DHR News Clips, February 10

Greetings,

Below are new postings for news items of interest from around Virginia and beyond pertaining to history and preservation and related matters.

News from DHR:

National Register of Historic Places: New listings:  (1) Town of Halifax Court House Historic District and (2) Donk’s Theatre, Mathews Co. (see article below).

Also, please be sure to check out DHR’s new Historic Virginia site of the month posting. In celebration of Black History Month, we are featuring a slide show (14 slides) about the Reconstruction-era Longs Chapel in Rockingham County. You can access the slide show from DHR’s home  page here.  Or go directly to the title slide here.

Western Region:

Bristol: New historic district likely to be proposed: Cold and dark as a January night, the nearly vacant, red brick warehouse at 220 Lee St., is now the impetus for efforts to establish the city’s newest historic district. Herald Courier

Virginia Marker History: Richard Harrison, founder of VMH: Harrison has staked out signs noting the Barter Theatre, Bristol, Benge’s Gap, Wytheville Training School and the Stonewall Jackson Female Institute. All of which was part of Harrison’s mammoth project to photograph every historic marker in Virginia.  Herald Courier

Martinsville: Historic Henry Co. Courthouse: The former Henry County courthouse has been converted into a historical museum. Debbie Hall, Executive Director of the museum, says they plan to use the site for meetings, weddings and mock trials for students. She says this building was once the center of public life, and the historical society wants it to become that, once again. WSET-TV

Roanoke: LOV to honor to local women: Pearl Fu and Lucy Addison have long been considered important female leaders in Roanoke. Now, that distinction has gone statewide. The Library of Virginia included them in its 2011 list of “Virginia Women in History,” which recognizes women’s accomplishments during the congressionally sanctioned National Women’s History Month in March.  Roanoke Times

Capital and Central Region:

Sweet Briar College, Amherst Co.: New exhibit focuses on un-built college:  If architect Ralph Adams Cram had had his way, the campus of Sweet Briar College might be a very different-looking place.  “When you see the 1901, 1902 renderings, it looks like this city,” said Marc Wagner, an architectural historian from the Virginia Department of Historic Resources. “This really fussy, detailed design.” A selection of Cram’s architectural renderings that never came to fruition are now on display in a new exhibit, “Unbuilt Sweet Briar,”  New Era Progress

Bruce Library, Appomattox Co: Citizens oppose demolition: Opposition was loud and clear at a public hearing held to discuss the possibility of demolishing the old Appomattox County library, which was dedicated on April 12, 1940. The library was built with funds anonymously donated by diplomat and philanthropist David K. E. Bruce. Times-Virginian

University of Mary Washington: Freedom Riders celebrated: UMW kicks off Freedom Rider celebration with activists who rode buses to challenge segregation. The anniversary is especially significant to UMW because civil rights activist James Farmer was a distinguished professor of history and American studies at Mary Washington from 1985 until 1998.  Free Lance-Star

Jefferson School, Charlottesville: Plans on schedule for re-purposing building: Planners are moving forward to re-develop the historic Jefferson School into a mixed-use community space. The space got it’s start as one of just 10 African American high schools in Virginia back in 1926. This spring, construction is scheduled to begin to convert the building into a mixed-use community space.  NBC-29

Richmond Slave Trail: Missouri writer visits the trail: “My husband and I had come to Richmond to follow the designated Slave Trail consisting of nine stops around the city. Janine Bell of the Richmond Slave Trail Commission says the trail “reveals so much of our past that’s hidden in plain sight. We invite people to see first-hand where history that helped shape the nation took place.”  St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Virginia Historical Society: “An American Turning Point: Virginia in the Civil War“: New exhibit is a blockbuster exhibition.  Free Lance-Star Also see this review of exhibit “Bizarre Bits: Oddities From the Collection“: Free Lance-Star

Greene Co.: Land conservation: New conservation totals show that in 2010, landowners in Greene County permanently protected 668 acres of land, bringing the total amount of land protected by conservation easements to approximately 8,700 acres, or 8.5 percent of the total land within the county. Greene Co. Record

Tidewater:

Fort Monroe: Housing proposal put on table: A $30 million proposal, unveiled at a Hampton City Council work session, would bring 445 multi-family residences to a large office building on the parade ground within the moat at Fort Monroe and the present U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) complex which is outside the moat in the historic village.  HRMilitary.com

Fort Monroe#2: Oak tree is remarkable: A live oak tree on the grounds of Fort Monroe that predates the founding of Jamestown has been nominated to Virginia’s equivalent of the hall of fame for trees. The Algernoune (al-jer-nuhn) Oak is estimated to date back to 1540, according to research conducted by R.J. Stipes, a professor of plant pathology and physiology at Virginia Tech.  WSET-TV

Middlesex Co.: New historical highway marker will recall vanished Indian village: VDOT will soon install a road marker on Route 227 near Rosegill denoting that John Smith’s mystery Indian town of “Opiscopank” was once located on the banks of Urbanna Creek. “It is a mystery village,” said Deanna Beacham of the Virginia Council on Indians. “They were never mentioned again in any writing found from that time period. We know nothing about them but they are significant because they are mentioned on John Smith’s map.”  SSentinel.com

Donk’s Theatre, Mathews Co.: Listed on National Register: Located in Hudgins, Donk’s Theater dates to 1946-47, when the late Wilton E. “Donk” Dunton constructed the building. A movie house operated at the theater until 1970. In 1975, new owners founded Virginia’s Lil’ Ole Opry in the theater. The theater’s 2011 season — its 36^th — kicks off on Feb. 19 with the “All-Star Opry.” Daily Press

