2026-04-23T11:31:20-04:00 Zend_Feed_Writer https://shenandoahstories.org/ Shenandoah Stories https://shenandoahstories.org 2023-01-27T13:44:33-05:00 2023-01-27T13:48:04-05:00 https://shenandoahstories.org/items/show/329 Shenandoah County Library Staff 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 original school is unknown, but in 1867 Mt. Zion Methodist Church opened and the school moved into that building. Enrollment for the Freedman’s School varied between 15 and 60 students between 1865 and 1870. Teachers were Rev. D.A. Miles (1865), Mary J. Knowles (1868), Missie E. Ovrette (1869) and Rev. Carter (1870). Typically, the school opened in January and closed its session in either May or June. Courses included reading, geography, arithmetic, writing, and history. A Sabbath School was also sponsored to increase educational opportunities and held every Sunday. An 1868 report noted there were an average of 25 students in that class during the year. In 1870 Virginia’s new “Underwood” Constitution was enacted and required the creation of a public school system for white and black students. Educational opportunities for grades 1-7 were provided free of charge under the new system. The Freedman’s Bureau held the last session of the “Lincoln School” that year. Presumably a new public school opened in Woodstock’s Mt. Zion Methodist Church in the fall of 1870, but no record exists indicating its location or the dates of its term. Emma Dorster was listed as the “Colored Teacher” in an April 1871 edition of the Shenandoah Herald. In November 1875 Shenandoah County Public School Superintendent John Grabill wrote the “colored” school occupied the church building and the teacher “takes a commendable interest in his school seems to be improving. Things were not necessarily easy in for this segregated school. Funding was limited and support from the general community was typically lacking. Textbooks and supplies were typically hand me down from the white schools. Teachers were paid less and had less formal education. Money for building upgrades, paint, utilities, etc. was often lacking. Parents and members of the African American community often conducted fundraisers to make up this difference. The local African American population advocated for construction of a school house. At the time, building and maintaining school buildings was under the auspice of the Woodstock School Trustees, a group appointed and funded by the Woodstock Town Council. The council had funded the purchase of a building for the white students in 1871, but would not fund the construction of a school for black students until 1882 following several years of lobbying by the African American population and the county school system. This one room, wood frame school was constructed to the rear of Mt. Zion Methodist Church on property owned by the congregation. The land was provided free of charge and funds for the school were shared between the community and town council. This provided a single class room for the students. Educational activities, such as plays, assemblies, etc. continued to be held in the church. In 1924, the Sanborn Fire Insurance Company showed the school on their fire insurance map. At the time it was a single story, wood structure, 15 feet in height and heated by a wood stove with no electric lights. It still offered classes for grades 1-7. No high school for African Americans existed in the county and students wishing to pursue their education had to travel to Manassas Virginia until a school was constructed in Winchester in the 1930s. In contrast, the Woodstock School on Court Street, utilized by white students, was a three story, brick structure, with electric lights, modern conveniences, and classes for grades 1-12. The wood frame “Colored School” would be utilized until 1937 when it was replaced by a new structure on Water Street. After this time the property was sold and the school demolished. For more (including 2 images), view the original article. 2021-06-03T17:03:20-04:00 2021-06-03T17:03:20-04:00 https://shenandoahstories.org/items/show/328 The Shenandoah Stories Team The Pearl White Theater opened on Main Street in Edinburg sometime in the 1920s showing silent movies for between 10 and 20 cents a show. Before it was completed, movies had been shown in the town hall. Electricity for this theater was provided by a generator powered by a water wheel on Stony Creek. The theater was named for “Pearl White” the title character of a popular 1914 film series The Perils of Pauline. Later it would be called the Valley Theater and was part of a string of movie theaters owned and operated by the Dalke Family. A new building holding the theater opened at what is now 121 S. Main Street in Edinburg on December 23, 1932. It was complete with a new RCA sound system. The date when the original theater was constructed is uncertain. For many years the theater was managed by Lenny Winesburg who was also a local tinsmith. Several local women worked as musicians, providing background music to some of the silent films shown here and for theatrical productions. They included Mable Stoneburner Zirkle, Jeanette Murray, and Nell Wightman. The theater closed sometime in the mid-20th century. It was remodeled to hold People’s Drug Store, now Murray’s Fly Shop. For more, view the original article. 