Collections : [West Virginia and Regional History Center]

West Virginia and Regional History Center

West Virginia & Regional History Center
West Virginia University
P.O. Box 6069
1549 University Avenue
Morgantown, WV 26506
Primary Collecting Areas:
West Virginia and Appalachia History and Culture
Description:
The West Virginia & Regional History Center preserves and provides access to the records that document the history and culture of the state and the central Appalachian region. The Center is part of West Virginia University Libraries.
POC: Lori Hostuttler
Phone: (304) 293-3536
Start Over Repository West Virginia and Regional History Center Date range 1819
West Virginia and Regional History Center

Thornton Perry, Collector, Publications regarding West Virginia History

.7 Linear Feet 8 in. (1 document case, 5 in.); (1 flat storage box, 3 in.); (1 loose map, 1/8 in.)
Publications and manuscript from the Thornton Perry Museum Collection, reflecting Perry's interest in the history of West Virginia and the immediate region. Subjects include various aspects of West Virginia history, such as the Civil War, statehood, Wheeling, John Brown, and other topics. Formats include broadsides, reports, pamphlets, almanacs, a manuscript account book, newspapers, maps, and others. See Scope and Content Note for details and contents list.
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Thornton Perry, Collector, Publications regarding West Virginia History .7 Linear Feet 8 in. (1 document case, 5 in.); (1 flat storage box, 3 in.); (1 loose map, 1/8 in.)

Perry, T. Tayloe
Publications and manuscript from the Thornton Perry Museum Collection, reflecting Perry's interest in the history of West Virginia and the immediate region. Subjects include various aspects of West Virginia history, such as the Civil War, statehood, Wheeling, John Brown, and other topics. Formats include broadsides, reports, pamphlets, almanacs, a manuscript account book, newspapers, maps, and others. See Scope and Content Note for details and contents list.
West Virginia and Regional History Center

James Wooddell, Compiler, Genealogy Research Papers

16.5 Linear Feet 16 ft. 6 in. (13 record cartons, 15 in. each); (part of 1 flat storage box, 3 in.)

Genealogy research papers of James Wooddell regarding familes of primarily Pendleton, Pocahontas, and Randolph Counties, West Virginia. This collection also includes lists of veterans of various wars from Pocahontas County; deeds and surveys from Pocahontas County; papers regarding various towns and communities; and other related material.

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West Virginia and Regional History Center

Hugh Sayre, Collector, Papers

1.1 Linear Feet Summary: 1 ft. 1 in. (2 document cases, 5 in. each); (1 small flat storage box, 3 in.)

Correspondence, miscellaneous family papers, nineteenth century school records, ledgers, bank books, and memorabilia of Hugh F. Sayre and family of Parkersburg, Reedy, St. Marys and West Creek, West Virginia. Some material relates to oil and gas leases on the Sayre family farm and Sayre's invention of a scientific alphabet called EBDECORD.

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West Virginia and Regional History Center

Preston County (W. Va.) Court Records and Miscellaneous Papers

4.15 Linear Feet Summary: 4 ft. 1.75 in. (5 document cases, 5 in. each); (2 large flat storage boxes, 3 in. each); (1 Oversized record carton, 17 in.); (1 reel of microfilm, 1.75 in.)
Records of the Preston County court, consisting almost entirely of land records such as maps, surveys, plats, deeds, and indentures. There are also some personal papers and correspondence of Preston County residents, including Israel Baldwin and Julius K. Monroe, and the Fairfax family. Some photographs from this collection have been digitized.
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A-169-219 Box 3

A-174 has it's own inventory available in the Control Folder

A-18-A-20; A-22; A-150-A-151; Unnumbered Items Box 1

Including: the Estate of Israel Baldwin (A-22); Commissioners Survey (A-150); List of Land Sales 1824-1877 (A-151); original plat of Kingwood; plan of Mt. Carmel; two photographs of a survey team (A-18 and A-20); and unnumbered items

West Virginia and Regional History Center

Reverend C. Shirley Donnelly Collection

2.34 Linear Feet (3 document cases, 5 in. each); (1 document case, 2.5 in.); (1 flat storage box, 3.5 in.); (2 flat storage boxes, 3 in. each); (1 flat storage box, 1 in.); (1 oversize folder, 0.1 in.)

