Acree, Sallie Ann – Avary, Myrta Lockett

Acree, Sallie Ann, Scrapbook, 1868–1885. 1 volume. Mss5:7Ac764:1.
Sallie Anne Acree (1837–1873) kept this scrapbook while living at Forest Home in Bedford County; it contains newspaper clippings on religion, female decorum, poetry, and a few Civil War stories.

Adams Family Papers, 1672–1792. 222 items. Mss1Ad198a. Microfilm reel C321.
This collection of consists primarily of correspondence, 1762–1788, of Thomas Adams (1730–1788), a merchant in Richmond, Va., and London, Eng., who served in the U.S. Continental Congress during the American Revolution and later settled in Augusta County. Letters chiefly concern politics and mercantile affairs, including one, 1788, from Martha Miller of Rockbridge County discussing horses and the payment Adams's debt to her (section 6). Additional information on the debt appears in a letter, 1787, from Miller to Adams (Mss2M6163a1). There is also an undated letter from the wife of Adams's brother, Elizabeth (Griffin) Adams (1736–1800) of Richmond, regarding Thomas Adams's marriage to the widow Elizabeth (Fauntleroy) Turner Cocke (1736–1792) of Bremo in Henrico County (section 6). Papers of Elizabeth Cocke Adams, include a letter, 1791, to her son, William Cocke (1758–1835), about finances; a personal account, 1789–1790, with her husband's executor, Thomas Massie; and inventories, 1792, of her estate in Amherst and Cumberland counties (section 11).

Other legal and economic papers that feature women appear scattered throughout the collection; they include the wills, 1743 and 1744, of Sarah (Adams) Atkinson of London (section 3) and Ann Adams of Westham, Eng. (section 1), respectively, both probated in the Prerogative Court of Canterbury, as well as other papers regarding their estates; a plat, 1726, surveyed by John Syme for Ebenezer Adams (d. 1735) for land in New Kent County owned by Alice Field (d. 1722) (section 2); and a deed of gift, ca. 1708, from Frances Barnett dividing her personal property among her children (section 16).

Adie Family Papers, 1829–1912. 1,255 items. Mss1Ad454a. Microfilm reels C444–446.
This collection centers on Samuel Fisher Adie (1806–1860), a Leesburg and Richmond merchant, his wife Gustavia Butler (Wilson) Adie (1816–1875), and their children. Samuel Adie's papers contain correspondence, 1838–1860 (section 2); account books, 1853–1860 (section 4); and loose accounts documenting his mercantile activities (section 5). Much of his correspondence is with family members, and includes letters to his wife that discuss household management. About half of the collection consists of correspondence, 1838–1875 (section 6); account books, 1852–1876 (section 7); and loose accounts (section 8) of Gustavia Adie, who lived primarily in Leesburg. She corresponded extensively with her brothers- and sisters-in-law; her children, who wrote to her about their marriages and careers outside Virginia; and her cousin, John Thomas Wilson (1811–1891), an Ohio congressman who wrote to her about politics and social events in Washington, D.C. (section 6). The collection also contains a copy of her will and an inventory and estate appraisal made in Loudoun County (section 9).

Papers of Samuel and Gustavia Adie's daughter, Julia Harrison Adie (1849–1905) of Clark's Gap and Leesburg in Loudoun County, contain correspondence, 1868–1905 (section 10); account books (section 11); and loose accounts, 1877–1906 (section 12), and an agreement, 1878, renting her farm to a tenant (section 13). Papers of her brother, Benjamin Wilson Adie (1854–1913), a traveling salesman from Chicago, Ill., and St. Louis, Mo., include correspondence, 1869–1906 (section 15), account books, 1900–1906 (section 16), and some loose accounts regarding Julia Adie's estate (section 17). There are a few scattered papers of other members of the Adie and Wilson families.

Alexandria Female Seminary, Student Notebook, 1853 and 1858. 1 volume. Mss5:4AL276:1. Microfilm reel C270.
This volume, "Specimens and Compositions of the Pupils of the Alexandria Female Seminary selected and written by themselves, 1853," contains twenty-two essays on a range of topics, each signed by its author. There is no explanation of how the compositions were selected or why they were recorded.

Allen Family Papers, 1803–1898. 109 items. Mss1AL546d.
Scattered accounts, estate papers, and correspondence of the Allen and related Graves families of Madison County. The collection primarily focuses on farmer George H. Allen. Among his financial records (section 2) are accounts, 1835–1840, as an agent for the Madison County Poor House (with both male and female residents), reflecting purchases of food, furniture, and other supplies, as well as services for repairs to equipment and the building of coffins and digging of graves. In section 3, accounts, 1841, of Rebecca (Beidler) Graves Allen, wife of Thomas J. Allen (her second husband), document the purchase of a clock, flour, and harnesses and wagon hardware, and payment for carding [of wool] done by Mrs. Allen. Section 5 contains the correspondence, 1884–1898, of Mary Albert "Abbie" Allen of Rapidan, Madison County, and accounts, 1885–1887, of Rebecca Kirtley Allen and Eliza and Lydia Estes, also of Rapidan. The correspondence includes letters from Abbie's friends and relatives, including sister-in-law Mary "Mollie" Allen of Washington, D.C., giving news of the George H. Allen family, including difficulty finding a dependable servant, her health and that of her husband, George, activities of daughters Bessie and Carrie, and recommending that Abbie try Hydroleine as a tonic (advertisement enclosed), Fannie A. [Bailey] of Criglersville, Madison County (discussing Christmas social activities and news of mutual friends), Cornelia C. Conway (discussing social news and making references to Cora and Narcissa), J. C. Graves of Haywood, Madison County (concerning social activities), and [Sallie] M. Robey of Harriston, Augusta County (recounting events of her life, including marriage, widowhood, and living with her mother and sister). The accounts are chiefly for millinery work done by sisters Lydia F. and Eliza B. Estes of Rapidan.

Allison, Mary Selina Swift, Diary, 1830–1836. 1 volume. Mss5:1AL564:1.
Kept by Mary Selina (Swift) Allison (b. 1805) in Stafford and Madison counties, this diary discusses Allison's life with her husband and two children as well as activities in the neighborhood. It includes a description of her trip from Lynchburg to New York and Philadelphia.

Almond, James Lindsay, Jr., Papers, 1850–1989. ca. 2,800 items. Mss1AL685aFA2.
This collection documents the political career of James Lindsay Almond, Jr. (1898–1986), of Roanoke, who served as attorney general, 1948–1957, and governor, 1959–1961, of Virginia, and as a U.S. congressman, 1945–1948, and judge of the U.S. Court of Customs and Patent Appeals, 1963–1986. The papers of his wife, Josephine Katherine (Minter) Almond (1901–1992), make up about one-eighth of the collection, and they illuminate the role of a political spouse in the mid-twentieth century. Lindsay Almond's correspondence, 1925–1983, includes letters from constituents and individuals seeking appointments, as well as a few letters from family members concerning the last illness and death of his mother, Edmonia Nicholas (Burgess) Almond (d. 1966) (section 1). Scrapbooks (section 4), appointment registers (section 7.1), and speeches (section 2.1) document his activities as attorney general and governor of Virginia, including his role in the official reversal of the policy of massive resistance adopted by Virginia following the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Brown v. Board of Education. His letterbook, 1919, contains letters to his wife written before their marriage (section 7.2). Josephine Almond's correspondence, 1942–1986, contains letters congratulating her husband on his election as governor, as well as letters from in-laws, friends, and other women involved in public life (section 10.1). Her speeches to business and professional organizations, state agencies, and women's political and civic associations also appear in the collection (section 10.2). Financial papers and guest lists document her role in official entertaining as the governor's spouse (section 10.3). There is also a scrapbook concerning her activities in women's civic, political, and religious groups, as well as notes on "A Wife's View of a Public Career" (section 10.3). The collection offers insights into gender roles and the overlapping of public and private life in the twentieth century. A finding aid is available in the repository.

American Association of University Women. Richmond Branch, Records, 1909–1998. 190 folders (3.5 linear feet). Mss3Am3515a.
Include minutes of meetings of members and the board of directors (section 1); by-laws and policy statements, along with directories of members and activities (section 2); newsletters and scattered publications of the American Association of University Women (section 4); historical files (section 6); and related materials concerning the organization's efforts to foster the attendance of women at colleges and universities at the undergraduate and graduate levels. Also, these materials concern members' interests in supporting education in general, including programming involving the Richmond Public Schools, community projects and fund-raising, and that aimed at influencing public opinion and public policy regarding educational, heath care, and other issues. Of particular note is section 3 (newsletters issued by the Richmond Branch that include news of the branch and of the Virginia Division of the American Association of University Women); and section 5 (scrapbooks compiled primarily by presidents and historians of the Richmond branch containing news clippings about branch activities and events, especially regarding guest speakers and programs and about the achievements of various branch members. Another topic of significance is the branch's involvement with Educational Television in Virginia.

Ames, Susie M., Papers, 1927–1967. 240 items. Mss1Am375a.
The collection contains the correspondence; literary manuscripts; and book reviews of Susie M. Ames (1888–1969), professor of history at Randolph-Macon Woman's College in Lynchburg and historian of colonial Virginia's Eastern Shore. The papers illuminate the professional life of a female historian in the mid-twentieth century, as well as the history of colonial Virginia. Correspondence, 1927–1967, includes letters from historians, journal and newspaper editors, publishers, students, male and female friends and associates, and a few former Confederate soldiers and their descendants (section 1). Among the literary manuscripts, 1930–1966, are Ames's most significant works, Studies of the Virginia Eastern Shore in the Seventeenth Century (1940) and County Court Records of Accomack-Northampton, Virginia, 1632–1640 (1954) (section 2). Reviews, 1940–1964, are of Ames's own books and her evaluations of other scholars' works (sections 3–4).

Anderson, Rosalie Josephine Whitter, Diary, 1881–1882. 1 volume. Mss5:1An246:1.
Rosalie Josephine (Whitter) Anderson's (b. 1841) diary discusses her social life, charitable activities, and involvement with the Park Place Methodist Episcopal Church in Richmond. She notes meetings of the "Willing Workers" and the "Industrial" and her volunteer work with the elderly and the Temperance Society. Family members mentioned include her husband, John William Anderson (b. 1834), and his relatives.

Armstrong, Sally, Diary, 1863. 1 volume. Photocopy. Mss5:1Ar585:1.
Sally Armstrong of Culpeper County kept this record of daily life on the homefront during the Civil War. She mentions her fear of Union soldiers, the deaths of John Pelham (1838–1863) and Thomas Jonathan "Stonewall" Jackson (1824–1863), visits to Jeffersonton and Louisa, and fugitive slaves.

Ashland Garden Club, Records, 1922–1960. ca. 100 items. Mss3As356a.
Records of the Ashland Garden Club in Ashland include six volumes containing membership lists and minutes of meetings from the club's founding in 1922 until 1950 (box 2); correspondence for the same period; an account ledger, 1926–1941, and a few loose financial papers; and yearbooks and programs, primarily from the 1950s (box 1). In addition to their interest in gardening, members of this women's club engaged in civic activities focused on conservation and beautification. Files of loose papers include information on the campaign to regulate billboards in Virginia during the 1930s and on American Seeds for British Soil, an organization active during World War II. Correspondence includes letters proposing new members and letters of resignation, as well as communications with outside program speakers, other local garden clubs, and the Garden Club of Virginia. Yearbooks list officers and programs for each year.

Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities, Colonial Capitol Branch, Registers, 1900–1944. 8 volumes. Mss3As787c.
Volumes contain names and addresses of visitors to the Powder Horn (now Powder Magazine) in Williamsburg, one of several historic sites owned and operated by the women of the APVA.

Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities, Papers, 1889–1947. 62 items. Mss3As787a.
The APVA was established by women in 1889 to preserve the physical remnants of Virginia's colonial past. Many of the items in this collection pertain to the operation of the association's first historic site at Jamestown. Included are three volumes of accounts, 1907–1936, mostly kept by Mary Washington Ball (Minor) Lightfoot (1851–1930), chair of the Jamestown Committee, and a few loose accounts, 1936–1947, that include employee time sheets. The collection also contains an 1892 list of members and a record of correspondence, 1889–1893, kept by Lucy Parke (Chamberlayne) Bagby (1842–1927), as well as letters, 1889–1904, to an early president, Isobel Lamont (Stewart) Bryan (1847–1910).

Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities, Minutes, 1889–1928 and 1946–1970. 13 volumes and 22 unbound portfolios. Mss3As787b.
Volumes and portfolios contain the minutes of the APVA's executive committee, board of trustees, annual meetings of the entire membership, and some special committee and local branch meetings. Loose reports and some officers' correspondence are interfiled in the volumes. Papers document the evolution of this organization, established and run by women, and its historic preservation activities.

Astor, Nancy Witcher Langhorne Shaw, Papers, ca. 1910–1931. 65 items. Mss1As885a.
This collection consists primarily of letters, 1926–1931, from Nancy Witcher (Langhorne) Shaw Astor (1879–1964), of Albemarle County, Va., and Buckinghamshire, England, the first woman elected to Parliament, to Isaiah White Fuller, a family friend, in Huntington, W. Va. (section 1). Letters discuss mutual friends, activities of the Langhorne and Astor families, her political activities, world events, and her Christian Science beliefs. The collection also includes two political notices, 1929, regarding Astor's standing as a Conservative candidate for Parliament (section 2); an album, ca. 1910s, containing photographs of the Langhorne family taken at Mirador in Albemarle County (section 3); and a drawing of Cliveden in Buckinghamshire, England (section 4).

Astor, Nancy Witcher Langhorne Shaw, Memoir, 1879–1918. 1 volume. Typescript. Mss5:1As885:1.
"The Astor Story" contains the dictated reminiscences of Nancy Witcher (Langhorne) Shaw Astor (1879–1964) and primarily concerns her life at Mirador in Albemarle County and in Richmond. She includes observations on her relatives, servants, education, and marriages to Robert Gould Shaw and William Waldorf Astor (1879–1952), and on World War I. The memoir was written ca. 1953.

Atkinson, Mary Tabb Mayo, Diary, ca. 1814–1822. 1 vol. Mss5:1At565:1.
This diary, ca. 1814–1822, attributed to Mary Tabb (Mayo) Atkinson, wife of Robert Atkinson (1772–1821) of Mansfield, Dinwiddie County, contains two prayers: one, dated July 1814, asks God's blessings for her husband and her hope of his salvation, while the other, n.d., was written one year after her husband's death.

Atwood, Florence Blanton Chernault, Papers, 1874–1888. 25 items. Mss2At955b.
Papers of Florence Blanton (Chernault) Atwood (1863–1939) primarily concern her life as a student at Farmville College (now Longwood University). Materials include certificates of distinction and grade reports awarded to Florence (b1–23); an autograph album kept primarily at Farmville College and in Baltimore, Md. (b24); and an invitation to the marriage of Florence Chernault and John Randolph Atwood (1847–1912) in Farmville (b25).

Atwood, Florence Blanton Chernault, Papers, ca. 1888–1939. 42 items. Mss2At955c.
This small collection consists of letters written to Florence Blanton (Chernault) Atwood (1863–1939) of Appomattox, concerning her work on behalf of Confederate veterans (c1–2); a scrapbook (incomplete) including newspaper clippings and letters concerning the Appomattox County Confederate Soldiers' Monument, Appomattox County local history, her husband, John Randolph Atwood (1847–1912), Florence Atwood’s service as president of the Appomattox Chapter of the United Daughters of the Confederacy, and other members of the Atwood and Chernault families (c3); newspaper clippings and miscellany concerning members of the Atwood, Chernault, and Dunnavant families; newspaper clippings regarding commemorations of the surrender of the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia at Appomattox Court House (c4–25); general miscellany, including clippings of lines of verse (c26–41); and a diploma issued to Florence Eloise (Atwood) Engledove (d. 1952) by the Appomattox Agricultural High School, Appomattox (c42).

Avary, Myrta Lockett, Papers, 1895–1941. 117 items. Mss1Av164a.
This collection of papers of Myrta (Lockett) Avary (1857–1946) includes a newspaper clipping file of reviews of Dixie After the War (1906; reprinted, 1937) (a8–117) and Avary's memoir, 1941, concerning the life of her deceased sister-in-law, Lulie Baskerville Lockett, written for her son, John Kennon Lockett, who had been a young child when his mother died (a1). The collection also contains an autobiography, 1895, by Avary's father, Harwood Alexander Lockett (b.1812), about his boyhood in Southside Virginia that includes information on slaves and race relations before the Civil War (a2–3). The Cook house in Mecklenburg County and Mont Law on the Hudson Christian Children's Home are represented in photographs (a4–7).

Avary, Myrta Lockett, Papers, 1868–1949. 205 items. Mss1Av164b.
This collection consists primarily of correspondence, 1882–1931, of Myrta Harper (Lockett) Avary (1857–1946), author of A Virginia Girl in the Civil War (1903) and Dixie After the War (1906) and editor of A Diary from Dixie as written by Mary Boykin Chestnut (1905). Avary was born in Halifax County and reared at Lombardy Grove in Mecklenburg County; she moved to Atlanta shortly after her marriage to James Corbin Avary, a Georgia physician, in 1884. In the 1890s Avary moved to New York, and the couple obtained a legal separation in 1911. Her correspondence is primarily with women involved in various benevolent organizations or with fellow authors and publishers concerning Southern history and literature and her efforts to publish her work (section 1). Correspondents include Matthew Page Andrews (1879–1947), Julia Ward Howe (1819–1910), William Gordon McCabe (1841–1920), and Emily Virginia Mason (1815–1909). The collection also contains scattered correspondence, 1868–1903, of Mason, an educator and author, with whom Avary maintained a long friendship (section 2). Miscellaneous items include notes on Avary's books, information on her separation, and writings by Andrews, McCabe, and Mason (section 3).

Updated January 13, 2010