Fincastle Librarian Paige Ware was talking about the new genealogy fair that will be held in the fall at the Fincastle United Methodist Church Family Life Center.
Ware and Rena Worthen (pictured here) are helping to organize the genealogical event that will be Saturday, 13 October, 2007. The name of the fair is Start Exploring Your Roots, and they hope it will become an annual event. The first fair will be part of the Botetourt County’s participation in Jamestown 2007 events that are celebrating the 400th anniversary of the establishment of that English colony.
Some of those genealogical research materials that are available at the Fincastle Library include copies of the Layman family Bible, the Snyder Bible, the Kessler files, the Brugh collection, cemetery records, funeral home records, many editions of The Fincastle Herald that are on CD-ROM, The Buchanan News and The Fincastle Herald on microfilm and other genealogy and historic learning tools.
The fair is being sponsored by the Botetourt Genealogy Club, Botetourt County Historical Society, the Virginia Room at Roanoke City Library, Homespun Legacy, Bedford Historical Society and the Fincastle Library. For more information, Worthen can be contacted at the Fincastle Library at 473-8339.
Posted by river queen at 12:24 AM PST
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If your ancestor was born in Virginia in the latter part of the seventeenth century, and if his surname sounded like “Goin” or “Going” or “Gowen,” then you have your genealogical work cut out for you. Trust me, I know.
But, this past year, descendants of James Burns Gowen were much luckier as they discovered their ancestor’s burial ground.
Gowen was born in Bedford County, VA in 1786, and he left for the “West” at the turn of that century into what is now middle Tennessee. In an article published in the Lynchburg (TN) Sentinel on May 21, 1880, Gowen’s grandson, Rev George Gowen, pastor of the Vine Street Christian Church, Nashville, Tennessee, wrote the following: Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by river queen at 10:46 PM PST
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When the Rockbridge Historical Society (RHS) was founded on 9 August 1939, its purpose was “collecting, preserving and disseminating all things relating to the history of the County of Rockbridge and the City of Lexington, Virginia.” That is exactly what the Society has done for over five decades. The Society works to preserve area landmarks, place historical markers, collect objects and documents, and publish historical studies.
Rockbridge Historical Society (RHS) is one of the oldest, largest, and most active, county historical societies in Virginia. Its mission is local history education and historic preservation. It owns a half-square block of downtown historic Lexington, including three historic buildings, formal gardens and extensive grounds. It sponsors local history scholarship, produces related publications, operates a museum of local history, publishes a newsletter, and conducts six free public history programs annually.
For information regarding Society membership and upcoming events, call (540) 464-1058, or visit the RHS Website at www.rockhist.org.
Posted by river queen at 5:44 PM PST
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Many times you can find accounts of holiday antics or traditions in regional newspapers, and these stories add color to local history and genealogy. Cathy Benson relates one such story in an article entitled, “An old-fashioned Christmas tale,” published this year by Main Street Newspapers. Sometimes newspapers delete pages after a certain timeframe, so I’ll include the anecdotal portion of the story here for safekeeping. Note that Benson includes information about historic prices, attitudes, information about Indian Rock, clothing, and the traditional Virginia oyster meal Christmas in her tale:
Our story surrounds a robbery down at the little community called Indian Rock near Buchanan along the shores of the mighty James River. My grandfather was called very early on Christmas Eve morning to come to Buchanan with his three bloodhounds to capture a fellow who had robbed the Indian Rock store. The owner offered a $50 cash reward (a huge sum back then) for the capture of the criminal. My daddy and Uncle Bill, who were 10 and 11, went with him and the hounds, all of whom were in the back seat except Pa Pa’s favorite hound, Belle, who rode shotgun in the front seat. She was the family favorite bloodhound and the other two were her progeny. Pa Pa had a great big old touring car, gangster looking - think of Bugsy Segal or one of those guys who liked to give the “Coppers” a hard time. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by river queen at 1:09 PM PST
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Land has been donated, an architect’s drawing is on hand and a new building for the Surry County Historical Society will be constructed soon. Generous donations are making this huge asset for Surry County come together. The 2.7-acre building site was donated by the late B.S. Seward Jr. and his widow, Barbour. The Historical Society had to move from the old jail behind the courthouse because of planned remodeling of that building. All papers, books and technological equipment are in secure storage, awaiting access by researchers in a spacious, new center. The material includes extensive donated manuscripts and published volumes of indexed wills, deeds, marriages, death records, military logs and genealogies extracted through decades of research.
To learn more about this move, visit the Surry Historical Society’s Website.
Posted by river queen at 12:58 AM PST
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