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
Emanuel Lutheran Church
The first Lutheran Church in Woodstock predated the arrival of the town’s founder Jacob Mueller. Local German residents had felt the need for a place to practice their Lutheran faith and had therefore…
Camp Strawderman
In 1929 Margaret Vance Hoffman opened Camp Strawderman on a plot of land located west of Woodstock, along Stoney Creek, in the Wolf’s Gap community. This land, originally owned by the Strwderman…
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
Mt. Jackson Museum
In the spring of 1997 a group of citizens in Mt. Jackson gathered together in an effort to preserve the former Burkett Store building on Main Street and other portion's of the community's history. On September 27th of that year they opened the Mt.…
Nelson Theater
In 1938, Burgess Nelson, a local businessman and Gulf Oil Dealer, built this theatre in Mt. Jackson. It was the first purpose built theatre in town and was modeled after the Rosalind Theatre in New York City. The theatre’s popular Art Deco style,…
Mt. Zion Lutheran Church
Mt. Zion Lutheran Church, lovingly called the “beautiful church on the hilltop,” dates to 1829 when Abraham Smutz and his family sold a parcel of land to a group of church trustees. This land contained a house that the deed required to be used as a…
Mt. Calvary Lutheran Church
As early as 1844 a Lutheran congregation existed in Mt. Jackson Virginia. Though they did not have their own building, they had regular meetings in the town’s Union Church.
However the Lutherans outgrew the Union Church and decided to build their…
Jessie Rupert School House
Sometime around 1868, New Market resident Jessie Rupert constructed this building at 9401 Congress Street. The structure, originally three stories tall, served as her residence and a school.
Rupert, born May 15, 1831, had considerable experience…
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…