Central Virginia Heritage v.38 no.4 (Winter 2022) Now Available

From the officers of CVGA:

Dear CVGA Members,

It is the time of year that our members need to think about serving on the board of Central Virginia Genealogical Association. We will be scheduling a virtual election in November, and new officers will begin to serve in January 2023. Volunteers for the offices of president, vice president, secretary and treasurer are needed.

Partly due to the pandemic, we have not really pushed for an election over the past two or three years. Our officers have graciously stayed on and continued to serve. But several officers have now been serving on the Board for more than five years.

It has been difficult over the past two years trying to determine whether to meet in person or virtually. Attendance at meetings has not been great. Out of a membership of 51, the virtual meetings usually have 3 to 5 members in attendance. Our in-person meeting in June with a “live” speaker was only attended by 7 members.

If attendance and participation by our members does not increase, or if we do not have a slate of officers to vote on, a hard look will have to be taken at how to go forward or IF we go forward. It is difficult to plan programs and not have anyone show up to participate. I can say that the members who attend always enjoy the discussions about genealogy. We come away with new ideas for researching our family histories.

Please consider volunteering for a position on the Board. You can contact Linda Gore, current Vice President, at lggore46@gmail.com, if you have any questions.

* * *

To see the rest of the articles in this issue, CVGA members should go to “Members Only” on the menu bar above, and choose “Central Virginia Heritage — Current Issue.” (Note: You have to be logged in to this website in order to see “Members Only.”)

If you have trouble logging in to the site to download your copy, please contact me at the webmaster link at the bottom of this page.

For those who are not members of CVGA, we offer the opportunity to purchase a printed copy of each issue. The Winter 2022 issue is available from Amazon.com at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BS8WXK6R/ for $6.50. Click on the Amazon.com link above or search for “Central Virginia Heritage” on Amazon.com.

Contents of the Winter 2022 issue:

  • Runaway Ads in 19th-Century Newspapers
  • Black History Month
  • Chronicling America Reaches 50 States
  • Researching Backward … 10 Steps for “Reverse Genealogy”
  • Marriage Announcements in the Daily Progress (Charlottesville, VA): July 1896
  • Marriage Announcements in the Central Gazette (Charlottesville, Va.) 1820-1827
  • Death Announcements in the Central Gazette (Charlottesville, Va.) 1820-1827
  • Fact or Science Fiction? Putting DNA Rumors to the Test
  • Soundex Codes
  • 2023 ASG Grants for Continuing Genealogical Research Projects
  • Two Wills of John Burnley of Hanover County, Va.
  • Boswell’s Tavern, Louisa County, Va.

If you have any articles you’d like to share with CVGA members, please send an email to the editor, eleanordew at gmail dot com — The Editor.

Central Virginia Heritage v.38 no.3 (Fall 2022) Now Available

From the officers of CVGA:

Dear CVGA Members,

It is the time of year that our members need to think about serving on the board of Central Virginia Genealogical Association. We will be scheduling a virtual election in November, and new officers will begin to serve in January 2023. Volunteers for the offices of president, vice president, secretary and treasurer are needed.

 

Partly due to the pandemic, we have not really pushed for an election over the past two or three years. Our officers have graciously stayed on and continued to serve. But several officers have now been serving on the Board for more than five years.

It has been difficult over the past two years trying to determine whether to meet in person or virtually. Attendance at meetings has not been great. Out of a membership of 51, the virtual meetings usually have 3 to 5 members in attendance. Our in-person meeting in June with a “live” speaker was only attended by 7 members.

If attendance and participation by our members does not increase or if we do not have a slate of officers to vote on, a hard look will have to be taken at how to go forward or IF we go forward. It is difficult to plan programs and not have anyone show up to participate. I can say that the members who attend always enjoy the discussions about genealogy. We come away with new ideas for researching our family histories.

Please consider volunteering for a position on the Board. You can contact Linda Gore, current Vice President, at lggore46@gmail.com, if you have any questions.

* * *

To see the rest of the articles in this issue, CVGA members should go to “Members Only” on the menu bar above, and choose “Central Virginia Heritage — Current Issue.” (Note: You have to be logged in to this website in order to see “Members Only.”)

If you have trouble logging in to the site to download your copy, please contact me at the webmaster link at the bottom of this page.