Reverend C. Shirley Donnelly, a Baptist minister and local historian, collected these materials for his own research and interest in West Virginia history. The collection contains various materials pertaining to coal mining and West Virginia history, especially in the New River area and Fayette County. It includes correspondence, land grant and deed records, pamphlets, journals, local histories, records, photographs, and art relating to mining and life in the New River area. One set of correspondence includes recollections, a yearbook, and newspaper clippings by a World War II sailor from the USS West Virginia. Another series of correspondence includes the antebellum, wartime, and postwar letters and personal receipts of Charles Dequasie, a Confederate soldier from Fayette County, West Virginia, and Robert Edward Dequasie's personal and business correspondence. Other ephemera includes West Virginia and mining journals and certificates belonging to Donnelly and others. A scrapbook and notebook of newspaper clippings pertain to early court hangings and executions in West Virginia. Political posters include those for West Virginia Governor William C. Marland and West Virginia Senators Harley Kilgore and Robert Byrd.

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Reverend C. Shirley Donnelly Collection 2.34 Linear Feet (3 document cases, 5 in. each); (1 document case, 2.5 in.); (1 flat storage box, 3.5 in.); (2 flat storage boxes, 3 in. each); (1 flat storage box, 1 in.); (1 oversize folder, 0.1 in.)

Donnelly, C. Shirley, Reverend

Reverend C. Shirley Donnelly, a Baptist minister and local historian, collected these materials for his own research and interest in West Virginia history. The collection contains various materials pertaining to coal mining and West Virginia history, especially in the New River area and Fayette County. It includes correspondence, land grant and deed records, pamphlets, journals, local histories, records, photographs, and art relating to mining and life in the New River area. One set of correspondence includes recollections, a yearbook, and newspaper clippings by a World War II sailor from the USS West Virginia. Another series of correspondence includes the antebellum, wartime, and postwar letters and personal receipts of Charles Dequasie, a Confederate soldier from Fayette County, West Virginia, and Robert Edward Dequasie's personal and business correspondence. Other ephemera includes West Virginia and mining journals and certificates belonging to Donnelly and others. A scrapbook and notebook of newspaper clippings pertain to early court hangings and executions in West Virginia. Political posters include those for West Virginia Governor William C. Marland and West Virginia Senators Harley Kilgore and Robert Byrd.

Series 1. Correspondence, Local Histories, and Records

Includes correspondence between Donnelly and others about coal mining and mining accidents primarily in Fayette County, West Virginia, in the early twentieth century. Other correspondence includes letters from a sailor recalling his experiences on the USS West Virginia and personal correspondence of Donnelly on various topics. Local histories include manuscripts about the Civil War battle of Carnifex Ferry and the following areas in West Virginia: Thurmond; Fayette County; and Clay County. Highlights of local records include a book of West Virginia land grants (1820s-1840s), 18th and 19th century land deeds, and a roster and history of the West Virginia National Guard (1929, 1950).

West Virginia and Regional History Center

A.C.L. Gatewood Papers

0.15 Linear Feet Summary: 1 3/4 in. (1 reel of microfilm, 1.75 in.)
Correspondence, diary, and farm account book of a Confederate officer and Pocahontas County cattleman and farmer. The correspondence deals primarily with Gatewood's activities as adjutant general and chief of staff of the West Virginia Division, United Confederate Veterans. The Civil War diary, 11 March-15 December 1865, covers action of Company F, Eleventh Virginia Cavalry, "Laurel Brigade," Rosser Cavalry Division, from Staunton to Appomattox. The farm account book, 1866-1869, also contains an account of Gatewood's Civil War experiences, including fighting in western Virginia and Jones' northwestern Virginia raid of 1863. The account book, 1801-1805, 1816, pertains to the John Rodgers estate. There are a few papers of Gatewood's father, Samuel V. Gatewood. Other subjects and topics covered are farming and stock raising in Pocahontas County, the Warm Springs of North Carolina, William and Mary College, Virginia Military Institute, Ann Smith Academy, Greenbrier Male Academy, Civil War in the Bath County, Virginia area, and cattle trade in the Kanawha Valley.
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A.C.L. Gatewood Papers 0.15 Linear Feet Summary: 1 3/4 in. (1 reel of microfilm, 1.75 in.)

Gatewood, A. C. L.
Correspondence, diary, and farm account book of a Confederate officer and Pocahontas County cattleman and farmer. The correspondence deals primarily with Gatewood's activities as adjutant general and chief of staff of the West Virginia Division, United Confederate Veterans. The Civil War diary, 11 March-15 December 1865, covers action of Company F, Eleventh Virginia Cavalry, "Laurel Brigade," Rosser Cavalry Division, from Staunton to Appomattox. The farm account book, 1866-1869, also contains an account of Gatewood's Civil War experiences, including fighting in western Virginia and Jones' northwestern Virginia raid of 1863. The account book, 1801-1805, 1816, pertains to the John Rodgers estate. There are a few papers of Gatewood's father, Samuel V. Gatewood. Other subjects and topics covered are farming and stock raising in Pocahontas County, the Warm Springs of North Carolina, William and Mary College, Virginia Military Institute, Ann Smith Academy, Greenbrier Male Academy, Civil War in the Bath County, Virginia area, and cattle trade in the Kanawha Valley.
West Virginia and Regional History Center