Off-Shore Wind Energy: Picks up speed: The Obama administration has announced that it could begin leasing sites off the coasts of Virginia and three other states for wind energy development by the end of the year. The Virginia site is approximately 20 nautical miles off the coast of Virginia Beach and spans 165 square nautical miles.  Virginian-Pilot

James E. McGee: Painter of slave experience: McGee, 75, a black-experience artist and collector of slave-era artifacts, has kept his work draped in obscurity at his Southampton home for most of his career. He has shunned repeated requests to document his work from both local and national media and has allowed only limited viewing by close friends and associates. For Black History Month, however, McGee plans to offer a rare glimpse into his world on a limited basis.  Virginian-Pilot

Montross, Westmoreland Co.: Historic inn being restored: While town and county governments ponder changes and improvements to the court square in the heart of the town, Cindy Brigman Syndergaard is restoring the inn built around 1800 on the site of a 17th-century tavern, near the square.  Free Lance-Star

Suffolk: Eyes development of waterfront property: The city and Tidewater Community College know they are sitting on a gold mine–nearly 450 acres of prime waterfront property at the foot of the Monitor-Merrimac Memorial Bridge-Tunnel. A panel of experts from the Urban Land Institute will conduct a weeklong study this month and offer recommendations for developing the site.  Virginian-Pilot

Carter’s Grove, James City Co.: Colonial Williamsburg forecloses on the Halsey Minor entity which purchased Carter’s Grove:  Virginia Gazette

Northern Region and Shenandoah Valley

Montpelier, Orange Co.: Pieces of James Madison’s chess set unearthed: Archaeologists at Madison’s home say they’ve unearthed fragments of a chess set they think Madison used.  Archaeologists recently found fragments of two pawns while investigating part of Madison’s Montpelier estate. Initially, they thought the pieces’ quarter-inch tops were sewing bobbins, but then figured out they were shards of chessmen. Free Lance-Star NBC-29 video

Prince William Co.: Ken Burns creates tour of battlefields: A highly-anticipated Civil War-related tour created by award-winning documentary filmmaker, Ken Burns, is headed to the county. The tour will focus on the “the people’s” point of view as opposed to strict historical reporting. Guests will embark on themed adventures designed to give context to the Civil War and the three topics that Ken Burns sees as critical to understanding it: “Lincoln’s War,” “The Meaning of Freedom,” and “The People’s War.” PRNewswire

Aquia Landing: Gateway to Freedom: Aquia Landing is now recognized as the “Gateway to Freedom,” the key junction on the Trail to Freedom, a regional project designed to focus attention on the area’s role in the story of emancipation. Aquia Landing was a point of departure for slaves seeking freedom for decades before the Civil War. Some of those individual stories are illuminated by new markers that have been installed at Aquia Landing, now a county park at the confluence of Aquia Creek and the Potomac River. The markers were dedicated by National Park Service historian Noel Harrison.  Free Lance-Star

Clifton, Orange Co.: 1863 photograph: Caption: “General Hermann Haupt supervising a construction site at Devereux Station of the Orange & Alexandria Railroad in Clifton, Virginia. The locomotive bears his name. At right is J.H. Devereux, superintendent. Photo taken in 1863 by photographer Andre J. Russell.”  Jiggsy

Culpeper Co.: Easements in 2010: The Piedmont Environmental Council has announced that county landowners in 2010 placed 1,774 acres of land into permanent conservation easements, bringing the total area of protected land in the county to nearly 13,200 acres, which is about 5.5 percent of the total land in the county. The newly protected areas include the 349-acre Beauregard Farm in Brandy Station and Triloch, a 118-acre tract in the Rixeyville area.  Star Exponent

Culpeper: State Theatre restoration re-started: The State Theatre Foundation last month held a symbolic groundbreaking to signal the restart of a multimillion-dollar restoration project designed to make the theater a centerpiece of downtown Culpeper. While the exact cost of restoring the circa-1938 Main Street theater and creating a new addition is still uncertain, the overall cost of the project is estimated to be about $8.5 million.  Free Lance-Star

Clarke Co.: Fairfield for sale: The house that was built by George Washington’s first cousin and later owned by Robert E. Lee’s aunt.  WashPost

Loudoun Co.: Boom continues: The county in the last decade grew 84.1 percent to 312,311, figures show, placing it as the fourth most populated county in Virginia.  Loudoun Times

Waynesboro, Mill at South River: Completes $5.5 million environmental prep work: It is the largest known voluntary Brownfield investment by an individual in Virginia and ranks in the top 7 percent in size of Voluntary Remediation Program sites in the state. With a nearly 40-acre site with 490,000 square feet of buildings, the mill project to preserve and restore the historic buildings is symbolic of the city’s attempt to reshape its economy through adaptive reuse, while paying homage to its industrial heritage. Augusta Free Press

Virginia:

Leroy R. Hassell Sr.: Virginia’s first black chief justice dies: Hassell rose from segregated Norfolk to become the first black chief justice of the Virginia Supreme Court—a role in which he pressed for a judiciary attuned to the disabled and dispossessed. He died after a lengthy illness. He was 55.  Richmond Times-Dispatch

The Civil War 150 Legacy Project: Profile of program: The program works this way: You bring in whatever items you have, the archivists scan them with a high-resolution scanner, you fill out a permission form for the library to include them in the collection  and jot down any details about the item you know. You go home with your belongings, and the Library of Virginia has another piece of the Civil War puzzle for historians. Richmond Times-Dispatch