For those who are not members of CVGA, we offer the opportunity to purchase a printed copy of each issue. The Fall 2022 issue is available from Amazon.com at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B3MXKT29 for $6.50. Click on the Amazon.com link above or search for “Central Virginia Heritage” on Amazon.com.

Contents of the Fall 2022 issue:

  • International African American Museum, by Dr. Shelley Murphy
  • A John Philip Sousa Concert in Charlottesville
  • The Family History Collaborative, by Brandon Wolfe
  • Marriage Announcements in the Daily Progress, December 1895, by Diane Inman
  • Estate of Anthony Rucker senr. of Amherst County, VA
  • Cleaning Tombstones, by Diane Inman
  • Estate of Abraham Childers, Albemarle County, VA
  • First Name Abbreviations
  • How to Research a Civilian Conservation Corps Worker

If you have any articles you’d like to share with CVGA members, please send an email to the editor, eleanordew at gmail dot com — The Editor.

Albemarle County Chancery Cases Being Scanned

“The Library of Va. has started scanning the chancery cases that Shelby Marshall sent to the Library back in the 1970s. Supposedly they have the cases before 1912. In conserving the cases still at the Courthouse I found a few that were missed and they have picked them up now. So maybe late this year or next we will be able to look at them on line. They told me Albemarle has at least 50 bankers boxes of cases.”

For more information, check out:
https://www.facebook.com/albemarlechancerypreservationproject/about/?ref=page_internal

Peter Jefferson’s Snowdon published by CVGA

Front cover of Peter Jefferson's Snowdon (2020)

Hi all — We are very fortunate that CVGA has been given the opportunity to publish a new book by Joanne L. Yeck — Peter Jefferson’s Snowdon —  as CVGA’s first Occasional paper. Here’s the Amazon link:

https://www.amazon.com/Peter-Jeffersons-Snowdon-publications-Genealogical/dp/B088B833B7

An Occasional paper is a work of interest to historians and researchers on a Central Virginia topic, but which is too long to fit in our newsletter, Central Virginia Heritage.

These papers are not published on a set schedule, but as they are completed. The only requirement is that the topic of the paper has something to do with Central Virginia history or research. The average length of these publications will be approximately 40-100 pages, but that is flexible. Contact the newsletter editor, Jean Cooper, if you have a suggestion for future Occasional papers.

In this case, the book is a detailed essay on the history of Snowdon, a plantation created by Peter Jefferson in the first half of the 18th century.

“Beginning in the 1720s, a small group of men based in Goochland County, Virginia, began to migrate west, along the James River, settling the frontier which lay at the foot of the Blue Ridge Mountains. A few stopped at what is known as the Horseshoe Bend, a particularly beautiful and fertile spot in the river. Today, the modern counties of Albemarle, Buckingham, and Fluvanna converge there at the village of Scottsville.In the early 1740s, President Thomas Jefferson’s father, Peter, already a successful surveyor and land speculator, was quick to realize the commercial value of the spot when the newly formed Albemarle County located its seat at the Horseshoe Bend. This volume tells the story of settlement on the south side of the James River and the development of the plantation Peter Jefferson would call Snowdon, a very valuable farm with a complex history.”

Note: The Occasional papers are not part of the membership benefits of CVGA but must be purchased separately.

 

May 19: OLLI presentation on 1918 Spanish Flu in Charlottesville and Albemarle County

OLLI at UVa Special Presentation
free and open to everyone
http://files.constantcontact.com/d19a1b89001/c3b7743f-05ac-480a-ace3-9b0bc1cf7e6f.jpg
The Great Influenza Epidemic in
Charlottesville and
Albemarle County

Date and Time: Friday, May 19 from 1:30-3:00 p.m.

Location: Unity of Charlottesville, 2825 Hydraulic Road

From the summer of 1918 to the spring of 1919 a worldwide epidemic of deadly influenza killed millions. In those few months millions of Americans caught the flu and almost 700,000 died, more than all who died in America’s wars combined (except the Civil War). The medical system was overwhelmed, and government at all levels struggled to respond. The epidemic left few families, rich or poor, untouched. When it arrived in Charlottesville-Albemarle in September 1918, the community faced a crisis as hospitals filled, doctors and nurses worked virtually around the clock, and volunteers stepped forward to care for the sick and dying. This presentation and discussion will focus on an overview of what happened nationally and on events in Charlottesville and Albemarle County. Participants whose families preserved stories about the epidemic are encouraged to bring them to the discussion.

Addeane Caelleigh is a historian with special interests in social and cultural aspects of extreme events such as epidemics and natural disasters. She worked in academic publishing for many years, including serving as editor in chief of Academic Medicine. Recently retired from the faculty of the University of Virginia School of Medicine, and still serving as a visiting scholar, she is currently researching the 1918-1919 Influenza Epidemic in central Virginia.

Reservations requested but not required
434-923-3600 or olliuva@virginia.edu

Central Virginia Heritage (online edition), Winter 2016 Available Now

A snippet from Sam Towler’s article, “Albemarle County Chancery Cases Preservation Project”:

In the 1970s, Albemarle County sent most of the chancery cases in its files which ended before 1912 to the Library of Virginia. The Library of Virginia preserved all the cases they received and put them in acid-free folders to prevent deterioration.  With the Albemarle County Clerk’s approval, I have been working on a project to preserve the post-1900 cases that Albemarle still had at the Courthouse in Charlottesville by unfolding the documents and putting the papers in acid-free folders provided by the Clerk’s Office.

For the rest of this article, and several others, go to “Members Only” on the menu bar above, and choose “Central Virginia Heritage — Current Issue.” (Note: You have to be logged in to this website in order to see “Members Only.”)

For those who are not members, we offer the opportunity to purchase a printed copy of each issue. The Winter 2016 issue is available from CreateSpace.com/6782694 for $6.50. Click on the CreateSpace.com link above or search for “Central Virginia Heritage” on the Createspace.com Store site.

If you have trouble logging in to the site to download your copy, or if you have trouble with the CreateSpace.com site, please contact me at the webmaster link at the bottom of this page.

Table of Contents for the Winter 2016 issue:

  • Division of the Negro Property of the Estate of William Morris of Louisa County, Virginia, 1832 … page 1
  • Albemarle County Chancery Cases Preservation Project … page 4
  • Last Will and Testament of Benjamin Franklin, of St. Anne’s Parish, Albemarle Co., VA … page 6
  • Early Broadus Wood High School History … page 7
  • The Wyatt Family of Albemarle County, Virginia … page 9
  • Reductions in Service at the Library of Virginia … page 11
  • The Times-Dispatch Genealogical Column: The Walker Family of Virginia … page 12
  • Castle Hill … page 16
  • James Govan Estate Settlement and Division of Slaves (1831-1835), Hanover Co., VA … page 18
  • List of the Hire of Negroes [of the Heirs of] Richard Terrell of Louisa Co., VA (1771) … page 19
  • Funeral Home Records Available Online … page 20
  • Letter from Edward Govan to Mary Govan Hill, near Fredericksburg, VA (1831) … page 22
  • Slaves of John Ambler (April 1829) at his Plantations in Amherst and Louisa Counties … page 23
  • President’s Column, by Patricia Lukas … page 24

P.S. Wouldn’t you like to see your research published in this beautiful magazine? Send it to any of the CVGA officers on the About CVGA page.

Central Virginia Heritage (online edition), Fall 2016 Available Now

Cover of Central Virginia Heritage, Fall 2016 issue.

Here is a snippet from Patricia Lukas’ article “Hill & Wood Funeral Service Records:
A Brief Overview”:

The business now known as Hill & Wood Funeral Service was founded in 1907 as the Irving, Way, Hill Company. Mr. Willard Irving handled the livery business, Mr. C.T. Way was a carriage maker, and J. Hercules Hill was the undertaker. It was located at Water and Main Streets. After one relocation, the business was moved to its present location at 201 N. First Street, Charlottesville, VA in 1936.

The company was incorporated as Hill and Irving in 1929. Mr. Paul H. Wood assumed the presidency in 1975 when a new corporation named Hill and Irving Funeral Home, Inc. was formed. Hill and Wood Funeral Service, Inc. became the name of the firm on January 1, 1978.

The earliest records held by the company date from August 1914. The first book consists of preprinted pages with the record of services provided …

For the rest of this article, and several others, go to “Members Only” on the menu bar above, and choose “Central Virginia Heritage — Current Issue.” (Note: You have to be logged in to this website in order to see “Members Only.”)