Samuel Price, Lawyer and Politician, Papers

5.5 Linear Feet 5 ft. 6 in. (13 document cases, 5 in. each); (1 ledger, 1 in.)

The papers of a prominent Lewisburg, Greenbrier County lawyer and politician, Samuel Price, who served numerous terms in the Virginia state legislature and was Virginia's Lieutenant-Governor during the Civil War. He was also a delegate to the Virginia Constitutional Convention of 1851, the Secession Convention of 1861, and the West Virginia Constitutional Convention of 1872; and he completed the U. S. Senate term of Allen Caperton in 1876. The papers include correspondence relating to local and state politics, Price's law practice, slavery, the Civil War, land speculation, and railroads. Also included are files and ledgers documenting Price's legal and political activities as well as personal financial records. Among the prominent correspondents are the Civil War generals John Echols and Jubal Early (1872) as well as the following: G. D. Camden, Allen T. Caperton, Charles J. Faulkner, William Parker Foulke, David Goff, Henry M. Mathews, and H. O. Middleton.

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West Virginia and Regional History Center

Stuart Family Papers

1.5 Linear Feet 1 ft. 6 in. (3 document cases, 5 in. each); (1 document case, 2 1/2 in.); (1 ledger, 1/2 in.)

Papers of John and Lewis Stuart, 1785-1823, and of Samuel Price, 1830-1879. Price's papers include mainly legal and business correspondence related to Price's law practice in Lewisburg, West Virginia. The Stuart papers concern settlement in Greenbrier County, land transactions, and family matters. The collection includes lawyer's fee books and account books for general merchandise, ca.1830-1880. There are also printed booklets of court briefs, pamphlets concerning "the slavery question" and railroads, and several Congressional documents.

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West Virginia and Regional History Center

Roy Bird Cook (1886-1961), Collector, Papers

20.6 Linear Feet 20 ft. 7 in. (33 document cases, 5 in. each); (12 document cases, 2 1/2 in. each); (2 small flat storage boxes, 3 in. each); (1 medium flat storage box, 1 1/2 in.); (3 large flat storage boxes, 3 in. each); (3 large flat storage boxes, 1 1/2 in. each); (10 oversize folders, 1 in.); (2 record cartons, 15 in. each)
Papers collected by Roy Bird Cook, a Lewis County native and Charleston pharmacist, who in his role as historian, researcher, and author, was a pioneering and effective advocate for the preservation of West Virginia history. This collection includes the papers he collected in connection with his research, including documentation of the Civil War in West Virginia, Stonewall Jackson and his family, and genealogy of North Central West Virginia, among other topics. Materials include letters and papers of the Hays family, including Samuel L. and Peregrine Hays of Gilmer County (1836-1884, 1952-1962, undated [includes facsimiles]); records of the Confederate 31st Virginia Volunteer Infantry Regiment, and later correspondence, clippings, and papers about the regiment and its members (ca. 1856-1955, undated [includes facsimiles]); various collections of individual and family papers and Civil War correspondence (1793-1974, undated [includes facsimiles]); original and copies of Stonewall Jackson letters and papers, as well as papers pertaining to Jackson family members (1801-1963, undated [includes facsimiles]); and materials related to the history of pharmacy and medicine, with a special focus on West Virginia (ca. 1832-1961, undated [includes facsimiles]). There is also an extensive series of bound notebooks containing manuscripts, transcriptions, clippings, genealogies, pamphlets, and images regarding the following topics: Stonewall Jackson, Mary Anna Morrison Jackson, Colonel George Jackson, and Thomas Jackson Arnold; the Civil War, including historical sketches of battles as well as originals and copies of soldiers' diaries, journals, and letters; Lewis County; Charleston and the Kanawha Valley; Douglas S. Freeman; Granville Davisson Hall; Camden family; George Washington; and other topics.
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Arnold Family Papers (contains originals and facsimiles; includes letters [correspondents: Laura Arnold, Mary Arnold, P.F. Zeiss; 1868-1897, undated]; citations of Laura Arnold references from 'History of 6th Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry' by E. Hannaford, 1868 [undated]; clippings [1937-1959]; estate appraisal of Jackson Arnold [1933]; C.H. Evans' appointment as 1st Lieutenant of the 44th Regiment of Ohio Volunteer Militia [1801]; Arnold family history excerpt from 'History of Randolph County' by Maxwell, pp. 321-323 [undated]; court case papers [1868-1870]; 12 items) Box 10, Folder 14