2020-05-12T11:31:42-04:00 2020-05-12T16:48:46-04:00 https://shenandoahstories.org/items/show/327 Shenandoah County Library This structure was built in the summer of 1881 to house the Chalybeate House. Its location close to the Strasburg Depot which was then located on Fort Street gave it easy access to visitors arriving in town via the railroad. A March 15 1882 advertisement in the Shenandoah Herald listed the house, or hotel, as being “new and conveniently furnished.” The notice lists A.P. McInturff as the proprietor and notes individuals could get “transient and permanent” accommodations. A chalybeate spring, containing minerals thought to improve an individual’s health, was reported to be near the house. Chalybeate’s reputation as an excellent lodging house would continue over the next several decades with the hotel receiving acclaim in national publications. In 1911 A.P. McInturff retired and sold the site to his son-in-law Lewis Machir. Lewis changed the name to Hotel Machir sometime after 1912. He also added additional rooms, electric lights, and running water. A 1917 broadside listed the hotel under that name using the tag line “The House of Tranquility.” That advertisement also notes it was Strasburg’s only hotel, had the “best drinking water in the world,", and each room had hot water heat. Lewis would only operate the hotel until his death in 1918 during the Influenza epidemic. His widow, Mary Machir, then took control of the hotel. In 1923 she placed an advertisement in John Wayland’s Scenic and Historical Guide of the Shenandoah Valley. This noted the hotel had “reasonable rates,” rooms with and without baths, hot and cold running water, hot water heat, and electric light. There is no mention of the Chalyebeate Springs. Mary Machir died in 1937. On the 1940 Sanborn map of Strasburg the site is listed as the “Confederate Inn Hotel” though no additional information is known about that institution. Some time after this the house was converted into an apartment complex. It operated as such during the latter half of the 20th century and as such today. For more (including 5 images), view the original article. 2020-03-09T12:33:30-04:00 2020-03-09T12:35:49-04:00 https://shenandoahstories.org/items/show/326 The Shenandoah Stories Team This photograph shows part of the “Wagonner Shed” that was located along the Valley Turnpike (Route 11) in Edinburg Virginia. The shed would have been used by crews operating along the Turnpike in the 19th century. These crews were responsible for moving freight coming to and from places like Alexandria and Baltimore. In the time before a railroad connection existed, they were the primary way locals got their goods to larger markets and received items from the outside world. Wagon crews would have used this shed to rest themselves and their teams for the night when passing through Edinburg. Similar places, many times called Taverns or Ordinaries, existed in other parts of Edinburg and in other Valley towns, It would have been a place where crews could have enjoyed camaraderie, entertainment, food, and comfort while breaking from what would have been a long, arduous trip. The shed originally stood in front of the house which is now occupied by Edinburg Truck Hobby Shop. At the time of its construction, this property was owned by Phillip Grandstaff whose children Mary and Press lived in the house that still stands on the site. Later the shed was moved to the rear of the house which now houses Edinburg Trucks Hobby Shop and no longer stands. For more, view the original article. 2020-03-09T11:42:34-04:00 2020-03-09T11:44:22-04:00 https://shenandoahstories.org/items/show/325 Shenandoah County Library This undated postcard shows Lloyd’s Department Store on King Street in Strasburg Virginia. The store was located beside what was the Massanutten National Bank, until recently the Strasburg Chamber of Commerce, near the intersection with Holliday Street. The building was first constructed around 1893 to house a store operated by Edward Zea which opened across the street in 1867. At some point, Zea was joined in business by R.S. Wright and the store became known as “Zea and Wright Department Store,” Their advertising claimed it was the town’s largest department store. Edward Zea died in 1903. Sometime between then and the creation of this photograph, the store was purchased by Lloyd and Bertha “Doll” Rosson who also operated a 5 & 10 cent store in Strasburg. Most likely this transfer occurred in the 1930s. They would have sold a wide variety of retail products including shoes, clothing, furniture, etc. The couple would operate the store through at least 1950. Today the building is part of the First Bank complex. For more, view the original article. 2019-10-15T11:33:26-04:00 2019-10-15T11:33:26-04:00 https://shenandoahstories.org/items/show/324 The Shenandoah Stories Team The Powhatan Lime Company of Strasburg Virginia dates to 1902. It was founded to quarry some of the area’s plentiful New Market limestone and to convert it into lime for use in construction agriculture, and numerous other industries. Powhatan Lime Company was on what is now Powhatan Road, near Junction Road just southwest of the Town of Strasburg corporate limits. Its location was not only near limestone deposits, it was also adjacent to the major rail lines that made up the Strasburg Junction. Rail power allowed the lime produced at the Powhatan plant to be shipped to markets around the country and internationally. In a May 10, 1918 edition of the Strasburg News Powhatan Lime Company is listed as one of five local lime plants. Collectively, these businesses employed over 250 persons and had a monthly payroll of over $12,000 or approximately $235,000 in today’s currency. The newspaper noted this income helped support local merchants and “without these plants, Strasburg would lose much of her life.” With the prosperity brought by these companies came risks. Lime production was, and is, and dangerous industry. Numerous locals lost their lives in accidents at plants in the Strasburg area. Included among these are Jack Renner, Hunter Boyd, Ashby Mitchll, George Huffman, and Cecil Alonzo Rinker. These five men were killed when a lightning strike detonated a buried dynamite charge at the quarry. The date when Powhatan Lime Company closed is uncertain. A 1945 National Labor Relations Board case noted the company was in operation, manufactured “chemical lime, fluxing lime, building lime, hydrated lime, agricultural lime, and crushed stone,” and produced approximately $125,000 worth of products annually, 80% of which was shipped outside the state of Virginia. A 1976 Virginia Division of Mineral Resources Report listed it as an abandoned quarry meaning the plant closed sometime between those two dates. Today, only the former quarry, now flooded, remains. For more, view the original article. 2019-05-17T15:16:21-04:00 2023-04-28T16:27:34-04:00 https://shenandoahstories.org/items/show/322 Carley Bennett and Update by Zachary Hottel, April 2023 In 1959 the Shenandoah County School Board constructed a new high school named after a Confederate General Stonewall Jackson. This school was one of three high schools in Shenandoah County built at that time. “Stonewall Jackson High School” was formally dedicated on April 24, 1960 having been open to students for the 1959-1960 academic year. The first principal was Thomas L. Snyder and enrollment for the first year, Grades 8-12, was 501. The new school building housed students from Mount Jackson and New Market. They were needed to accommodate a growing student population. Through the years of 1960 to 1961, Shenandoah County Public Schools increased their total enrollment from 4,731 students to 4,908. Teaching positions had also increased from 189 to 220. Since then, the number of students continued to steadily increase. To meet this need the school structure was expanded from its original 13 classrooms in 1964 when four classrooms were added and in 1993 when six classrooms were added as part of a new science wing. A more extensive renovation was completed in 2004 when a new gymnasium, weight room, PE offices, guidance office, library media center, and more were added. Major academic strides had been taken to advance academic opportunities for the students. Lord Fairfax Community College (now Laurel Ridge Community College), opened in 1970, worked with Stonewall Jackson to offer on-sight dual enrollment classes for students looking for a foot-hold in college level class work. In 1990, dual enrollment classes were officially offered to students at Stonewall Jackson. Dual enrollment classes are still offered today, and, as of 2019, the school has the largest amount of dual enrollment class opportunities than any other school in Shenandoah County Public School system. The students at Stonewall Jackson were very dedicated to their academics, but students also set aside time to take part in extracurricular activities such as school sports and clubs. Sports include, but are not limited to, Football, Cross Country, Track & Field, and Volleyball. In 1981, the women’s Track and Field team won the State Track & Field meet. In 1989, both the women’s and men’s Cross Country team won the State Championship title. Clubs that were offered at the school in 1965 and are no longer available to students, including the Library club and Safety Patrol club. The Future Farmers of America (FFA) is a club that many at Stonewall Jackson have, and continue to be, involved with. One community event they do is for the Elementary School (Ashby Lee Elementary School), and that is Apples & Milk Day where students learn about Stonewall Jackson FFA, as well as where their food comes from. Clubs were a big part of helping students develop relationships in the school, as well as outside in the community. On July 9, 2020 the Shenandoah County School Board approved a name change for the school from Stonewall Jackson High School following a resolution condemning racism and affirming a commitment to an inclusive school environment. This led to critical and affirming protests by many community members. In January 2021 the School Board approved “Mountain View High School” as the new name for the school and retained the “Generals” mascot following the recommendation of a committee of students, teachers, and community members. The name became official during the 2021-2022 school year. As of 2023 the school housed 625 students in grades 9-12. It offers an Art Guild, Future Farmers of America, Home Economics, Interact, National Honor Society, Student Council Association, World Languages, Recycling, Knitting, Debate, and Board Game Club. Sports include Football, Cross Country, Baseball, Soccer, Cheerleading, Volleyball, Tennis, Golf, and Basketball. For more (including 3 images), view the original article. 