Shenandoah Stories
A project by Shenandoah County LibraryJoin us in our efforts to explore the history and culture of Shenandoah County Virginia through our web based tour platform Shenandoah Stories. Click a site on the map, select a tour, or view a random story to begin. Read more About Us
Featured Stories
Historic Courthouse
In April 1795 county justices ordered construction of a new stone courthouse on this lot. It would be constructed of native valley limestone. Courthouses served as a symbol of law and order. For this…
Shenandoah Caverns
In 1884 individuals construction workers building the Shenandoah Valley Railroad accidentally discovered a caverns west of Mt. Jackson.
Though locals had called the area Forestville for years, in…
Laonard Walters Ordinary and Liquor Store/Central Hotel
Built in 1836, the Central Hotel was designed to serve individuals travelling on the Valley Turnpike. Providing spirits would have been part of its mission from the beginning.
Who the early…
Featured Tours
African Americans in Shenandoah County
13 Locations ~ Curated by Shenandoah County LibrarySpirits, Stills, and Temperance: Tracing the History of Alcohol in Shenandoah County
20 Locations ~ Curated by Shenandoah County LibraryFarms, Factories, and the Frontlines: Shenandoah County in the World Wars
10 Locations ~ Curated by The Shenandoah Stories TeamRandom Stories
Manor Memorial Methodist Church
On March 16, 1857 the Trustees of the Methodist Episcopal Church in New Market purchased a 1/4th acre lot on the Valley Pike to build a new church building. This new church, finished in 1861, replaced their previous structure that dated to 1832 and…
Conicville
The village now known as Conicville appears in the historic record in the 1850s. At the time, descendants of Jacob Rinker, an early settler, were the primary residents. Early accounts indicate that Jacob’s daughter, a “Mrs. Hickle,” was a large land…
Bowman Apple Products Plant
In the summer of 1939 Charles Bowman, a Mt. Jackson Orchard Owner, and his two sons Gordon and Courtland traveled to New York State to purchase the bankrupt Gilbert Apple Products plant just north of Mt. Jackson Virginia. This 80,000 square foot, two…
Mt. Jackson Fire Station
In 1931 a group of concerned residents banded together to form the Mt. Jackson Fire Company. Their first fire engine was built on a 1931 Packard touring car chassis by company members. It was stored in a shed owned by Rufus “Boots” Lindamood in the…
Woodstock "Colored School," 1867-1937
Between 1867 and 1937 a school for Woodstock’s African American population was held on this property.
In 1865 the Freedman’s Bureau, a Federal Agency, opened the “Lincoln School” in Woodstock for African American Students. The location of that…
Union Forge Church
In 1815 Augustine Hollar deed land for the Union Forge Church and cemetery near Edinburg Virginia. This congregation, associated with the Methodist Denomination, drew most of its membership from the workers at the nearby iron furnaces. They regularly…