  1. Series 6. Thomas J. (Stonewall) Jackson Papers

[article, clipping, photo, pamphlet, and other; original and copy] article about David B. Cook from 'National Printer-Journalist' (1925); clipping regarding proposed name change for Roanoke, WV, from 'The Roanoke Times' (1960); photo of Deep Springs, now called Big Springs or McDowells Springs, near the old Hinkle Fort (undated); pamphlet entitled "The History of the Town of Washington, Virginia" (undated); and a copy of a letter to Colonel James Bird (1767) Box 39, Volume Notebook 67, Page 431

  1. Series 8. Bound Notebooks
  2. Cook-Bird-Hull-Conrad Papers (includes genealogical materials on the Cook family, centered in Highland County, Virginia, and Lewis County, West Virginia, with additional material on the Bird, Dyer, Keister, Hull, and Conrad families)
West Virginia and Regional History Center

Emory L. Kemp Papers regarding Industrial History

154.83 Linear Feet 152 document cases, 5 in. each; 92 document cases, 4 in. each; 68 document cases, 2.5 in. each; 32 record cartons, 15 in. each; 1 flat storage box, 1.5 in.; 7 flat storage boxes, 3 in. each; 4 flat storage boxes, 4 in. each; 1 small storage box, 6.5 in.; 1 index card box, 12 in.; 2 oversized items, 1.5 in. total; 2 microfilm reels, 1.75 in. each; 146 oversized folders, 18 in. 6.31 Gigabytes 678 files, formats include ASC, BK!, CAP, CHP, CIF, DOC, DOCX, ED, ELK, JPG, FRM, M4A, MON, MOV, MP4, PAP, PDF, PPT, PPTX, R2D, RTF, TIF, TRE, TXT, VGR, W51, WMA, WP, WPD, WPS, XLSX.

This collection includes materials from Dr. Emory L. Kemp's career of researching, documenting, and preserving historic structures. Kemp was a practicing civil engineer from 1952-1959, then taught civil engineering, historic preservation, and the history of technology from 1962-2003 at West Virginia University. He served as an expert consultant for the preservation of many historic engineering structures, including bridges, waterways, and mills. He also published regularly and remained active in several professional organizations.

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Alexandria Canal Box 116

Kemp was a consulting engineer and industrial archaeologist for the restoration of the tide lock and basin to help with a revitalization project for Alexandria, Virginia. The box includes the Preliminary Archaeological Survey Report, field notes, pamphlets, photos, correspondence, clippings, and a consulting agreement. Additionally, it includes pamphlets on the history of the City of Alexandria. The box includes facsimile correspondence with the United States Department of Commerce regarding the Geodetic Survey maps and charts, facsimile newspapers, reports and reference lists regarding those facsimiles. Finally, the box includes original slides that show engineering drawings of the canal. The following oversize materials were moved to Map Cabinet 12, Drawer 4, Folder 8: 18 sheets of facsimile and original newspapers (1831-1845, 1976-1985, and undated), 10 maps (1838, 1877-1884, 1949-1973 and undated), 1 illustration (undated).

  1. Series 1. Research Files
  2. Series 1. Research Files -- Waterways

Bridge Illustrations Box 157

Kemp researched bridges across the United States as part of his restoration efforts and publications. The box includes facsimiles of the following: photographic prints, drawings, patent applications, and book excerpts. Also includes original photographs, slides, clippings and correspondence. Subjects include general bridges; covered bridges; mills; the patenting process for bridge technologies during the 1800s; Rideu Canal in Ottawa, Canada; St. Antonius de Padua Mission in Sacramento, California; Bridgeport Covered Bridge in Bridgeport, California; and buildings in Nevada City, California. The following oversized items were moved to Box 342: one clipping (1983), two engineering drawings (undated), and two sheets of facsimile book excerpts (undated).

  1. Series 1. Research Files
  2. Series 1. Research Files -- Bridges

Bridge Patents Research Box 166

Kemp conducted research on bridge patents. He may have been preparing for writing articles and books about bridge patents, including American Bridge Patents: The First Century (1790-1890). It includes correspondence, reports, floppy disks and facsimiles of the following: book excerpts, clippings, engineering drawings, and patent applications. Subjects include bridges, the patenting process, covered bridges, Burr truss bridges, bridge engineers and engineering developments. Correspondents include Richard Sanders Allen. The following oversized items were moved to Box 343: three sheets of a scholarly article (1857) and two sheets of engineering drawings (1857).

  1. Series 1. Research Files
  2. Series 1. Research Files -- Bridges

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