2019-05-10T11:39:28-04:00 2019-05-10T11:39:28-04:00 https://shenandoahstories.org/items/show/321 The Shenandoah Stories Team On October 22, 1869 the Shenandoah Herald newspaper noted Samuel Bowman was “laying in a large supply of goods” and would soon open his new store on the “main street of Hamburg.” This building included the store originally included the store facilities on the lower level and a large meeting room with kitchen on the second floor. This upstairs space was used by both local chapters of the Modern Woodmen and the Grange. The 1885 Lake’s Atlas notes this building was both a store and the site of the Hamburg Post Office. Samuel Bowman is listed as living next door. In 1896 Samuel Bowman moved to Woodstock Virginia and opened a store in that town. The Hamburg store remained opened. Its last operator was John Eckard who operated the store until sometime in the mid-20th century. The store building still stands and is privately owned. For more, view the original article. 2019-04-16T11:15:04-04:00 2019-04-16T11:15:04-04:00 https://shenandoahstories.org/items/show/320 The Shenandoah Stories Team St. James Lutheran Church in Zepp dates to around 1822 when W.G. Keil, a ministerial student, began conducting services in local homes. By September of 1822 he had established a church with 30 confirmed members. The first church building was constructed soon after this. It was a log structure located directly across from the current St. James and was originally called either Mt. Pleasant Church or the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Cedar Creek. Services were held here from late spring till early winter since members had to ford Cedar Creek to attend services. In 1841 the congregation moved its meeting place to the nearby Lochmiller meeting house. Work on the current St. James Church began in 1884 and the building was dedicated in 1885. The Rev. William Jacob Smith became the first regular minister assigned to the church that year. He served the Gravel Springs Parish which consisted of St. James, Gravel Springs, and St. Johns Lutheran Church until his death in 1911. Regular weekly attendance averaged between 20 and 40 members during this period. In 1989 declining membership led St. James to be designated a chapel meaning regular worship services would no longer be held at the site and a pastor would not be assigned to the church. At the time an average of 12-16 members regularly attended service and members of the Lineweaver family were the primary church supporters. Despite this re-designation a regular homecoming, started in 1950, is still held at the church every July. For more (including 2 images), view the original article. 2019-04-15T16:43:56-04:00 2019-04-16T11:16:47-04:00 https://shenandoahstories.org/items/show/319 The Shenandoah Stories Team The Thomas Hudson House was constructed ca. 1790. It is located north east of the small community of Hudsons Crossroads. This house is one of the best surviving examples of Germanic stone construction in Shenandoah County. It was built atop a spring to provide access to running water and a cool place to store food. The structure is almost completely unchanged from the time of original construction meaning it has exceptional architectural integrity. It features two interior end chimneys and a two room plan on each floor. The second floor retains its original partition and remains of the spring room can be seen in the basement. While it is clear the home once contained a porch structure on the front elevation, it does not survive and its original design is unclear. In 1937 the Virginia WPA Historical Inventory Project noted the structure was designed to resist attacks by Native Americans and may have replaced an earlier “Indian Fort” on the property. They also wrote that “it was from this house that the last Indian was seen, who ever came to this county. He was shot by one of the men and buried at the foot of Deerhead.” No other evidence exists to substantiate these assertions. What we do know is house was most likely constructed by Henry Baughman sometime around 1790. He purchased the property from his father Jacob in 1801. The deed recording the sale noted he was already living on the property. The land was part of a 1754 grant given to John Henry Neff for over 350 acres in the area. Jacob was married to Neff’s daughter and had inherited the land in 1784. Thomas Hudson purchased the property and house in 1857. The small community of Hudsons Crossroads, 1/4th of a mile southwest of the home, now bears his name. Hudson’s heirs owned the home until 1946 when it is sold to the Wilkins family. Their descendants still own and farm the land. For more (including 7 images), view the original article.