The collection is open for research.
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Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: [identification of item], [box], [folder], James R. Perdue Family Collection, 1868-1919, Ms2022-060, Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.
This collection was purchased by Special Collections and University Archives in April 2017.
The processing, arrangement, and description of the James R. Perdue Family Collection was completed in October 2022.
James Robert Perdue was born on October 18, 1837 to James M. Perdue and Susan Pilkington in Chesterfield County, Virginia. He served as a Confederate soldier in the Otey Battery, Virginia Artillery during the American Civil War. After the war, he returned to Manchester, Henrico County, Virginia, where he resided until his death. He worked at the Merchants National Bank for 43 years, and he also served on the Manchester council and on the Methodist Central Church board.
Perdue married Emma Jo-Cynthia Wingfield on October 27, 1869, and they had two children, James Robert Perdue, Jr. (September 07, 1870-May 12, 1963) and Lethia Wingfield Perdue Willis. Perdue died June 24, 1915, in Manchester.
Sources:
Virginia Department of Health; Richmond, Virginia; Virginia Deaths, 1912-2014. On Ancestry.com, Virginia, U.S., Death Records, 1912-2014 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015. https://search.ancestrylibrary.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?dbid=9278&h=751984&indiv=try. Accessed October 03, 2022.
Virginia Department of Health; Richmond, Virginia; Virginia Deaths, 1912-2014. On Ancestry.com, Virginia, U.S., Death Records, 1912-2014 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015. https://search.ancestrylibrary.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=1&dbid=9278&h=992717. Accessed October 03, 2022.
Library of Virginia; Richmond, VA; Virginia Marriages, 1853-1935. Ancestry.com, Virginia, U.S., Marriage Registers, 1853-1935 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2022. https://www.ancestrylibrary.com/discoveryui-content/view/229819:62154. Accessed October 03, 2022.
This collection includes a program for the Battle of the Crater reunion, a Sunday School concert flyer, a letter, seven obituaries for James R. Perdue, a ledger with home remedies, and a ledger with a child's doodlings and scrapbook clippings.
The undated Battle of the Crater program includes a list of the camp and war scenes, including cavalry camp practice, evening parade, infantry picket post established, posting of cavalry vidette, night before the Battle of the Crater, signal rockets for mine explosion and federal charge, confederates on the retreat, and the finale.
The Sunday School concert flyer includes the date of Thursday evening, July 23rd, 1874. Manchester Methodist Sunday School hosts the event to raise funds for a library for the school. The flyer includes two correspondances. The first correspondance is from a visitor addressed to J. R. Perdue, Superintendent of Manchester Sunday School, and it asks that the school perform again and raise funds for a new library, explaining that "no one could object to giving twenty-five or fifty centers to so good a cause." The second correspondance is from Perdue stating that the school will host the performance once again on Thursday evening.
The seven obituaries, dated June 24-26, 1915, are for James R. Perdue. One headline reads, "Death Claims J. R. Perdue, Faithful Citizen. Confederate Soldier, Bank Official, Beloved in Home and Church, His End is Peaceful."
The letter is to Marian from J. R. Perdue, Jr. and dates December 24, 1902. Perdue writes that Marian should use the enclosed funds to buy herself something, and wishes her a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.
One ledger contains clipped and handwritten remedies from 1905 to 1919. On the inside of the cover, J. R. Perdue, Jr., is written as the owner of the ledger, and he was the son of James R. Perdue. The remedies have a vast range of treatments for such items as hair growth, insomnia, cough and cold, poisons, and injuries.
The ledger with a child's doodlings and scrapbook clippings is missing most of the ledger details, but from what is visible, the earliest date is 1868. A child drew in pencil and blue crayon on the pages, making some of the original text illegible. After twenty-one pages, the ledger turns into a scrapbook with art clippings and book pages glued onto the original ledger pages. The back of the scrapbook includes the initials L. W. P., who was Lethia W. Perdue, the daughter of J. R. Perdue, and says it belongs to J. R. Perdue, Jr.
This collection is arranged by material type and by creator.
The guide to the James R. Perdue Family Collection by Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, is licensed under a CC0 (