Virginia’s Historic Churches: Many now threatened: Preservation Virginia’s Sonja Ingram posts a guest blog about recent efforts to save churches in Colonial Heights and South Boston PreservationNation

Classicist Blog: Calder Loth: The Gibbs Surround: “The Gibbs surround is a particular form of rusticated doorway or window frame, the pedigree for which extends to ancient times. The term derives from the 18th-century English architect, James Gibbs (1692-1754), a leading figure in the Anglo-Palladian movement. . . . ”  Classicist Blog

FitzGerald D. Bemiss: Former legislator and preservationist dies: Bemiss was a pioneer in conservation, heading statewide studies that, among other things, led to the creation of programs supporting the preservation of open space through tax credits. In 2008, he wrote the introduction to a history of the state’s preservation movement, “Conserving the Commonwealth,” by Margaret T. Peters. Times-Dispatch

Uranium Mining: NAS committee studies issue: A National Academy of Sciences committee pressed Virginia mining and environmental officials on the state’s ability to regulate uranium mining if a 1982 state ban is lifted. Opponents said the statements of the department heads made it clear the state doesn’t have the resources to oversee the mining of the largest uranium deposit in the United States. Martinsville Bulletin More here: Virginian-Pilot

Preservation Virginia / RESTORE VIRGINIA: New membership program: In order to reach a wider audience RESTORE VIRGINIA! is now a web-based resource dedicated to connecting people and resources. Search the directory to find contractors, craftsmen, materials and preservation related services for your historic property. If you have a preservation related business or service PV invites you to please consider joining as a RESTORE VIRGINIA member. Your business will be listed on PV’s website in the RESTORE VIRGINIA directory. Preservation Virginia/Restore Virginia

Beyond Virginia:

World War I: Last living U.S. veteran:  News Leader

Harriet Tubman: Push for National Park: In honor of Black History Month, Democratic Sens. Benjamin Cardin and Barbara Mikulski of Maryland and Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand of New York have renewed efforts to honor Tubman with a national park in each state. News Journal

New York Public Library: Completes restoration project: The New York Public Library has just completed a three-year, $50 million restoration and preservation of the landmark Stephen A. Schwarzman Building on 42nd Street, which has stood as an impressive symbol of opportunity and access for the people of New York City for a century.  artdaily.org

China: Preservation: Across the country, local governments have launched projects costing tens of billions of pounds in order to save, restore and recreate ancient Chinese sites. The Telegraph

China: Influx of architects changes skylines: Drawn by a building boom unmatched in the world in recent decades, U.S. and European architects are flocking to China, turning Chinese leaders’ bold visions into concrete and steel realities and giving Chinese cityscapes a distinctly foreign signature. Washington Post

Human migration: Modern humans may have left Africa thousands of years earlier than previously thought, turning right and heading across the Red Sea into Arabia rather than following the Nile to a northern exit, an international team of researchers says. Stone tools discovered in the United Arab Emirates indicate the presence of modern humans between 100,000 and 125,000 years ago. NBC-29

DHR News Clips, November 19

Greetings,

Here are some recent stories of interest from around Virginia and beyond that touch on history, preservation, and related matters. Have a great Thanksgiving Holiday!

Northern Region & Shenandoah Valley

Loudoun Co.: Couple rescues 141-years-old homestead linked to Bushrod Lynn: A construction project-turned-historical detective case is coming to a head. The house has new floors, handsome woodwork and modern appliances. And Bushrod Lynn, the 19th-century Virginia reformer who had been lost to history, is about to get his own marker out by the highway. In heritage terms, he’s going from forgotten man to made guy.  Washington Post

Stafford Co.: Planning Com. approves Comp. Plan: This final version has been in the works for about a year. Residents who opposed the plan said it does little to control sprawl, ease traffic congestion or relieve the burden on taxpayers. Urban Development Areas were another point of contention.  Free Lance-Star

“Wilderness” Walmart, Orange Co.: BOS reject resolving out of court: Two of the plaintiffs in a lawsuit to block construction of a Walmart Supercenter in the Wilderness battlefield area have been turned away in their bids to resolve the issue out of court. Free Lance-Star

“Wilderness” Walmart #2:  Judge to allow county’s experts: The expert witnesses for Orange County Board of Supervisors will remain part of the defense according to a ruling in the case brought by plaintiffs trying to keep a Walmart from being built near the Wilderness Battlefield. The plaintiffs wanted seven of the county’s eight experts stricken–a ruling Circuit Judge Daniel R. Bouton refused to make.  Free Lance-Star

National Center for Preservation Technology and Training: Historic Trees Workshop: NCPTT will conduct a three-day workshop about historic tree management, November 30-December 2. This training is for landscape managers, maintenance staff, volunteers, and others who care for, or are interested in historic trees.  The workshop will feature a combination of presentations and hands-on field sessions at historic Kenmore in downtown Fredericksburg, and at George Washington Birthplace National Monument.  PreservationDirectory

Tidewater & Eastern Shore

Nansemond Indian Tribe, Suffolk: City gives land to tribe: Elected leaders agreed for the first time in Virginia’s modern history to give locally owned land to native residents, without a lawsuit. Nansemond Indian Chief Barry Bass told council members, “Mattanock Town will give Nansemond people land that was once the site of one of our villages, and can once again become our sacred home.”  WAVY (includes video) / Suffolk News-Herald

Fort Monroe: Debate over NPS involvement: “I think we need to be careful how much we put on the table for the park service, because once they’re there, they’re never going to go away,”  said Doug Domenech, a board member and the state’s secretary of natural resources, during a meeting of the Fort Monroe Authority’s board of trustees and a few dozen citizens. Virginian-Pilot

Naval Station Norfolk: Short video: Bob Coolbaugh talks about flying his replica 1911 Curtiss-Ely Pusher at Naval Station Norfolk to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Naval Aviation. Virginian-Pilot

Capital & Central Region

Poplar Forest, Bedford Co.: Garden Club of Va. to assist with landscape plans: The GCV will work with  Poplar Forest on two projects. The first involves excavating and restoring an allee, or double row of paper mulberry trees, on the west side of the house. The second project is the investigation and restoration of ornamental plantings in front of the house, similar to ones Jefferson had seen in Europe. Richmond Times-Dispatch

Vinegar Hill, Charlottesville: A Memory Scape:  The University of Virginia’s visualeyes project has created a  visualization of a 1960’s urban renewal project.  visualeyes

Vinegar Hill#2: Va. Film Festival honors documentary on neighborhood: That World is Gone: Race and Displacement in a Southern Town, produced by School of Architecture faculty member Scot French, premiered at the festival and won the Audience Favorite Award for Best Short Documentary. The film explores the history of Charlottesville’s largest African-American neighborhood, Vinegar Hill.  French said the film addresses the American dream of property ownership and the devastating impact of urban renewal on African-American community life in the city.  UVaToday

Pocahantas Island, Petersburg: Va. Film Festival honors documentary on neighborhood: Earning top honors in the Best Short Documentary category was The Enduring Legacy of Pocahantas Island, a history of one of the oldest African-American communities in the country, made by students at Virginia State University and overseen by noted actor/director Tim Reid.  UVaToday

James River and the Civil War: Tour of river’s historic sites: Since June, Scott Williams and Mike Ostrander have offered Civil War tours of the tidal James from Dutch Gap to Deep Bottom boat landing. Williams, an amateur historian and map maker for Chesterfield County, and Ostrander, a catfish and bald eagle tour guide, are a perfect match. Williams supplies the history, Ostrander the river knowledge. Richmond Times-Dispatch

Richmond: VCU posts online images from Richmond Comprehensive Planning Slide Collection: The  collection contains over 8,000 photographs of mostly Richmond. Over 99% of the original collection is presented on the Virginia Commonwealth University site. Materials in the collection are in the public domain, and thus are free of any copyright restriction. VCU Libraries Digital Collections

Richmond: Devil’s Triangle: While Richmond is home to many historic neighborhoods, not all can claim such infamous tales, nor independent revitalization, as the Devil’s Triangle. Concentrated efforts in the past six years have transformed this once rough neighborhood into an economic corridor and designation for locals and visitors alike.  Richmond.com

Lynchburg Museum: Planning Civil War Sesquicentennial events: In Central Virginia, the legacy of the Civil War is all around us, says Doug Harvey, director of the Lynchburg Museum. Harvey and other local groups already have begun planning how they’ll mark the 150th anniversary of the war over the next four years. News & Advance

Western Region

Virginia Intermont College, Bristol: May seek historic designation: College officials are exploring historic designation for its campus. VI’s board of trustees endorsed seeking the state historic designation to try and qualify for historic tax credits to help pay for the rejuvenation and repair of some of the college’s aging structures. VI was established more than 125 years ago; it opened its Moore Street campus in 1893. The current inventory includes some of those original buildings and others that are 75 or more years old. Bristol Herald Courier

Danville: City demolishes ca-1900 home: It’s a house that once stood grandly on the corner of one of Danville’s finest neighborhoods, but time took it’s toll on the Lee Street home. The city decided to take it down, leaving local preservationists furious.  WSET-TV Also here: GoDanRiver

Statewide

Urban Development Areas: GA subcommittee hears from Stafford Co.: Virginia legislators listened to concerns from local officials about state-mandated urban development areas. Collectively a county’s UDAs must be able to absorb 10 to 20 years worth of projected population growth in a mixed-use development where people can live, work and shop. Supporters say that UDAs could limit sprawl and save tax dollars by reducing the road miles maintained by VDOT.  Free Lance-Star

Virginia Golf Trail: Links to boost tourism: A newly created Virginia Golf Trail website will include 36 public and private golf courses throughout the state, divided into six zones. In addition to listing golf courses, each zone will recommend nearby hotels, restaurants, vineyards, historic sites and other attractions.  Virginia Business / Trail website

Uranium Mining: Sides debate issue: The National Academy of Sciences’ provisional committee studying uranium mining in Virginia heard from both industry advocates and opponents earlier this week. GoDanRiver

Beyond Virginia

Digital Humanities: Data and technology reshaping scholarship: “Members of a new generation of digitally savvy humanists argue it is time to stop looking for inspiration in the next political or philosophical “ism” and start exploring how technology is changing our understanding of the liberal arts. This latest frontier is about method, they say, using powerful technologies and vast stores of digitized materials that previous humanities scholars did not have.” NY Times

Slavery and Southern Railroads: From the Railroads and the Making of America website: “By 1860 the South’s railroad network was one of the most extensive in the world, and nearly all of it had been constructed with slave labor. Moreover, railroad companies became some of the largest slaveholders in the South.” Website includes letters of Claudius Crozet pertaining to the building of the Blue Ridge Tunnels. University of Nebraska-Lincoln

Joliet, Illinois: First Dairy Queen recognized as landmark: The Joliet City Council awarded landmark status to a building, which now houses a storefront church, that was home to the first Dairy Queen in 1940.  UPI

