lifetime, Cook served on many pharmacy and state boards and commissions. His interest in local history, the Confederacy and Stonewall Jackson inspired him to collect manuscripts and some 600 volumes on those subjects. His many awards and honors include an Honorary Doctor of Laws degree from West Virginia University in 1938. Cook died in 1961.

Physical location:
West Virginia and Regional History Center / West Virginia University / 1549 University Avenue / P.O. Box 6069 / Morgantown, WV 26506-6069 / Phone: 304-293-3536 / URL: https://wvrhc.lib.wvu.edu/
Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard