Bachtel, Jacob – Byrd Family

Bachtel, Jacob, Marriage register, 1857–1862. 14 pp. Mss2B1257a1.
Includes signed copies of certificates of marriage solemnized by Jacob Bachtel (1812–1866) as a minister of the Church of United Brethren in Christ in Mason and Jackson counties, Va. [now W.Va.]. Records include names of the bride and groom, date and location of each marriage, ages of the parties, place of birth and residence, names of their parents, and the occupation of the husband.

Bachtel, Jacob, Speech, ca. 1859. 13 p. Mss2B1257a2.
An unfinished draft of a speech, ca. 1859, of Jacob Bachtel (1812–1866), a minister of the Church of the United Brethren in Christ, then assigned to the Jackson circuit, to an unidentified group of men and women concerning the state of education in western Virginia, including the local community, presumably Jackson County, Va. [now W.Va.], and the author's support for the Free School Movement.

Bagby, Elizabeth Lumpkin Motley, Account Book, 1823–1839. 1 volume. Photocopy. Mss5:3B1463:1.
Elizabeth (Lumpkin) Motley Bagby of King and Queen County kept this account book as executor of the will of her husband, Andrew B. Motley (1797–1823), and guardian of their children. It includes an estate inventory, list of debts and credits due the estate, and an account of the estate sale, as well as itemized annual accounts of expenditures and income from rents, slave hiring, and the sale of wheat and tobacco. Motley's second husband, John Bagby (1792–1880), assumed guardianship of her children in 1837; he kept the accounts recorded for the final two years covered by this volume. The King and Queen County Historical Society owns the original manuscript.

Bagby Family Papers, 1824–1960. 53,178 items. MsslB1463b.
This collection contains papers of five generations of members of the Bagby family, but the papers of Lucy Parke (Chamberlayne) Bagby (1842–1927) account for more than half of it. They illuminate the various facets of her life—her familial roles as wife, mother, widow, and grandmother; her paid employment as a clerk in the office of the Virginia state auditor; and her work as a volunteer in various historic preservation and benevolence organizations—and reveal the overlapping relationship between women's private and public lives.

Lucy Parke (Chamberlayne) Bagby of Richmond was her parents' eleventh child, but she was the first daughter to be neither mute nor deaf. In 1863, she married George William Bagby (1828–1883) of Buckingham County, who was best known as a lecturer, author, and champion of the Lost Cause. The eight children of Parke and George Bagby who survived to adulthood also are represented in this collection.

George William Bagby's papers compose less than one-tenth of the entire volume of this collection. They include an extensive correspondence, 1862–1883, with his wife, Parke Bagby, discussing family news, finances, his health and emotional state, and time spent apart (section 6); correspondence, 1842–1883, with his sister Ellen Hobson (Bagby) Matthews (1831–1894) (section 5); and letters from other family members, friends, and associates (sections 7–28). There are also copies of Bagby's lectures, articles and essays (sections 29–30); four scrapbooks, 1855–1883, containing clippings of reviews of his lectures and articles, notes on "the Negro," and his obituaries, saved by his wife (sections 33–37); a diary kept during his lecture tour in 1881 (section 38); seven commonplace books (section 39); and some personal accounts, 1840–1883 (section 40). This collection contains a few papers of George William Bagby's father, George Bagby (1798–1874); they include correspondence, 1835–1874, with his son during his service in the Confederate States Army (section 2).

Parke Bagby's papers include a chronicle or memoir of her life, written between 1907 and 1923, when she was an elderly woman, for her children (section 132). In it she discusses her childhood, adolescence, marriage, motherhood, and widowhood and expresses her interests, opinions, and experiences with politics, voluntary organizations, the Civil War, race relations, religion, and work. There are also fourteen diaries, 1892–1911, including a travel diary, 1908, documenting a trip to Europe (section 133); sixteen memorandum books, 1892–1925, that contain a record of letters written and received interspersed with information on cooking and crafts, obituaries and other social notices, and favorite quotations (section 134); two scrapbooks, 1864–1875 and 1867, containing newspaper clippings on religion, poetry, the Confederacy, relations between the North and South, Richmond, and letters concerning the publication of George Bagby's work (sections 137–138); an autograph album, 1856–1861; a birthday book; an address book (section 140); and ten personal account books, 1914–1926, consisting of both rough daybooks and ledgers (sections 135–136).

Parke Bagby's voluminous correspondence, 1853–1927, with family members, friends, and fellow social and cultural activists is arranged in eighty-five separate series (sections 46–131). The largest contains letters, 1853–1927, to Bagby from various correspondents. Appearing among the separate series are letters from her cousin, Isobel Lamont (Stewart) Bryan (1847–1910) of Richmond, president of the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities and active in the Richmond Ice and Milk Mission (section 59); Cynthia Beverley (Tucker) Coleman (1832–1908) of Williamsburg, also an officer in the APVA (section 67); Mary Jeffery Galt (1844–1922) of Williamsburg, another APVA officer who wrote of political divisions within the organization (section 78); and Mary Washington Ball (Minor) Lightfoot (1851–1930), an APVA officer (section 92). Letters from Gertrude Powell Colston (1836?–1901) of Richmond discuss the charitable work of the Richmond Ice and Milk Mission and the City mission (section 68). Letters from Francis Warrington Dawson (1840–1889) of Charleston, S.C., cover a range of subjects including posthumous publication of George Bagby's works, the politics of government employment, and family news (section 75). Among the female friends and relatives who corresponded with Bagby were her aunt and godmother, Mary Amanda (Williamson) Stewart (1822–1910) (section 118), and Sally Louisa Tompkins (1834–1916) (section 120), who nursed soldiers in Richmond during the Civil War and was commissioned as a captain by Jefferson Davis.

Bagby also received letters from a host of Chamberlayne, Dabney, and Bagby relatives, as well as her own children. Among the many family correspondents whose letters appear in separate series are her brother, John Hampden Chamberlayne (1838–1882), a newspaper editor in Norfolk, Petersburg, and Richmond (sections 48 and 63); her cousin, novelist and educator Virginius Dabney (1835–1894) (section 72); and her children, Virginia (Bagby) Taylor (1864–1955) of Louisa County (section 47); John Hampden Chamberlayne Bagby (1867–1932), a student, teacher, and professor at Hampden-Sydney College (section 48); Martha Burwell Dabney (Bagby) Battle (1869–1954) of New York (section 49); Parke Chamberlayne (Bagby) Bolling (1874–1947) of Richmond, who succeeded her mother as president of the Richmond Ice and Milk Mission (section 50); George William Bagby, Jr. (1876–1943), a student at the College of William and Mary and later an employee of the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad (section 51); Robert Coleman Bagby (1876–1938), a student at the College of William and Mary and the U.S. Naval Academy and later an employee of various tobacco and construction companies (section 52); Ellen Mathews Bagby (1879–1960) of Richmond (section 53); and Philip Haxall Bagby (1882–1926), who became a career army officer and served abroad (section 54).

Papers of Parke and George Bagby's children constitute more than one-third of this collection. Papers of their son, George William Bagby, Jr., account for almost one-third of that proportion; they include thirty-two series of correspondence, 1890–1938, much of it with his brother, Robert Coleman Bagby, and other siblings, and some with female friends (sections 208–239); three diaries, 1896–1897, kept as a student at the College of William and Mary (section 240); and two commonplace books, 1896, and other items pertaining to his education (sections 241 and 242). Papers of his sister, Ellen Matthews Bagby, include thirteen series of correspondence, 1890–1960, much of it with family members and friends (sections 257–269), but there is also a significant run of letters, 1890–1960, from Nancy Wichter (Langhorne) Shaw Astor (1879–1964) (section 261). Correspondence with William Harrison Smith and Vera Smith concerns the operation of APVA properties, especially at Jamestown, in the mid-twentieth century (sections 264 and 265). There are also four diaries, 1933–1934 and 1955–1956 (section 270); a volume of personal accounts, 1915, and a volume of accounts, 1896–1897, concerning a dance class; autograph books, 1904–1907; an undated sketchbook (section 271); six scrapbooks, 1906–1914, documenting the life of Nancy Astor, the Richmond Female Seminary, and her father's The Old Virginia Gentleman, which Ellen Bagby edited and reprinted in 1938 (section 272); and materials regarding her education (section 273). Papers of her brother Robert Coleman Bagby include correspondence with family members, especially his sister Ellen (section 245), and female friends (sections 247–249) and materials documenting his education (section 251), including a diary, 1894, kept during a training cruise at the Naval Academy (section 253). Papers of his brother John Hampden Chamberlayne Bagby include seventeen series of correspondence, 1881–1934, much of it with family members (sections 154–170); accounts, 1902–1934, and other materials documenting his career at Hampden-Sydney College (sections 171, 174, 179 and 180); a few estate papers (section 177); and a Book of Common Prayer (section 181). Papers of his sister, Martha Burwell Dabney (Bagby) Battle, consist primarily of correspondence (sections 182–188); most is with her siblings, but a series of letters, 1935–1941, from W. E. Davis discuss operations at Campbell Field, a farm in Orange County (section 189). Papers of her sister, Parke Chamberlayne (Bagby) Bolling, include six series of correspondence with her siblings and spouse (sections 193–198); eight diaries, 1938–1946, kept in Richmond (section 199); seven volumes of personal accounts, 1934–1946, kept in Richmond (section 201); two account books, 1929–1935, related to her voluntary activities (section 200); two commonplace books, 1932–1946, concerning activities of the United Daughters of the Confederacy—she served as president in 1939 (section 202); a scrapbook, 1937, documenting a UDC convention in Dallas, Texas (section 204); a few legal papers (section 205); an autograph album, 1889–1991; and the guest list, 1894, for her wedding (section 207). Papers of her sister, Virginia (Bagby) Taylor, contain correspondence, 1872–1955, with her siblings (sections 145–152) and a scrapbook, 1869–1878 (section 153).

The collection concludes with a few papers pertaining to Parke and George Bagby's grandchildren, Philip Haxall Bagby, Jr. (1918–1958) (sections 297 and 298) and Virginia Allen (Bagby) Macneil (b. 1920) (section 299), and over three hundred obituaries, 1854–1955, of Bagby family members, relatives, and friends who appear in this collection (section 300).

Bagby, Lucy Parke Chamberlayne, Diaries, 1881–1898. 2 volumes. Mss5:1B1462:1–2.
This record kept by Lucy Parke (Chamberlayne) Bagby (1842–1927) lists household accounts and social engagements in Richmond and contains notes on a trip to New York in 1898.

Bailey Family Papers, 1824–1886. 285 items. Mss1B1565a. Microfilm reel C380.
This collection consists primarily of the papers of Phebe Howson (Clark) Bailey (1795–1886), a prosperous widow of Halifax County. Her correspondence, 1845–1881, contains letters from adult nieces and nephews, a sister, and other relatives (section 6). Several letters address the effect of the Civil War and Reconstruction on farming and the social order, and many discuss the activities of individual family members and reveal the dynamics of family interaction. Scattered accounts, ca. 1850–1870, with various merchants offer insights into Bailey's activities as a tobacco farmer and her other financial affairs (section 7). The collection also contains business correspondence, 1841–1862, and some accounts, 1824–1862, of Phebe Bailey's brother-in-law, William Bailey (1781–1862), a tobacco and general merchant in Halifax County (sections 2 and 3). There are a few letters addressed to other family members.

Baird, Nancy Chappelear, Memoir, 1940–1945. 1 volume. Mss5:1B1635:1.
In this volume Nancy (Chappelear) Baird (b. 1918) recalls her employment at the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics and at the Norfolk Navy Yard during World War II. She includes detailed descriptions of jobs and remarks regarding harassment by co-workers.

Baird, Nancy Chappelear, Papers, ca. 1958–1965. 7 items. Mss1B1635a.
Drafts (typescript, with handwritten corrections) of Journals of Amanda Virginia Edmonds : Lass of the Mosby Confederacy, 1857–1867 (Stephens City, Va., 1984), edited by Nancy Chappelear Baird (1918–2002). Folders 1 and 2 contain two versions of the complete manuscript. Folders 3–6 contain: Introductory material; Diary, 1857–1862 September 12; Diary, 1862 September 14–1863 April 28; and Epilogue and endnotes. Folder 7 contains correspondence, 1958–1965, concerning the publishing of the manuscript; essays about John Brown's Raid, 1859, the founding of Cool Spring Methodist Church, Fauquier County, and the Civil War in Fauquier County, all based on information drawn from the journals of Amanda Virginia Edmonds (1839–1921); and notes and miscellany.

Baker, Rebecca, Album, 1841. 1 volume. Mss5:6B1765:1. Microfilm reel C291.
The autograph album of Rebecca Baker of Richmond includes a few poems and signatures.

Barbour, Phyllis. Captain Thomas Jefferson Page: Confederate Expatriate from Virginia, ca. 1973–1979. 955 items. Mss5:9B2345:1.
This collection contains an unpublished manuscript biography of Confederate naval officer Thomas Jefferson Page (1808–1899) written by Phyllis Barbour and Alfred Jackson Hanna (1893–1978), as well as six boxes of research notes, consisting of copies of documents, correspondence of the authors, copies of Page family correspondence, and notes and photographs pertaining to the Page family. There is also a copy of Page's La Plata, the Argentine Confederation and Paraguay (New York: Harpers and Brothers, 1859).

Barbour Family Papers, 1810–1890. 1,368 items. Mss1B2346b. Microfilm reels C324–326.
The bulk of the collection consists of papers of Frances Todd (Johnson) Barbour (1787–1872) of Frascati in Orange County. Her personal and business correspondence, 1815?–1872, is with her children, their spouses, friends, merchants, and her husband's political and legal contemporaries of her husband, Philip Pendleton Barbour (1783–1841), a lawyer and associate justice of the United States Supreme Court (section 6). The letters include discussions of the lives of her children, her spouse, and a cholera outbreak in St. Louis, Mo., in 1849. Her accounts, 1836–1872, document household expenses and the cost of medical care (section 7); her commonplace book, 1858, contains medicinal remedies (section 8); and agreements and bonds illuminate provisions for and hiring out of slaves and the maintenance of Barbour family cemeteries (section 9). Miscellaneous materials concern the operations of Frascati during Barbour's widowhood (sections 10–12).

The collection includes some correspondence, 1825–1841, and other personal and business papers of her husband, Philip Pendleton Barbour (sections 1–4). Accounts, 1835–1849, and other personal papers of Sextus Barbour (1813–1848), a physician and one of the Barbours' sons, concern his medical practice (sections 24–27). The collection also contains scattered papers of other members of the Ambler and Barbour families.

Barbour Family Papers, 1741–1876. 1,353 items. Mss1B2346a. Microfilm reels C321–324.
This collection primarily consists of the legal and business papers of Philip Pendleton Barbour (1783–1841), lawyer of Frascati in Orange County, and later an associate justice of the United States Supreme Court. The papers include correspondence, 1806–1841 (section 7); account books, 1803–1831 (sections 8–13); loose accounts; and numerous business and legal records containing information on Barbour's law practice (some cases involve women litigants or defendants) (sections 14–57), the construction of the plantation house at Frascati, the Orange Humane Society (a philanthropic organization dedicated to the education of children in Orange County) (section 10), and the 3rd Infantry Regiment of Virginia Militia, commanded by Barbour (section 58). The collection also contains correspondence, 1825–1848, of his wife, Frances Todd (Johnson) Barbour (1787–1872), including letters from her husband, children and their spouses, friends, and other family members, in part concerning the estate of Philip P. Barbour (section 60). There are scattered papers pertaining to other members of the Ambler, Barbour, and Johnson families.

Barksdale, Eliza Lavalette, Diary, 1836–1837. 1 volume. Mss5:1B2475:1. Microfilm reel C448.
Eliza Lavalette Barksdale (b. 1818) discusses family activities and her social life as a young, single woman in Charlotte County. Numerous entries detail various courtship practices and describe Barksdale's excitement at meeting eligible men. Also included is a description of Roanoke, the house of John Randolph (1773–1833), and of the death of Barksdale's mother.

Barringer, Nannie Irene Hannah, My Childhood at Gravel Hill, n.d. 26 pp. Photocopy of typescript. Mss5:1B2775:1.
This memoir, written by Nannie Irene (Hannah) Barringer (b. 1861), includes a physical description of Gravel Hill, Charlotte County, as well as a detailed description of plantation life in the mid-1800s. Also, concerns children's games and songs.

Barrow, Ruth Abbot Gibbs, Scrapbook, 1932–1969. 1 volume. Mss5:7B2795:1.
Kept by Ruth Abbot (Gibbs) Barrow (1903?–1988), this volume of newspaper clippings commemorates the career of her husband, William J. Barrow (1932–1969) of Richmond, a pioneer in paper conservation and the inventor of lamination, deacidification, and acid-free paper.

Baskervill Family Papers, 1785–1912. 35 items. Mss1B2924c. Microfilm reel C385.
The collection is composed largely of financial, military, and legal records of Robert Dortch Baskervill (1826–1891), William Rust Baskervill (1789–1884), and William Rust Baskervill (1869?–1960) of Mecklenburg County. Among the scattered materials pertaining to other members of the Baskervill family are a letter, 1785, from William Baskervill (1756–1814) to his future wife, Mary (Easton) Baskervill (d. 1842) of Granville County, N.C., that expresses his affection for her and discusses his legal practice before the Virginia General Court (section 1); a cookbook, 1833–1873, compiled by Sally (Dortch) Baskervill (b. 1807?) containing recipes, instructions for dying cloth, records of the manufacture of carpets, and accounts of her husband (section 3); an agreement, 1866, between Robert Dortch Baskervill and Louisa, a former slave owned by the Baskervill family, concerning her work as a domestic servant and seamstress and her daughter Sarah's work as a nurse (section 7); and a diary, 1897, kept by Betty P. (Alexander) Baskervill (b. 1836?) that concerns family affairs and notes the weather in Mecklenburg County (section 12).

Baskervill Family Papers, 1751–1904. 755 items. Mss1B2924b. Microfilm reels C384–385.
This collection contains correspondence, 1838–1883, and accounts, account books, land records, and related materials for approximately the same chronological period of William Rust Baskervill (1798–1884) of Waverley in Mecklenburg County. It illuminates his family life, trade with Petersburg merchants, and agricultural operations, especially the cultivation, transportation, and sale of tobacco and wheat. A few items concern female slaves and the education of Baskervill's children. The collection also includes two commonplace books, 1831–1839 and 1835–1840, kept by William Baskervill's wife, Mary (Eaton) Baskervill, that document gardening, knitting, and farm operations generally, and contain recipes for various medical remedies (section 14). There are a few scattered items pertaining to other family members.

Bauder, Elizabeth B., Papers, 1986–1988. 211 items. Mss1B32342b.
Materials compiled by Elizabeth B. Bauder as senior vice president for sales promotion for Thalhimer Bros., Inc., Richmond, concerning the opening of the branch department store at Southpark Mall in Charlotte, N.C., 18 August 1988. These materials concern scouting the possible locations for a new store, market analysis, planning for the store opening and associated special events, and advertising. Include general memoranda; planning meeting minutes; press releases; timing and action calendars; preopening materials; employee recruitment and training materials; newspaper advertising materials (including copy); radio advertising and program copy; billboard advertising materials; special events planning; credit card promotion and mailing materials; "Thank You, Charlotte" cash donation program (return of a percentage of proceeds to local community organizations); Southpark Mall tie-ins; Charlotte, N.C., background information; selling statistics; organizational chart/customer service team; and related materials.

Beardsworth, Thomas, Letters, 1898 July 6–September 18. 29 items. Mss2B3803b.
Letters written by Beardsworth (1875–1941) from the Rockbridge Alum Springs while employed with a musical group providing entertainment at one of the resort's hotels. The letters are addressed to Julia Ada Bantz of Winchester, who Beardsworth would marry in 1902. As a violinist, he discusses his working conditions, including performances at "Germans" (dancing parties), for which he received additional income beyond his regular salary. He discusses also the social activities there and in Winchester (about which he hears from Ada), his personal health, and his desire that they marry soon. He also mentions Ada's training to become a piano and organ teacher in Winchester.

Bearse, Betty B., Correspondence, 1948. 3 items. Mss6:1C969:2.
Mrs. Willard E. Bearse of Yarmouth Port, Mass., corresponded with W. Clayton Torrence of the Virginia Historical Society about the burial of Custis family members from Virginia in a cemetery in Yarmouth. One of her letters bears her recollections as a student in the Blackstone Academy for Girls (i.e., Blackstone Female Institute) in Blackstone.

Beckwith, Margaret Stanly, Memoir, 1844–1865. 3 volumes. Mss5:1B3896:1–3. Microfilm reel C270.
Margaret Stanly Beckwith (b. 1842) compiled this three-volume reminiscence sometime after the Civil War. The first volume contains her memories of growing up in Petersburg and at Woodbourne in Prince George County during the antebellum period. It also includes excerpts from family letters, 1860–1865, that discuss secession, national politics, the war, and life on the home front, as well as a journal, 1864–1865, kept by Beckwith in Lincolnton, N. C., after the evacuation of Petersburg. The diary comments on Union activities, troop movements, and social and economic conditions after the war. The second volume recounts the Confederate service of Beckwith's father, Thomas Beckwith, a volunteer surgeon, and the role of his female kin as nurses after their house was converted to a hospital. Beckwith describes the deaths of her brother and grandparents during the war, and includes transcripts of lyrics and music of songs, observations on slavery and race relations, comments on spying, and an account of the disruption of her family and community during the war and Reconstruction. There is also an account of the ship, "Minot," which was manned by free blacks during the war. The third volume consists of genealogical notes on the Beckwith, Cogdell, Ruffin, Stanly, and Travis families and biographical information on Beckwith's grandfather, Edmund Ruffin (1794–1865), a noted agricultural reformer.

Becton, Louise Marie DeLoach, Memior, ca. 1876. 1 volume. Mss5:1 B3899:1. Microfilm reel C448.
A whimsical memoir presented in verse and purporting to describe a visit by Louise Marie DeLoach Becton to Buford's, a health resort in Bedford County. Water colors by an unidentified artist, probably Becton, illustrate visitors disembarking at a train station, dancing, dining, and climbing mountains; there are also sketches of unnamed men and women "a gambler," "a couple," amd "a rougish fellow".

Beirne Family Papers, 1921–1945. 942 items. Mss1B3969a.
This collection contains 28 file folders (arranged chronologically) primarily consisting of the correspondence of Clara Haxall (Grundy) Beirne Leake (1856–1944) of Rhodeen, Ashland, with her son Francis Foulke Beirne (1890–1972), newspaperman of Baltimore, Md., and his wife, Rosamond (Randall) Beirne (1894–1969), her grandchildren Clara Haxall (Beirne) Dewart (1920– ) and Daniel Randall Beirne (1925– ), and other family members. The correspondence generally concerns social life in Ashland and Richmond, the era of the Great Depression in Virginia and Maryland, and life in those states during World War II. Along with general commentary on local and national events, prominent persons mentioned in the letters include landscape architect Charles F. Gillette ([1886–1969] 1932), newspaperman and author Douglas Southall Freeman (1886–1953), Ambassador Alexander Wilbourne Weddell ([1876–1948] 1942), aviator Amelia Earhart (1897–1937), Mrs. Leake's neighbor and friend Dr. Robert Emory Blackwell (1854–1938), president of Randolph-Macon College, conductor and composer Walter Damrosch (1862–1950), and General Dwight David Eisenhower ([1890–1969] 1942–1945).

Letters from Frank and Rosamond Beirne concern their family and social life in Baltimore, Md., and his work on the Baltimore Sun. Granddaughter Clara Haxall Beirne writes letters from Bryn Mawr School in Baltimore and then from Smith College, where she graduated in 1942. Those written by her brother Randall concern his education at the United States Military Academy and training at a military camp in 1944. Mrs. Leake also frequently mentions her daughter Mary McDermott Beirne, who lives in Ashland with her, and Mary's activities in the James River Garden Club. She also discusses her interactions with local African Americans and, during the war, mentions women in various aspects of the war effort. Although a Democrat, Mrs. Leake was critical of the administration of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1882–1945) and often commented on his wife, Eleanor (1884–1962). The last folder in the collection contains a variety of newspaper clippings from the period 1930–1940.

Belmont Home Demonstration Club, Records, 1937–1962. 684 items. Mss3B4175a.
The collection contains papers pertaining to the annual horse show held at Prospect Hill in Spotsylvania County and sponsored by the Belmont Home Demonstration Club in Mineral. Records consist primarily of printed programs, class lists, and winners' names, ca. 1941–1962. Also included are a few mailing lists and papers dealing with the organization of the show. Profits supported various civic causes, but the papers of this women's club do not address that aspect of the club's activities.

Belmont, May Amelia Muurling Maddux, Papers, 1893–1946. 179 items. Mss1B4177a.
This collection contains papers of May Amelia (Muurling) Maddux Belmont (1880–1948) of Leeton Hill in Fauquier County and Belray Farm in Loudoun County. Belmont was born in Rotterdam, Holland, but later emigrated with her parents to New York; she became a United States citizen shortly before her marriage to James Kerfort Maddux of Fauquier County. Her correspondence, 1901–1946, consists chiefly of letters exchanged with her parents, I. J. Reinier Muurling and Winifred (Smith) Muurling of New York (sections 3 and 4), and with her first and second husbands, James Kerfort Maddux (section 2) and Raymond Belmont (section 1), as well as other family members and friends (section 5) . Letters from the Muurlings discuss the construction and furnishing of Leeton Hill; letters from James K. Maddux discuss horse and dog breeding; letters to Belmont center on his treatment for alcoholism. Legal papers include documentation of May Amelia (Muurling) Maddux Belmont's naturalization, marriages, and divorce (section 6). An album, 1902–1921, contains photographs of the house and grounds at Leeton Hill and of the thoroughbreds raised by Muurling and her first husband (section 8).

Best Products Co. (Richmond, Va.), Records, 1957–1999. ca.46,780 items. Mss3B4648a FA2.
Best Products Co., Inc., was a revolutionary catalog showroom retailer, founded by Sydney and Frances Lewis in 1957 in Richmond, Va. The company eventually had showrooms all over the United States, and topped off sales of two billion dollars in the 1990s. Best Products was highly influential in changing fair trade laws for the retail industry. The company, as well as its founders, was well known for charitable contributions to the communities in which its stores were located. Frances Lewis, educated at the University of Michigan, ran the company with her husband, as a vice president and a member of the Board of Directors. Her influence can be seen especially in the Board of Directors Minutes, 1961–1998, (Series 1; boxes 1–19). The influence of her daughter, Susan Lewis Butler, is also visible in the materials concerning the Best Products Foundation (Series 10; box 84), which both she and her mother directed for many years. The collection includes a wide variety of records illustrating Best Products influence on retail culture in the United States. Series of interest include Financial Materials (Series 2; boxes 20–44); Marketing, Advertising, and Publicity materials (Series 3; boxes 45–52); Showrooms (Series 7; boxes 70–74); and Architectural Drawings (Series 11.1; oversized folders 1–235). A changed retail climate and hard economic times brought the company to bankruptcy in 1989. Although it emerged from bankruptcy, it never regained its market niche to become solvent. The Lewises sold the company in 1989, and retired from the Board of Directors in 1994. The company closed its doors in 1997.

Binford, Anna Branch, Memoir, 1948. 2 volumes. Photocopy of typescript. Mss5:1:B5137:1–2.
In the first volume of her memoir, "My Home Town and Me," Anna Branch Binford (1871–1950) offers a personal account of Richmond's history between 1871 and 1948. From her shifting perspectives as daughter, teacher, member of the Presbyterian church, religious educator, neighbor, and traveller, Binford recounts the city's history through anecdotes and descriptions of people, places, and events. Topics addressed include race relations, family life, and education. Volume two, entitled "Natural Growth," provides a didactic account of Binford's own life as a self-made woman.

Black, Fannie Rebecca, Album, 1857–1934. 1 volume. Mss5:6B5613:1.
Kept by Fannie Rebecca Black (1836–1880) at Wheatland Seminary in Roanoke and Rockbridge counties and in Houstonia, Mo., this autograph album contains poems and signatures of male and female friends, as well as several obituaries.

Blackford Family, Papers, 1841–1965. 476 items. Mss1B5645a. Microfilm reels C448–450.
Primarily correspondence of Pelham Blackford ([1863–1930], son of William Willis Blackford [1831–1905], Confederate cavalry officer on Jeb Stuart's staff) and his wife Sarah Evelyn (Baylor) Blackford (1883–1954) concerning their wedding and honeymoon cruise to Europe (sections 9 and 11). Sarah Blackford's papers also include a scrapbook, 1904, containing materials concerning her wedding and honeymoon (including a diary kept while in Europe on the honeymoon) (section 12); a diary, 1897–1898, kept at Staunton Hill, Charlotte County, and while attending school in Richmond (section 13); an address book, 1900–1901, kept while a student at St. Timothy's School, Catonsville, Md. (section 14); a commonplace book, 1899–1901, containing inventories of linens, medical remedies, and accounts (section 15); and drawing books, 1895–1897 (sections 16–17). Pelham Blackford's accounts, 1904, document the purchase of an engagement ring and honeymoon expenses (section 10).

Correspondence, 1889–1924 and 1883–1899, of Sarah's parents, James Bowen Baylor (1849–1924) and Ellen Carter (Bruce) Baylor (1858–1899), primarily concern family news, her education, and Pelham's courtship of and intention to marry their daughter (sections 4 and 8). Sarah Alexander (Seddon) Bruce's (1829–1907) correspondence, 1888–1906, discusses family news and her granddaughter Sarah's courtship and wedding plans (section 6). Also, in the collection is a small amount of material of other family members, including the correspondence, 1896–1928, of Sarah Blackford's aunt Maria Roy Baylor (1855–1940) regarding changes in her will, financial matters, and an impending visit to Berkeley Springs, W.Va. (section 5).

Blackford Family, Papers, 1895–1931. 24 items. Mss1B5645b. Microfilm reels C450–451.
Chiefly the papers of Sarah Evelyn (Baylor) Blackford (1883–1954) of Richmond and Staunton Hill, Charlotte County, concerning her daily life and activities, travels to Richmond, Washington, D.C., and Brooklyn, N.Y., and marriage in 1904 to Pelham Blackford (1863–1930). Sarah's papers include correspondence, 1902–1906, with Pelham and her grandmother, Sarah Alexander (Seddon) Bruce (1829–1907) (section 3); a diary, 1895–1897, describing her daily life in Richmond and Charlotte County and while living in Washington, D.C., her education, what she read, her religious upbringing, and visits to sites and museums in Washington (section 4); a commonplace book, 1898–1902, containing lines of verse, quotations, reading lists, and a list of plays she had seen (section 5); and scrapbooks, 1898–1899 and 1902–1904, containing materials relating to a visit to Washington (section 6) and correspondence discussing Sarah's courtship and marriage and her life at Staunton Hill (section 7). Also, in the collection is an appraisal, 1908, of Sarah Alexander (Seddon) Bruce's estate with an inventory of furniture and linens at Staunton Hill (section 8); and a will, 1931, of Sarah Blackford's aunt Maria Roy Baylor (1855–1940) (section 9).

Blackford, Gay Robertson, Memoir, ca. 1820–1870. 29 pp. Photocopy of typescript. Mss5:1B5644:1.
These reminiscences focus on the childhood of Gay (Robertson) Blackford (1861–1959) and her siblings, who were sent to live with their grandparents in Washington County shortly after their mother's death in 1866. Blackford recalls daily life in a rural community in southwestern Virginia during the mid-nineteenth century, including discussions of food, games, education, holidays, slavery, and individual African American domestic workers after the Civil War, as well as a description of her grandparents' house, the Meadows.

Blackwell, Fannie Crocker, Recollections of Life during the War Between the States, n.d. 7 pp. Phototcopy of a typescript. Mss5:1B5685:1.
Fannie (Crocker) Blackwell's (1849–1929) recollections chronicle her family's experiences during the Civil War. While her father, William F. Crocker (1814–1869), served as chaplain in the 14th Virginia Infantry Regiment and later as chief of the Army Intelligence Office in Richmond, Fannie, along with her mother and brothers, moved away from the war on the Peninsula as refugees to Lynchburg. Later they moved to Richmond to be with her father. Fannie recalls her family's efforts to survive amidst the shortages brought on by the war. Her description of life in Richmond includes mention of high ranking Confederate military officers and political officials who inhabited the city throughout the war.

Blevins, Margaret Elaine Ball, Papers, 1945–1949. 111 items. Mss1B6175a.
Correspondence of Margaret "Marge" Elaine (Ball) Blevins ([1923–1999] of Abingdon, Virginia), with soldiers in the military and friends during and following the Second World War, 1939–1945. The letters portray a woman fulfilling her patriotic duty by corresponding with military men during the war to raise morale. Because of the stress of serving and living during the War, romantic entanglements often formed quickly. Margaret had several correspondents who professed their love for her. The largest correspondence represented in the collection is that of Theodore "Ted" Winslow Georges (of Riverdale, New York [who began his romantic correspondence with Margaret while serving with a mutual acquaintance, Jim). A second major correspondent was Oscar "Ossie" Cardozo (originally from New York, but stationed in Little Creek, Va.) regarding their romantic relationship.

Blue Family Papers, ca. 1830–1870. 4 items. Mss2B6252b.
Include a letter (incomplete) of George William Washington to his future wife, Sarah A. Wright of Loudoun County, in part concerning the sale of slaves; letter of Robert Wright of Sycamore Hill, Loudoun County, and his sister Rebecca to Sarah Ann (Wright) Washington concerning Rebecca's marriage to B. Franklin Carter, the painting of family portraits by [James McCormick] Eaches, and Wright family life; and a letter (incomplete) of an unidentified author, written from Spout Spring, Appomattox County, to Sallie [i.e., Sallie Gertrude (Washington) Blue] concerning the author's life as a teacher in the family of Benjamin Hunter, Jr., news of Romney, W.Va., and activities of the writer's own family members.

Bolling Family Papers, 1749–1956. 663 items. Mss1B6386a. Microfilm reels C388–389.
This collection contains papers of four generations of Bolling family members from Campbell and Powhatan counties. Papers of Blair Bolling (1791–1839) of Centre Hill, Powhatan County, include three diaries, 1810–1839, primarily kept while serving as captain of the Virginia Public Guard in Richmond; correspondence, 1813–1839; an account book, 1826–1855; and a few other items. His diaries discuss activities of family members, national political figures, visits to medicinal springs in Virginia, and trips to other states on the East Coast (section 3). A portion of volume two was kept by his wife, Penelope (Storrs) Bolling. Blair Bolling's correspondence, 1813–1839, is chiefly with family members, especially his wife, and concerns agricultural operations and family life at Centre Hill and his father, Archibald Bolling (1750–1827) (section 4). His account book, 1826–1855, continued by his wife and son, documents agriculture at Centre Hill, while a copy that he made of the "Memoirs of the Bolling Family by Robert Bolling of Buckingham" includes essays on "The Female Character" and "A Hint to Parents" (section 5).

Correspondence, 1848–1891, of Blair and Penelope Bolling's son Archibald (1827–1897), of Richmond, illuminate his service in the Confederate States Army of Northern Virginia and visits to Europe (section 16), while an account book, 1845–1849, documents the operations of a school that he kept near Guinea Church in Cumberland County (section 17). A small amount of family correspondence, 1850–1861, of his wife, Elizabeth Trueheart (Armistead) Bolling of Woodville, Cumberland County, survives in this collection (sections 12 and 19), along with a commonplace book, 1848–1852, containing lines of verse (section 20) and family letters, 1859–1871, written to her mother, Martha Storrs (Trueheart) Armistead (1802–1872) (section 14). Martha Armistead's letters concern economic, political, and social conditions in post–Civil War Virginia. An undated commonplace book kept by Archibald Bolling's sister, Paulina Storrs Bolling (1839–1857), contains lines of verse and notes on Scotland (section 20). A minute book, 1859–1870, kept by Wyndham Bolling (1854–1922) and others, details the activities of the Cluster Springs Literary Society, an organization for men in Halifax County (section 24).

Papers of Archibald and Elizabeth Bolling's daughter, Martha (1856–1936) of Richmond, include family letters, 1861–1926, written to her (section 25); an album containing lines of verse and other passages copied from published literature (section 26); and drawings of landscapes, European scenes and figures, and buildings (section 27). Some scattered materials pertain to other members of the Bolling family (sections 28–33).

Braxton, Fannie Page Hume, Diary, 1862. 1 volume. Typescript. Mss5:1B7398:1.
This diary documents one year in the life of Fannie Page (Hume) Braxton (1838–1865) while she lived as a single woman with her grandparents in Orange County. She kept a daily record of her social visits, church attendance, sewing, health, and reading material. As military activity increased, she noted the ways that the Civil War affected life in her community. Included are discussions of caring for wounded soldiers, raids by Federal troops, funerals, and an account of the evacuation of her grandparents' house. The diary concludes with comments about Braxton's future husband, Carter M. Braxton (1836–1898). The Orange County (Va.) Historical Society owns the original manuscript; it has been published in J. Randolph Grymes, Jr., ed., The Fanny Hume Diary of 1862 (Orange County Historical Society, 1994).

Breed, Elizabeth Boyd Roberts, Papers, 1919–1998. 32 items. Mss2B7452b.
Mainly concern the Mecklenburg County Pageant Association of the Virginia Historical Pageant Association, Richmond, which sponsored a celebration of Virginia history centered around a play held May 22–28, 1922. Items include the correspondence, 1921, of Elizabeth Boyd (Roberts) Breed (1889–1944) of Chase City, especially with William Broaddus Cridlin (d. 1932), pageant secretary in Richmond (b1–15); a letter, 1921, to Mary Spottswood (Roberts) Conner (1899–1988), sister of Elizabeth, about Mary's campaign to become the queen of the pageant (b16); correspondence, 1922, of Lucy Henry (Morton) Hudgins (1880–1964) of Chase City, chairman of the Mecklenburg County Pageant Association (b17–24); an undated letter written by Bessie (Anderson) Roberts (1885–1967), stepmother of Elizabeth and Mary, concerning the balloting for Mary to become queen of the pageant (b25); letters, 1921, to Theoderic Erasmus Roberts (1857–1934), father of Elizabeth and Mary, concerning balloting (b26–27); and miscellany, 1919–1998, including genealogical notes about the Roberts family gathered by Margaret Carlisle (Roberts) Thomas (1930– ) and a magazine article including a modern picture of the home in Chase City of Theoderic Erasmus Roberts (b28–32).

Brent, Martha Buxton Porter, Memoir, 1934. 1 vol. Mss5:1B7526:1
Concerns the history of the Luke, Porter, Pritchard and Buxton families of Norfolk and Portsmouth. These families descended from the pre-revolutionary era, held slaves, and owned shipyards. Martha Buxton (Porter) Brent describes her life including: her education, her religious upbringing as a Methodist and Episcopalian, her interest in music, and changes to her life during and after the Civil War. Martha describes her family's move to Pensacola, Florida, before the Civil War. She writes of her father, John Luke Porter's (1813–1893) career in shipbuilding and refurbishing the Merrimack Frigate into the Ironclad Virginia for the Confederate States of America Navy. She also describes her married life and husband Frank Pierce Brent (1852–1927).

Bridges Family Papers, 1897–1945. 4 items. Mss2B7643b.
This small collection primarily concerns Charles Hilliard Scott Bridges (1903–1961), a native of Gloucester County and an executive of Libby, McNeill & Libby, Chicago, Ill., manufacturer of canned and frozen foods. Of particular interest is a memoir, 1897–1920, of Charles's sister, Laura Lucile (Bridges) Graner (b. 1897), describing her childhood in Gloucester County and Norfolk (b1).

Brinson, Betsy, Papers, 1894–1999. ca. 2,000 items. Mss1B7725bFA2.
This collection is comprised of research and administrative materials compiled by Dr. Brinson in the course of her work for the American Civil Liberties Union's Southern Women's Rights Project, the Virginia Women's Cultural History Project, the Richmond, Virginia, branch of the YWCA, and Virginia Commonwealth University Women's Studies Task Force. Also, includes her dissertation research (on social advocacy and wage-earning women in Richmond from 1910 to 1932), as well as research on a variety of subjects relating to women's history, including the history of African American women in Richmond, the history of Richmond during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, labor history in the South, especially in relation to discrimination against women and African Americans, the impact of women on Virginia's history over four centuries, racism and sexism in American culture, and notable Virginia women. A detailed finding aid to the fourteen series comprising this collection is available online.

Briscoe, Marion Knox Goode, Memoir, ca. 1950. 275 pp. Photocopy of typescript. Mss5:1B7744:1.
In "Ashes of Roses" Marion Knox (Goode) Briscoe (1865–1954) recalls her life in Boydton, Mecklenburg County, with members of the Chambers, Goode, and Laird families. She incorporates the stories and traditions of her parents and grandparents into the memoir. The first volume focuses on the antebellum lives of her grandparents and includes transcripts of family letters, ca. 1840. There are anecdotes concerning slave life and folklore related to Briscoe by her mother, as well as information on her own family's holiday and funeral customs, gardening, and a visit by Edgar Allan Poe to Prestwould. The second volume discusses the marriage of Briscoe's parents in 1860 and the Confederate military service of her father, Thomas B. Goode. It also contains information on post-war social and economic changes and race relations. Briscoe's father bought the Buffalo Lithia Springs in Mecklenburg County and she describes life at the health resort during the last quarter of the nineteenth century. There is information on Briscoe's education in a one-room schoolhouse and later at a female academy and on religious revivals. Family folklore includes ghost stories and anecdotes illuminating gender roles and ideals for women. The memoir concludes with the author's marriage to Philip J. Briscoe.

Brodnax, Elizabeth M. Foster, Album, 1880–1882. 1 volume. Mss5:6B7853:1. Microfilm reel C291.
The autograph album of Elizabeth M. (Foster) Brodnax of Manchester contains poems and signatures of friends and three generations of members of her family, including her parents, sisters, and children.

Brown, Barbara Colquhoun Trigg, Papers, 1901–1938. 2 items. Photocopies. Mss2B81235c.
Consist of a memoir, 1901–1903, of Barbara Colquhoun (Trigg) Brown (1889–1976) documenting visits in Massachusetts, New York, Virginia (Hot Springs, Petersburg, and Richmond [concerning Virginia Randolph Ellett and Ellett's School for Girls]) and West Virginia (c1).

Brown, Stuart Ellett, Papers, 1990. 8 items. Mss2B8152b.
Papers concerning the sexual harassment of Gwen M. Dreyer, a nineteen-year-old female midshipman at the United States Naval Academy, Annapolis, Md., in December 1989. Items include correspondence of Stuart Ellett Brown (1916–2004) of Berryville, with Navy Secretary Henry Lawrence Garrett (1939– ), Virginia Senator Charles S. Robb (1939– ), Virginia Congressman Daniel French Slaughter, Jr. (1925–1998) and others; and a newspaper clipping (with a photograph of Dreyer).

Brown, Ida Mason Dorsey, Papers, 1818–1973. 610 items. Mss1B8134a. Microfilm reel C451.
The papers of Ida Mason (Dorsey) Brown (1866–1954) reveal various facets of her life as a wife, mother, grandmother, and church woman, including twenty-three years spent in Brazil, 1891–1914, with her husband, William Cabell Brown (1861–1927), a Protestant Episcopal missionary who later became bishop of Virginia. Correspondence, 1909–1954, includes letters of congratulations to the bishop upon his election (section 3) and letters of condolence to his widow upon his death (section 9), as well as letters from Protestant Episcopal women in Brazil, England, and elsewhere, and from Brown's sons, daughters, granddaughters, and aging sister (section 3). A few letters are in Portuguese. The collection also contains Brown's memoir of her husband's life, 1932, which elaborates upon time spent in Brazil, and two volumes produced by earlier generations of women (section 4). A commonplace book kept in part by Eliza Margaretta (Chew) Mason (1791–1874) contains lines of English and French verse (section 1), and the travel diary of Mary Cornelia Briscoe (Daniel) Cabell (1804–1843) discusses journeys from Virginia to Philadelphia, 1835, and Havana, Cuba, 1835–1836, undertaken to improve her husband's health (section 2).

Brown, Joseph D., Account Book, 1847–1878. 1 volume. Mss5:3B8136:1.
This memorandum book contains accounts kept by Joseph D. Brown as guardian of Anne E. and Elizabeth Jones (d. 1864), daughters of William Jones (d. 1856) of Rappahannock County. Brown also served as executor of Jones's will.

Browne, [Charlotte], Diary, 1754–1757. 62 pp. Photocopy. Mss5:1B8162:1.
Charlotte Browne, a hospital matron with the British Army, discusses her experiences as a widowed English woman in America during the Seven Years' War. She sailed from London to Virginia with her brother in 1754; her diary notes weather conditions and provisions on board ship. After arriving in America, Browne describes her travels with the army through Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and New York, including travel conditions, social visits, her views of French and Indian activities, her longing for news of her children in England, and her growing sense of loneliness and desolation. Her diary provides insights into status distinctions among women of the army. Browne and her brother, who appears to have been Robert Bristowe, an apothecary who died at Fort Cumberland, both contracted fevers, and she records his death. The journal ends abruptly at Lord Loudoun's garrison in Albany, N.Y. It has been partially published in the Virginia Magazine of History and Biography 32 (1924): 305–320; the original was then in private hands.

Bruce, Louise Este Fisher, Papers, 1786–1974. 1,111 items. Mss1B8305a.
This collection celebrates the men in the family of Louise Este (Fisher) Bruce (1866–1945) of Baltimore and Ruxton, Md. Compiled primarily by Bruce, the papers contain her correspondence, 1900–1945, which reflects an interest in genealogy and family history as well as civic and religious charitable work (section 26). Included are more than one hundred letters, 1918–1919, from her son David Kirkpatrick Este Bruce (1898–1977) written while he was serving abroad during World War I and letters, 1938–1944, written by her granddaughter, Audrey (Bruce) Currier (1933–1967), as a child. Seven scrapbooks contain newspaper clippings, photographs, and other mementos noting the achievements of Bruce's husband, U.S. Senator William Cabell Bruce (1860–1946); her father, jurist William A. Fisher (1837–1901); her son David, lawyer, author, politician, and diplomat; and other family members (section 27–33). Also included are business and political correspondence, 1808–1876, of Bruce's grandfather, David Kirkpatrick Este (1785–1876) of Cincinnati, Ohio (sections 7–15); papers, 1799–1839, of William Miller (1762–1845) of Rapides Parish, La., and Lexington, Ky. (sections 1–2); and business correspondence, 1837–1901, of William A. Fisher (sections 21–22). Papers illuminate the national and international context in which family members lived and worked.

Bryan Family Papers, 1880–1966. 113 items. Mss1B8408e.
Collection consists of commonplace books, correspondence, and other materials of Episcopal clergyman Corbin Braxton Bryan of Millwood and Petersburg and of his wife, Mary Sidney Caldwell (Scott) Bryan, including her diary of a trip to England and Europe with her husband in 1904 (section 1). Also, includes a diary (two volumes), 1925–1926, of their daughter Mary Sidney Caldwell Bryan, kept on a visit to England, Scotland, and Europe (section 2); an account book, 1930–1942, of her sister Frances Bland Tucker Bryan (a teacher in Petersburg [section 2]); and a commonplace book, 1942–1948, of another sister, Elizabeth Scott (Bryan) Townsend of Petersburg, along with correspondence of her husband, attorney James Morton Townsend (section 3).

Also, includes letters of Elizabeth Bryan (Townsend) Tasker, living in Sendai and at Camp Higashi-Chitose at Hokkaido, Japan, 1952–1954, while her husband, Clayton Briggs Tasker, served in the Army Adjutant General's Corps and she worked for the U.S. Army Signal Corps (section 4). Those letters, written to family members, concern her work in the Signal Corps Office at the Army base at Sendai, her involvement with the operation of a "Bride's School" by the American Red Cross for aiding Japanese wives of American soldiers before their move to the United States, her husband's work in various locations in Japan, and her involvement with the Gray Ladies organization (volunteers organized by the American Red Cross to provide nonmedical assistance to military hospitals), as well as activities of the Episcopal Church of the United States in Japan. Miscellaneous items (section 5) feature an incomplete, typescript copy of an undated memoir of Sarah Jane Brown (Scott) Worthington concerning her early life in Perquimans County, N.C., the move of her family by her father, William Copeland Scott, to the plantation Ingleside in Princess Anne County in the early 1850s, the yellow fever epidemic in Norfolk in 1855, social life in Princess Anne before the Civil War, especially regarding Fourth of July celebrations (1860 noted in particular), and war time in Princess Anne and Norfolk (including her interactions with the enslaved population on the family plantation).

Bryan, Elizabeth Tucker Coalter, Diary, 1853. 1 volume. Mss5:1B8404:1. Microfilm reel C270.
Elizabeth Tucker (Coalter) Bryan (1805–1856) records her memories of her father, Judge John Coalter (1769–1838), for her children. The volume includes genealogical information on the Bryan and Coalter families, information on Eagle Point in Gloucester County, and a discussion of John Coalter's legal career.

Bryant, Bernice Foushee, Memoir, 1965. 1 volume. Mss5:1B8413:1.
"Reminiscences and Tall Tales of a P[reacher's] K[id], 1870–1934" provides a humorous account of the childhood of Bernice (Foushee) Bryant (b. 1883), one of four daughters of Methodist minister Nathan Bangs Foushee (1848–1934). Foushee was assigned to a different circuit every four years, and Bryant describes life in a succession of parsonages from Amherst to Mathews counties. She conveys her sense of her father's importance in these rural communities and relates several incidents concerning his work.

Bryce, Virginia, Scrapbook, 1909–1932. 1 volume. Mss5:7B8435:1.
This scrapbook, compiled by Virginia Bryce (1888–1974), documents the history of the Henrico County community of Glen Allen in the early twentieth century. Newspaper clippings focus on the controversial relationship of most of the community's members to its most prominent citizen, former Confederate scout John Cussons. Included is information on Cussons's failed attempt to recruit African American purchasers for lots carved from his estate to create a neo-feudal village.

Buford, Robert P., A Buford Family Sourcebook, 1982. 1 vol. Photocopy. Mss6:1B8647:2.
Compiled by Robert P. Buford, this volume contains copies of letters, wills, and family photographs; and a typescript of the diary, 1893 February 1–July 26, of Robert Pegram Buford (1870–1900) and Frances Susan (Palmer) Buford (1872–1961) kept in Brunswick County, describing his activies as clerk of the Circuit Court of Brunswick County, their frequent bouts with sickness, visits with friends and family members, and her activities as homemaker. Also, includes genealogical materials on the Hicks and Palmer families.

Burkholder Family Papers, 1897–1997. 25 items. Mss2B9186b.
Concern the Burkholder family of Illinois and Virginia and the allied Harman and Trainer families. The collection is divided into seven folders. Folder 1 contains a will, 1955 February 11, of Emma Luella (Trainer) Burkholder (1870–1956) of Richmond; copies of the death certificate, 1956 March 11, of Emma Burkholder; and an affidavit qualifying Emma's daughter Rena May (Burkholder) Harman (b. 1895) as the executrix of her estate, 9 April 1956. Folder 2 contains a copy of the will, 1976, with codicil, 1982, of Rena May (Burkholder) Harman; a church bulletin insert, n.d., presumably from Grace Covenant Church, Richmond, showing Rena Harman as one of the members lost through death the preceeding year; and a copy of a letter, 1997 July 17, of George A. Warthen, a Richmond attorney, to Esther (York) Burkholder, wife of Rena's nephew Ray Edwin Burkholder (1917– ) of Los Angeles, Calif., and Laurel Jean Shockley of Tujunga, Calif., Ray's daughter, concerning the estate of Rena Harman. Folder 3 contains other miscellaneous family correspondence including a letter, n.d., written by Laurel Shockley to Mary Elizabeth Blayney (of Richmond) concerning a gift of clothing to an un-named museum; and a photocopied Christmas letter, 1992, from Esther and Ray Burkholder to "Friends and Relatives." Folder 4 contains photocopied Bible records of the Trainer family, including records of the Harman and Burkholder families. Folder 5 contains family photographs, including Raymond Burkholder, Rena (Burkholder) Harman and her mother, George Ralph Harman (1890–1953) and his mother, Pearl Blayney, and Anna Lowery. Folder 6 contains miscellaneous notes concerning Trainer, Harman, and Burkholder family members. Folder 7 contains miscellaneous newspaper clippings, including an article, ca. early 1990s, about Richmond artist Nell Walden Blaine (1922–1996), and an article, 1993 April 3, appearing in the Richmond Times-Dispatch concerning the death of Elizabeth Adam Crump (1891–1993).

Burrell, Mary Ann Mary Terretta, Papers, 1839–1959. 1,492 items. Mss1B9415a.
Born in Siberia, Mary Ann Mary (Terretta) Burrell (1912?–1991) emigrated to the United States with her parents as an infant, where her family settled in Chesterfield County. She attended the Virginia State Teachers College at Fredericksburg (now University of Mary Washington) and taught for a time in the Chesterfield County Public School system. With time out for service in the Military Intelligence Division of the War Department during World War II, she became a journalist and worked as a staff member on the Richmond Times-Dispatch until her marriage in 1947. Her papers include a small amount of personal correspondence, 1939–1945 (section 1); drafts and copies of newspaper articles published in the Times-Dispatch on a variety of topics of local, state, and national interest (section 2); extensive research notes, ca. 1941–1942, on Virginia colonial governor Alexander Spotswood (section 3); drafts of three unpublished juvenile novels with historic Virginia settings (section 4); two commonplace books, 1951–1953, concerning international holidays and celebrations (section 5); and three scrapbooks, 1936–1941, of newspaper clippings (section 6).

Burwell, Ann Powell, Commonplace Book, 1746–1839. 1 volume. Mss5:5B9585:1. Microfilm reel C393.
The commonplace book of Ann (Powell) Burwell contains recipes for food and medicines recorded by different people; a list of slaves owned by Armistead Burwell and his son, Anne's husband, John Burwell (d. 1788); and a list of slaves given to Ann by her father, Benjamin Powell, and Lewis Burwell.

Burwell Family Papers, 1770–1965. 2,141 items. Mss1B9585a. Microfilm reel B09.
Chiefly materials relating to George Harrison Burwell (1799–1873), a successful farmer and breeder of thoroughbred livestock (sections 5–14). His papers and those of his father, Nathaniel Burwell (1750–1814), and half-brother, Nathaniel Burwell (1779–1849), (sections 1–4) primarily concern mill and farming operations at Carter Hall and the Island plantations in Frederick (now Clarke) County. Women represented in the collection include G. H. Burwell's second wife, Agnes (Atkinson) Burwell (1810–1885), whose correspondence, 1852–1882, and loose accounts (sections 16 and 17) mostly pertain to her life at Carter Hall, the education of women, and the Mount Vernon Ladies' Association's purchase of Mount Vernon; and his daughters, Lucy Mann (Burwell) Page (1822–1875) and Isabella Dixon (Burwell) Mayo (1841–1912), and nieces, Lucy Marshall (Burwell) Jolliffe (1812–1888) and Elizabeth G. P. (Burwell) McGuire (1816–1856), whose accounts, 1832–1861, kept as young women in Clarke County, primarily record the purchase of clothing and clothing materials (sections 29, 30, 28 and 32).