Green Building: How historic buildings are undervalued “green” assets:  Historic preservationists say renovating an old building is almost always better for the environment than framing up a new one. You don’t add to sprawl by taking up more land. And, you don’t waste all the energy and resources, like wood and metal, already in existing buildings. But people don’t often equate old buildings with “going green.” Marketplace

Save The Windows: Spread the Word:  As an epidemic of window replacement sweeps across the country, the best hope for saving historic windows is to spread the word now about the benefits of repair and retrofit. PreservationNation

UNESCO: Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding: The U.N. body that hands out the World Heritage designation, also keeps this lesser known list. Four items that were added to that list this week: Meshrep, a gathering within Uighur communities featuring dance, music and song; the technology for building watertight compartments on wooden Chinese sailing vessels called junks; wooden movable-type printing, also from China; and from Croatia, Ojkanje singing, featuring a voice shaking technique.  NPR

DHR News Clips, Nov. 12

Greetings,

Here are some of the recent stories of interest from around Virginia and beyond.

Tidewater & Eastern Shore

Fort Monroe: Army scopes moat: The U.S. Army will officially leave Fort Monroe and hand it over to the state in September. Before it does, it must make sure nothing dangerous–most important, live ordnance–is left behind. So for the first time in 30 years, the military is digging into the moat’s muddy floor to see what’s there. The moat is one of the base’s best-known and oldest features. Its tall stone walls were erected in the 1820s to protect the original fort. Virginian-Pilot

Hampton Roads: Recalling the first successful airplane shipboard takeoff:  Five minutes after his takeoff from the cruiser Birmingham in 1910, Nov. 14, Eugene Ely landed his plane alongside the  beach houses of Willoughby Spit, a distance of about 2.5 miles. It didn’t matter where he landed. . .  he had proven a shipboard takeoff was possible. Virginian-Pilot (Story includes historic photos)

Pamunkey Indian Museum, King William Co.: Make a visit: “To learn a little-known part of our region’s unique history, make plans to visit the Pamunkey Indian Museum . . . The Pamunkey have been living along the river bearing their tribal name in King William County for at least 12,000 years, maybe longer, according to archaeologists and anthropologists.”  Free Lance-Star

Montross, Westmoreland Co.: New courthouse plans could impact historic square: If built, a proposed new building could empty three county-owned buildings on Court Square, where county courthouses have been located since 1688. One possible casualty of the new courts building could be an iconic old courthouse that dates from 1900.  Free Lance-Star

Swann’s Point Plantation, Surry Co.: To be auctioned on Nov. 15:  William Swann, the first recorded owner, was born in England and patented 1,200 acres in the area in 1635. His son, Thomas Swann, was born in Virginia in 1610 and died here in 1680.  Daily Press

Virginia Beach: Expert House Movers: When one Va. Beach family was forced to move because their property was in the way of a city project, they decided to take their beloved house with them. Behind the scenes with Jim Matyiko, head of the company that recently moved the 200 ton 19th-century brick home.  Virginian-Pilot

Craney Island: Short video: Craney Island is valuable habitat for shorebirds and waterfowl, but they have to share it with the big earth moving equipment of the Corps of Engineers. Virginian-Pilot

Eastern Shore of Virginia Historical Society: To screen new film “Our Island Home”:  The documentary produced by The Barrier Islands Center features three former residents of the long-lost settlement of Broadwater on Hog Island. The film showcases their unique existence of life on this remote barrier island off of Virginia’s Eastern Shore coast.  DelmarvaNow

Northern Region & Shenandoah Valley

University of Mary Washington, Fredericksburg: Seacobeck Hall may be preserved: UMW President Rick Hurley says that the school is reconsidering its plan to demolish the dining hall, built in 1931, “because of the outpouring of support and other reasons.” Free Lance-Star

Arlington National Cemetery: Stafford Co. student creates grave database:  After news of burial mix-ups at ANC unfolded over the summer, Ricky Gilleland, a junior at North Stafford High School, created preserveandhonor.com, a website providing an accurate and continually updated listing of burials at Arlington for those who served in the global war on terror. Free Lance-Star

Loudoun Co., Lunette House: Neighbors to BOS, house must go: Residents of Kirkpatrick Farms who came before the Board of Supervisors had one message: remove the dilapidated Lunette House from their neighborhood. The home was constructed around 1820 and was the subject of an architectural survey by DHR in 1982. In recent years, it has fallen into severe disrepair.  Leesburg Today

Oatlands, Leesburg: New director of NTHP site named: Loudoun County Supervisor Andrea McGimsey has been chosen to lead the Board of Directors of Oatlands as executive director. McGimsey will oversee all operations of Oatlands, which was built in 1804, and boasts 4.5 acres of formal gardens, rare original outbuildings dating from 1810 to 1821, and a Carriage House dating from 1906.  Loudoun Times

Spotsylvania Co.: Developer reconstructs historic buildings on property: Dan Spears has reconstructed an 1812 plantation house from North Carolina and several cabins and cottages on his historic property. He also is building a nearly 12,000-square-foot venue for weddings and other large celebrations called the Lodge. At the heart of the $1.5 million structure are the framing timbers and roof trusses of a church from Canada, probably dating to the early 19th century.  Free Lance-Star

Pete Hill: Culpeper Co. Baseball Hall of Famer’s grave found:  The grave of baseball great John Preston “Pete” Hill, believed to be the only Hall of Famer whose burial site had been lost to history, was discovered recently in a suburb of Chicago by Dr. Jeremy Krock, coordinator of the Negro Leagues Baseball Grave Marker Project.  WTOP

Sully Historic Site, Fairfax Co.: Brings Revolutionary era to life:  Fairfax Times

