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Box 1-2

Box-folder 1:1-18

Papers, ca. 1793-1931, relating to Richmond, Va. Includes photographs, engravings, broadsides, programs of art exhibits, advertising cards, correspondence, and newspaper clippings.

Correspondence and business papers of Capt. Henry Brown, Revolutionary War veteran who opened a store in Bedford County, in 1793; Papers of Capt. Brown as Collector of Federal taxes on stills and real property. The Brown family papers begin with the letters and papers of Capt. Henry Brown (1760-1841), successful merchant of Bedford County and Lynchburg, who established the family fortune. He was the father of John Thompson Brown, Delegate to the Virginia Assembly, whose letters and papers are collected in the next section (Boxes 14-19). A few letters and receipts pertaining to Henry Brown, 1712-1798, the father of Capt. Henry Brown, are included. The great bulk of the material, however, relates to Capt. Brown, beginning with a map of a Revolutionary War battle, 1777, in which he was wounded. With his brother, Daniel, he opened a general store in Bedford soon after the conclusion of the war. A partnership agreement of April 1797, which brought James Leftwich into the business, is preserved and the bulk of the material in this box pertains to the business of the store. A good picture of early merchandising is given by the accounts, letters relating to buying and selling trips, and the court actions taken to collect accounts. Beginning with folder 60, there are 39 items relating to the duties of Henry Brown as tax collector in the Bedford area in the years 1800 to 1803. 160 items.

Correspondence primarily of the two surviving children of John and Francis Bland Tucker Coalter: Elizabeth Tucker Coalter Bryan and St. George Tucker Coalter, and their respective spouses, John Randolph Bryan and Judith H. Tomlin Coalter. Includes genealogical material on the Tomlin family, and correspondence of Judith H. Tomlin before her marriage to St. George Tucker Coalter. Her letters form an important part of the collection from this time until her death in 1859. The last letters from their grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. St. George Tucker, are preserved, as well as letters to their uncles Henry and Beverley Tucker and John Randolph of Roanoke. Of special note is a letter of October 1831 in which St. George Tucker Coalter writes fully of Randolph during a visit to Roanoke. After his death in 1833, Randolph's will caused great difficulty and misunderstanding in the family, and appears to cast a slur on his step-father St. George Tucker. The letters of St. George Tucker Coalter to his wife and sister, especially those written from the springs which he visits each year, form the largest single group. In these letters an interesting picture of nineteenth century social life is to be found.

These collected research materials may have supported Dr. Core's research of Monongalia County history for his newspaper columns and five-volume book titled The Monongalia Story. This subseries includes miscellaneous original historical documents and facsimiles of historical documents (mostly in Boxes 9 and 12) including land grants, river boat registry, court cases, city of Westover and Granville records, property assessment, Mexican War muster list and pension, broadside for the Socialist Party in Star City (Box 21), and account book. Other formats include newspapers, newspaper clippings, magazine article clippings, annual reports, pamphlets and brochures, and maps. Topics covered in this series include County Health Department, agriculture, shipping, churches (Boxes 12 and 17), technology, organizations, flooding, schools, ethnic groups (Box 15), biography, genealogies, funeral homes, various communities, and more.

This subseries includes collected research materials regarding other parts of West Virginia not included in the Morgantown and Monongalia County Subseries. Formats include student research papers, newsletters (Humanities Foundation), event programs, booklets, and reports. Topics covered include Boone and Clay county schools, weather, Independence Hall (Wheeling), the 4-H Camp at Jackson Mills, Future Farmers of America (FFA), various municipalities, Appalachia, Bethany College, vegetation management, mining, and churches and religion.

Scope and Contents Correspondence between branches of the Blair, Saunders and Stubbs families. Also includes a mix of business and genealogical correspondence during some years. Letters from family and others in Gloucester, Va contain not only family news, but news about the operation of family owned businesses, such as Valley Front Farm.

Scope and Contents Diaries, family recipes, poems, planners and other personal writings of the Saunders, Blair and Stubbs Families.