Burwell Family Papers, 1825–1976. 33 items. Mss1B9585c.
Papers, primarily, of Virginia Beverly (Pickett) Burwell (1833–1884) of Indian Camp, Powhatan County, wife of Dr. Blair Burwell (1830–1915) and sister of Confederate General George Edward Pickett (1825–1875). Her papers consist of her diary, 1866, entitled "Diary of a Horseback Ride from Healing Springs to R[ichmon]d," offering a description of visits to Lexington and the Natural Bridge, as well as travel along the upper James River Valley (c5); an album, 1869–1926, kept, in part, by Virginia C. Spotswood Burwell, containing a record of personal "tastes, habits, and convictions" of visitors to Indian Camp (c6); and a commonplace book kept, in part, by Blair Burwell containing genealogical notes on the Burwell, Harris, Johnston, and McCaw families (c8). Other items include an autograph album, 1878–1888, kept by Mary Johnston (Burwell) Butler (1865?–1889) at Indian Camp (c7); and genealogical materials concerning the Burwell, Pickett, and Spotswood families (c9–28).

Byrd, William, II, Letterbooks, 1728–1741. 6 volumes. Mss5:2B9966:1–6. Microfilm reel C62.
These six letterbooks, 1728–1741, contain copies of letters from William Byrd II (1674–1744) of Westover in Charles City County to members of the families of his first and second wives, Lucy (Parke) Byrd (1688–1716) and Maria (Taylor) Byrd (1698–1771), as well as London merchants, ships' captains, and British, Virginian, and Bermudian colonial officials. A letter, 1740, to his first wife's aunt, Jane (Parke) Sherard of London, concerns payment of a debt (v. 5). Letters to his second wife's sister and sister-in-law, Jane (Pratt) Taylor of London (v. 1–4 and 6) and Anne (Taylor) Otway (d. 1757) of London and Middlesex (v. 3 and 6), are highly stylized; they discuss family matters and offer insights into Byrd's views of women, gender roles and relations, marriage, and the family. Correspondence with his brother-in-law, Francis Otway, concerns their deceased father-in-law's estate (v. 3). Byrd's letters to other male correspondents provide information on running the boundary line between Virginia and North Carolina (v. 1–4), on British imperial commerce (v. 1, 3 and 5), and on his scheme to colonize his Brunswick County lands with Protestant German immigrants (v. 4–6); Byrd sometimes uses gendered metaphors in these letters. Some letterbooks are incomplete; all have been published by in Marion Tinling, ed., The Correspondence of the Three William Byrds of Westover, Virginia, 1684–1776, Virginia Historical Society Documents Series (2 vols.; Charlottesville, 1977).

Byrd Family Papers. 1757–1860. 32 items. Mss1B9963b. Microfilm reels C237–238.
This collection contains the papers of three generations of women of the Byrd family. The dozen letters, 1757–1761, from Maria (Taylor) Byrd (1698–1771) to her son, William Byrd III (1728–1777), written while he was fighting against the Cherokees, form the core of the collection (b1, 5–7, 10–13, and 15–19). Byrd discusses family news, the health of family members in Virginia and abroad in Italy, England, and Bermuda, the education of her grandsons in England, agricultural affairs at Westover, and her disapproval of the parenting skills of William Byrd's wife, Elizabeth Hill (Carter) Byrd (1731–1760). The letters illuminate relationships between mothers and sons. Elizabeth Byrd's letters to her husband during the same years are fewer in number and mostly lament her separation from her husband and sons (b2, 4, 8, 9 and 14). Both women feared smallpox and discuss the decision to inoculate Elizabeth and William's sons and nephew in England. The collection also contains a business letter, 1774, of Mary (Willing) Byrd (1740–1814) (b20) and a series of documents concerning Francis Otway Byrd's (1790–1860) service with the U.S. Army during the War of 1812 (b22–29).

Byrd, William, II, Westover Manuscripts, 1692–1739. 1 volume. Mss1B9966a. Microfilm reel A19.
This volume contains collected writings of William Byrd II (1674–1744) of Westover as copied by an unknown amanuensis ca. 1740. The book, which was rebound in Richmond in 1866, was passed down from Byrd's daughter-in-law, Mary (Willing) Byrd (1740–1815), through six generations of primarily female descendants who served as custodians of the family papers. Housed in the vault of the Equitable Trust Company, it survived a fire in New York in 1912, and was sold to the Virginia Historical Society in 1962. Although it was not printed during his lifetime, Byrd intended the elaborate commonplace book to circulate and parts of it have been published in various editions since 1841.

Byrd's "The History of the Dividing Line betwixt Virginia and North Carolina," 1728; "A Journey to the Land of Eden, A.D. 1733"; and "A Progress to the Mines," 1732, form the core of the Westover Manuscripts, which include his observations on the topography, agricultural potential, Indian relations, and culture of the backcountry settlements in Virginia and North Carolina and the roles of women within them. His tone is generally dogmatic, and Byrd sometimes uses gendered language when making comparisons or discussing issues unrelated to women. The volume also contains a copy of "An Essay on Bulk Tobacco," 1692, and various recipes collected from men and women on making wines, cultivating fruits, making caviar, and constructing floors for malt houses, as well as documents pertaining to Virginia's colonial government and relations between the English and the Tuscaroras and the Indians of the Five Nations.

"The Female Creed," initially written by Byrd in England ca. 1725, was removed from the volume when it was rebound in 1866. Written in a female voice, the document equates Catholicism and women with the supernatural and stereotypes both. Considered as a whole, the Westover Manuscripts illuminate Byrd's ideas about class, ethnicity, and gender.

Byrd Family Papers, 1791–1867. 156 items. Mss1B9963c. Microfilm reel C238.
This collection contains the papers of five generations of members of the Byrd, Nelson, Harrison, and McGuire families, mostly written by, to, or about women. The earliest portions of the collection pertain to Mary (Willing) Byrd (1740–1815), widow of William Byrd III, and include a letter that accuses her of being a loyalist during the American Revolution (section 1).

Later correspondence relates chiefly to women of the Nelson and Harrison families. Letters, 1830–1846, written to Anna Mercer Harrison (d. 1846) of Charles City County make up more than one-third of the collection, and include information from Robert Butler (1786–1853) regarding her investments in the Dismal Swamp Land Company and letters from female family members and friends that discuss family news, social life, education for women, African American colonization, politics, marriage, manners, gender relations, and female modes of dress (section 6). There are also scattered financial papers and correspondence of Ann Rosalie Nelson (1795–1869) and Abby Byrd Nelson (1792–1842), aunts of Anna Mercer Harrison (sections 8–9).

The tradition of maintaining family and personal correspondence continued into the next generation of Byrd family descendants through Lucy Carter McGuire (1841–1917) of Mecklenburg County. Letters, 1852–1867, are primarily from her Page and Harrison cousins, especially Lucy Randolph (Page) Carter (1842–1893) and Mary Francis (Page) Cooke (1840–1878), who began writing in adolescence and continued through their early married years (section 14). They discuss family news, the methods and rigors of female education in a seminary setting, women's roles in religion, and courtship and social life.

The collection concludes with the commonplace book, 1828–1858, of Mary Willing (Harrison) McGuire (1812–1876), kept, in part, while she was a student at Cedar Park Seminary in Anne Arundel County, Md. (section 11). There are also letters, 1859–1863, concerning the education of Benjamin Harrison McGuire (1843–1863) and his military service during the Civil War (sections 12 and 13).

Updated January 13, 2010