Cedar Creek and Belle Grove National Historical Park: Release of a new podcast tour: Covering the Battle of Cedar Creek, the podcast is free and can be downloaded onto an iPod or mp3 player, then taken to the park for a tour of the battlefield.  CivilWarTraveler

Berryville, Clarke Co.: Fire House Gallery wins design award: Berryville Main Street has received the Virginia Downtown Development Association’s 2010 Building Development and Improvements Award of Merit for its Fire House Gallery & Shop. Clarke Daily News

Harrisonburg: New Civil War Trails markers: The city will dedicate three new Civil War Trails markers in downtown at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 16, at the City Municipal Building. Adding these new Civil War Trails markers will inform the community and visitors of the stories of life in Harrisonburg during the Civil War. The markers were funded through a grant from the Virginia Tourism Corporation and the Virginia Sesquicentennial of the American Civil War Commission. (No link)

Roanoke & Southwest Region

Grayson Co.: Proposed Spring Valley Rural Historic District: The 4,220-acre Spring Valley community was settled in the 1760s, long before Grayson County was formed in 1792. The proposed Spring Valley Rural Historic District’s “period of significance occurs from circa 1800, because of the earliest standing structure, and ends in 1950 because no significant construction occurred after this time,” the register nomination writers note.  Galax Gazette

Saltville: Civil War scholar gives Southwest Va. its due: Historian Thomas Mays says the mountainous regions of KY, TN, and VA have been neglected by historians in the last 50 years. In one of his three books, The Saltville Massacre, he follows the 5th U.S. Colored Cavalry, a regiment formed at Camp Nelson (KY), into its first large-scale battle, which took place in October 1864 in the mountains of southwest Virginia.  Lexington Herald-Leader

Capital and Central Region

“Negro Burial Ground,” Richmond: Historian Jeffrey Ruggles traces history of the site: Ruggles uses primary sources, maps, and historic photos to trace the evolution of the site. A PDF of his article is available here: The Shockoe Examiner

Richmond: “Connecticut” finds new home: A 2,400-pound fiberglass-and-resin sculpture of an American Indian that resided at the top of Richmond’s minor-league baseball stadium for more than two decades has found a new home and a new role. “Connecticut” now rests atop a downtown architectural firm housed in the historic Lucky Strike Building near the James River.  Indian Country

Virginia Historical Society: Online collection of Presidential memorabilia: “The VHS has compiled from Dr. Allen Frey’s extensive collection of political ephemera and memorabilia a dozen examples of American presidential campaign materials to see if politicians and campaigns of the past were as negative and bitter as they are today.”  Virginia Historical Society

Berkeley Plantation, Charles City Co.: Virginia Thanksgiving Festival: Chickahominy Indian Tribal Dancers and drummers capped one of the biggest days in the festival’s 49 years of celebrating the first Thanksgiving by English settlers at Berkeley on Dec. 4, 1619. An estimated 2,000 people attended the four-hour celebration.  Richmond Times-Dispatch (video also)

Virginia:

“American Indian Heritage Month”: Gov. Bob McDonnell issues proclamation: The Governor signed the proclamation November 10 at a ceremony at the Old House Chamber in the Virginia State Capitol in Richmond. He was joined by representatives from nine of Virginia’s 11 state recognized tribes. SynaVista News

Rhys Isaac: The Transformation of Virginia author dies: Only Australian to receive the prestigious American Pulitzer Prize for history, Isaac died of advanced melanoma. He was 72. He was awarded the Pulitzer in 1983 for his seminal book The Transformation of Virginia, in which he expounded methods used to understand radical changes in both blacks and whites in colonial plantation culture that had traded a king for a constitution and bill of rights.  The Age

Historic Family Cemeteries: New interactive map for recordation: Preservation Virginia introduces a great interactive public map where anyone can record the location of historic family cemeteries. Users can add place markers and describe cemeteries for others to see.  Historic Cemeteries in Virginia

Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail: NPS is studying expanding the L&CNHT  to include “Eastern Legacy” sites. Learn more here: NPS

Afton Mountain, Shenandoah National Park: Ceremony launches park’s 75th anniversary: From the family of President Herbert Hoover to the descendants of those displaced, to present and past employees, everyone had a story to tell about Shenandoah National Park.  Free Lance-Star

Beyond

Washington Monument: Designing security: The Washington Monument is unlike any other in the capital, so austere and abstract that creating security arrangements for it has dogged the National Park Service for a decade. Washington Post

Mount Morris, New York: Man buys up Main Street to revitalize town: For several years, Greg O’Connell moved stealthily, buying building after building along a run-down stretch of Main Street here. He has snatched up 19 buildings, some at tax lien sales for $2,000, and has restored the historic look of a half-dozen storefronts, dusting off the tin ceilings and renovating the apartments on the second floor, where he has installed new bathrooms and oak floors. NY Times

Atlantic Records / Warner Music Group: Dives into its archives: “Every day is like, what am I going to find today?” said Grayson Dantzic, the archivist for Atlantic Records. With colleagues at Warner Music Group, he is part of an ambitious project to recover the company’s story—and a good chunk of American cultural history as well—by excavating the contents of nearly 100,000 boxes from warehouses around the globe, whose accumulated photographs and other memorabilia track popular music from the Edwardian and Victorian ages to disco and jazz, from Beethoven to Miles Davis.  NY Times /  Slide Show

DHR News Clips, Sept 28

Greetings,

I am hoping to get back on track with regular postings of news stories from around Virginia and beyond pertaining to preservation, history, and related topics. Meanwhile here are some items of interest from September. –Randy Jones

News from DHR:

Virginia’s Historic Cemeteries:  A dedicated group of DHR personnel has been providing two-day workshops focusing on various topics and stewardship issues associated with historic cemeteries.  Interest in the workshops has spurred DHR to create a new blog, “Historic Cemeteries in Virginia.”  The blog will focus on forthcoming events and other news related to historic cemeteries.  DHR’s next cemetery workshop will be presented, in partnership with Preservation Virginia, in Abingdon during November 5-6.  More details about that workshop will be forthcoming.

