Shenandoah Stories

Join 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

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In 1874 Edinburg’s citizens began a lottery to fund the construction of a school in town. These efforts proved to be successful, and in 1876 what became known as the Edinburg Graded and High School, or the Cedar Hill Academy, was opened. The…

In 1820 14 enslaved African Americans called this place home. The Federal Census from that year noted 9 of them were male and 5 were female. Four of these were owned by Philip S. Spengler Jr. Most likely his slaves were a mother and her three…

In 1830, Fort Valley resident Daniel Munch donated two acres of land to house a school and church. He required that the church be available for all Protestant denominations. The one room church building that was constructed there was made of locally…

St. James Lutheran Church can trace its history to 1842, when Lutheran, Reformed, and Methodist worshipers in the area met at a log church at Hudson’s Crossroads. Over the next four decades each of these congregations were able to acquire their own…

Sometime in 1873 the African American residents of New Market Virginia were able to dedicate a new Methodist Church for them to worship in. Records indicate that this congregation had been founded sometime in the late 1860s, most likely by travelling…