For those who are not members, we offer the opportunity to purchase a printed copy of each issue. The Fall 2016 issue is available from CreateSpace.com/6549428 for $6.50. Click on the CreateSpace.com link above or search for “Central Virginia Heritage” on the Createspace.com Store site.

If you have trouble logging in to the site to download your copy, or if you have trouble with the CreateSpace.com site, please contact me at the webmaster link at the bottom of this page.

Table of Contents for Fall 2016 issue:

  • Excerpts from A Census of Pensioners for Revolutionary or Military Services … page 1
  • Burial Records of Jewish Cemeteries in Central Virginia … page 5
  • Thomas M. Appling (1 Jan 1832-ca. 22 Aug. 1862) … page 6
  • Hill & Wood Funeral Service Records: A Brief Overview … page 7
  • Genetic Genealogy in Practice: Book Announcement … page 8
  • Pension Testimony from Veterans of the American Revolution in Albemarle County … page 9
  • The Pension Act of 1818 … page 13
  • An 18th-Century Pre-Nuptial Agreement from Fluvanna County … page 14
  • Three Lists of Negro Slaves Owned by Lewis Holladay of Bellefonte, Spotsylvania County, Va., 1800-1817 … page 19
  • Spotsylvania County, Va. Tax Assessments, 1779-1780 … page 20
  • Central Virginia Historical Organizations … page 24
  • President’s Column, by Patricia Lukas … page 27

Central Virginia Heritage (online edition), Spring/Summer 2016 is here!

Order a print copy of Central Virginia Heritage, Spring/Summer 2016

From the President’s Column, by Patricia Lukas:
“Welcome to the first digital edition of the Central Virginia Heritage. Our last paper issue was mailed out in December 2014, ending a tradition that started in January 1983—over 30 years of publication. With this electronic issue, we are beginning a new tradition while building on the history of providing our members with articles of genealogical interest which will inform, educate, and inspire.”

Genealogical Research at the Albemarle County Court House, By John C. E. Christensen, Updated by Sam Towler, Jean L. Cooper, and Patricia Lukas

Introduction

We are fortunate that a potential gold mine of genealogical information has been preserved in the Albemarle County Court House. While working in the court house record room, I have had the pleasure of meeting fellow genealogists who have come from the far corners of the United States. In talking with them about the mechanics of their quests, I have discovered that many of them are overlooking court records that are full of information. I have compiled, in order to help others understand, this source-by-source guide to research in the Albemarle County Court House. It will also be useful in other Virginia counties; although the exact records maintained by each county vary, the basic types are usually the same. Familiarity with the records should come in handy for genealogical research in any jurisdiction.

All of the records listed in this discussion are to be found in the circuit court record room and historical record vault on the second floor of the Albemarle County Court House on Court House Square in Charlottesville. The only records not found in the court house are the suit papers, which are stored in the Library of Virginia, in Richmond.

For the rest of this article, and several others, click here to access your members-only copy of the Central Virginia Heritage, Spring/Summer 2016, v.32, no.1-2.

For those who are not members, we offer a printed copy of each issue beginning with this Spring/Summer 2016 issue, available from CreateSpace.com/6258210 for $6.50. Click on the CreateSpace.com link above or search for “Central Virginia Heritage” on the Createspace.com Store site.

In the near future we will be offering for sale a CD-ROM copy of the Central Virginia Heritage Archive, 1983-2014 — watch this space for future announcements!

(If you have trouble logging in to the site to download your copy, or if you have trouble with the CreateSpace.com site, please contact me at the webmaster link at the bottom of this page.)

Table of Contents for Spring/Summer 2016 issue:

  • Genealogical Research at the Albemarle County Court House, by Sam Towler, et al. … p.1
  • Plans of the Albemarle County Court House Clerk’s Office & Records Room … p.13
  • The Charlie Summer, by Susan DuBar … p.15
  • Announcing a New Adventure in Genealogy Education: Genealogy Professor, by Dick Eastman … p.16
  • Virginia Newspaper Websites for the Researcher, by Jean L. Cooper … p.17
  • How do I access the Central Virginia Heritage Archive? … p.18
  • Waller Holladay Lists of Slaves, 1854-1860 … p.19
  • Earlysville Community Neighbors, by Charles Conway Crenshaw … p.22
  • Genealogy Conference Announcements … p.25
  • President’s Column, by Patricia Lukas … p.26