Around Virginia:

Gov. McDonnell: Addresses Civil War conference:  Speaking at Virginia’s second annual conference on the Civil War sesquicentennial, Gov. McDonnell promised that next April his proclamation on the beginning of the war in Virginia will more carefully examine the full scope of the nation’s bloodiest conflict. “It will remember all Virginians–free and enslaved; Union and Confederate.  It will be written for all Virginians,” he said.  Free Lance-Star (Text of Governor’s full remarks here)

Tidewater & Eastern Shore:

Fort Monroe, Hampton: NPS supports park unit: The National Park Service supports establishing a park unit at Fort Monroe after the Army vacates the historic post next year, according to a letter sent this week to Virginia’s senior U.S. senator, Jim Webb.  It also calls for protection of the fort’s historic assets and a stronger plan to present parts of its history to the public.  The park service’s primary interest is in 65 acres enclosed by the stone fort and circled by another 35 acres outside the moat.  Virginian-Pilot

Fort Monroe: Developer visits fort to see potential redevelopment:  Hal Fairbanks was at Fort Monroe last week to see the historic properties that the Army will vacate next September and to identify any ripe for investment.  HRI Properties is also working as the master developer of a military base in New Orleans, the Naval Support Activity base, that is closing down under the BRAC.  Daily Press

Portsmouth & Negro League Baseball: Honoring player Leon Ruffin and recalling memories of NL days: Norfolk and Portsmouth were popular stops for barnstorming Negro Leagues teams. Many of the greats of the game stopped through. Willie Mays, stationed at Fort Eustis during the Korean War, formed an all-star team that played on weekends.  Portsmouth also had its own semipro teams – The Belleville Grays, the Portsmouth Quick Steps and others.  Ruffin and another Portsmouth catcher, Buster Haywood, were the best of the area’s pre-World War II players.  Virginian-Pilot

Historic Triangle:  World Heritage status sought:  Colonial Williamsburg and Preservation Virginia, with the assistance of the National Park Service, plan to seek World Heritage status for the Historic Triangle, which includes CW, Historic Jamestowne, Yorktown National Battlefield and the Colonial National Historic Park.  WUSA-9 (AP)

Virginia Beach, Adam Thoroughgood House: Re-opening delayed as restoration continues:  Work on the restoration project – which began September 2009 – was delayed several months by problems finding suitable replacement brick for the 1719 home. The city’s historic resources coordinator said it was important that the bricks match the size, color and texture used in the home’s original construction.  Virginian-Pilot

College of William & Mary: Discovered remains bone fragments of dogs: Laboratory analysis by the College of William and Mary’s Center for Archaeological Research has revealed that the bone fragments found during the summer in two unmarked graves on campus are the remains of dogs interred some two centuries ago.  Evidence of the formal interment of dogs dating from the Colonial period is unprecedented. WMCAR has dated the graves to the late 17th to mid 18th Century.   W&M News

Ivor Noel Hume: Pens memoirs:  “[Hume] recollects how he discovered his avocation on the London mud flats of the Thames and how, with the professional support of his first wife Audrey, disclosed the harsh lives spent by English people on Roanoke Island and at Wolstenholme Towne and those colonists who followed to reside in relative security and prosperity at Mathews’ Manor in Warwick County, Rosewell Plantation in Gloucester County, and throughout Williamsburg.”  Virginia Gazette

Roanoke & Southwest Region:

Abingdon: Muster Ground interpretive center opened: With fifes and drums and a crowd of well over 100, Abingdon formally opened its new interpretive center at the Muster Ground, a site where men mustered before marching over the mountains to the Battle of Kings Mountain in 1780.  Bristol Herald-Courier

Radford University:  White supremacist’s name removed from campus building: Powell Hall is no more. The name of one of RU’s arts and music buildings has been stripped by a unanimous vote of the school’s board of visitors.The vote came five years after Radford history professor Richard Straw and his class discovered that the namesake of the building, John Powell, was an influential white supremacist in Virginia. Roanoke Times

Gretna, Pittsylvania Co.: Seeks historic designation of downtown district:  Gretna Town Council voted earlier this month to seek historic designation for its downtown. About 20 structures, including a former Masonic lodge building, would be included in the district, said Mike Pulice, architectural historian DHR. GoDanRiver.com

Bristol: Beaver Creek has long history in city: “Early and numerous water-powered mills were set up in Bristol.  So numerous were they that J. R. Anderson once wrote that the ‘water barely left one mill pond until it was in another.’ Beaver Creek certainly helped Bristol to become an industrial town. Then came the negative uses of this stream.”  Bristol Herald Courier

Rockbridge Co.:  WWII reenactments grow in popularity:  Every autumn for years, history buffs have been coming to Bells Valley to practice what is a growing hobby nationwide — re-enacting World War II.  Saturday’s re-enactment was based on a conflict that played out on the war’s eastern front, with the Germans trying to defend what had been a stronghold in Romania against the advancing Russians, who at the time of the battle, were Soviets.  Roanoke Times

Gate City, Scott Co.: Downtown historic district added to National Register:  Kingsport Times-News

Capital and Central Region:

University of Virginia, McCormick Observatory:  Recently restored observatory 125 years old: For several years senior scientist in the astronomy department and the observatory’s caretaker have been working with the university to bring the telescope and building back to its original look. The effort has restored it to a near like-new appearance.  And these days the magnificent telescope continues to educate and inspire.  Daily Progress

Monticello: Archaeologist focus on world of enslaved:  Largely out of sight of Thomas Jefferson’s esteemed guests at Monticello was a world of enslavement that archaeologists are gradually bringing to life through excavations. “We want to be able to show what life was like then,” said Thomas Jefferson Foundation spokeswoman Lisa Stites, adding that a true picture would show the world of Jefferson’s slaves.  Jefferson had as many as 200 slaves at any given time.  Richmond Times Dispatch

Richmond: City’s role in history easy to experience:  “Any place you point on the timeline of America, Richmond has a story to tell. An important story. An interesting story. An amazing story. At times, a disturbing story.” Richmond Time-Dispatch Related stories:  Places to visit: RTD City prepares for Civil War Sesquicentennial:  RTD

Richmond, Tredegar: Designated gateway to Civil War: The American Civil War Center at Historic Tredegar and the Richmond National Battlefield Park/National Park Service have designated Historic Tredegar as Your Gateway to the Civil War, with the 8.3-acre site serving as the Region’s official Civil War 150th Visitor Center under the banner, “The Story Starts Here.”  Tredegar was the largest munitions foundry in the South.  WTVR

State Capitol: Civil Rights leader’s portrait unveiled:  Barabara Johns, who died in 1991, will join former Virginia Gov. L. Douglas Wilder as the only African-Americans with portraits hanging in the historic Capitol that was built in part by slave labor. When she was only 16, Johns heroically lead a school strike in 1951 that led to the abolition of segregated schools in the Old Dominion and across the country. Gov. Bob McDonnell recently unveiled her portrait at the State Capitol.  blackvoicesnews.com

Blandford Cemetery, Petersburg: Receives donation of granite stones:  Bill Delk, owner of Pembroke Granite Works in Petersburg, provided the Historic Blandford Foundation with three pieces of granite for use in the Foundation’s project to restore monuments in Blandford Cemetery.  Progress-Index

Northern Region & Shenandoah Valley

Culpeper:  Man fights to save Blair House:  The structure was built circa 1920 by Charles Claiborne Blair, a black barber born 1899 in Culpeper.  It is located across from Antioch Baptist Church, a historic black congregation dating to the 1850s. The Rev. Harrison Blair was among the church’s first leaders — he was also the grandfather of Charles. The home sits in an old black neighborhood once known as Sugar Bottom for the sweet spring that ran through it.  Star Exponent

Fairfax Co.: Archaeological research on Colchester to begin:  The Fairfax County Park Authority will be conducting archaeological investigations at the Old Colchester Park and Preserve. The Town of Colchester, chartered in 1753, was one of the first towns in Fairfax County. The property has the potential to provide important information about the history of one of the earliest settlements in this community.  Fairfax Daily-Monitor

Frederick Co.: Easement authority opposes PATH: The Frederick County Conservation Easement Authority adopted a resolution last week opposing the construction of the Potomac-Appalachian Transmission Highline in Frederick County.  NVDaily

Dahlgren Navy Base, King George Co.: Museum to be established:  The base is a treasure trove of military history unrivaled in its focus on ordnance. The base was established in 1918 as the Naval Proving Ground, to test guns destined for Navy warships.  The site along the Potomac River has evolved into one of the Navy’s premier research and development labs, and includes a 25-mile firing range along the river.  Free Lance-Star

Calendar

Lexington: Lecture on Robert E. Lee:  William C. Davis, a noted historian and professor of history at Virginia Tech, will be the featured speaker at the annual Remembering Robert E. Lee program on Monday, Oct. 11, at 12:15 p.m. in Lee Chapel. Davis’ topic is “Lee: The Man in the Middle” and the talk is open to the public.  Rockbridge Weekly

Gloucester (Co.) History Crawl:  Saturday October 16: The Fairfield F0undation is hosting its first ever  Gloucester Fall History Crawl, which will feature tours, archaeology, and food at three of Gloucester’s most significant landmarks: Rosewell, Fairfield, and Walter Reed’s Birthplace.  The event will be followed by a wine tasting at Rosewell.  Tickets are limited. For more information contact fairfield@inna.net.

Civil Rights in Education Heritage Trail: Conference October 21:  Register to participate in the exciting statewide meeting of the Civil Rights in Education Heritage Trail (CREIGHT) at the Prizery, the award winning meeting place in South Boston, Halifax Co.  The conference is sponsored by Dominion, and is presented by Virginia’s Retreat and the Robert Russa Moton Museum.  More info here

Beyond Virginia:

Michigan:  1679 Giffon shipwreck may have been located:  The effort to confirm whether a suspected shipwreck in Lake Michigan is the long-lost Griffon, the first European sailing ship on the Great Lakes, just took a step forward. The Griffon disappeared in 1679, carrying furs that were to help finance the expedition of René-Robert Cavalier, Sieur de La Salle.  Detroit Free Press

Lorenzo Dow Turner, African American History:  Smithsonian’s Anacostia Community Museum exhibit focuses on scholar’s work:  Lorenzo Turner was one of the earliest scholars to suggest that traces of African languages and customs, brought across the Atlantic by slaves, survived in modern African-American culture. For 40 years he worked steadily and traveled widely to validate that proposition.  NY Times