History Commons^™

"Our Women Are Made Of The Right Stuff": Gender, Politics, And Conflict In Civil War West Virginia, Amanda Romain Shaver

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

“’Our Women Are Made of the Right Stuff:’ Gender, Politics, and Conflict in Civil War West Virginia” examines the lives and contributions of white West Virginia women and argues that they were not merely victims of the war, but dynamic participants whose opinions were influential and whose actions determined the ability of both the Union and Confederate armies to wage war in Appalachia. Striking a balance between the antebellum standards of “True Womanhood” and the emerging ideals of the women’s rights movement, West Virginia women became politically engaged in both the statehood movement and the Civil War. They transformed their …

“A Constant Reminder To All”: Remembering Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson In West Virginia, Steven Cody Straley

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

This thesis argues that Confederate heritage groups leading the Lost Cause Movement in West Virginia promoted Stonewall Jackson, through tactics such as ceremonies, publications, and monuments, to the point where his appeal expanded beyond that of former Confederates and their descendants. During the late 1800s, Confederate supporters in the state formed branches of Confederate heritage organizations and espoused a Lost Cause narrative with Stonewall Jackson as its figurehead. In doing so, they accomplished two things: to integrate the seemingly proUnion West Virginia into Confederate memory, and to gain acceptance of Confederates as full members of West Virginia society. Jackson’s advocates …

0865: Mccomas Family Letters, 1906 – 1930s, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

The collection consists of eight folders of correspondence between various family members of the McComas family between 1906 – 1930s. The McComas family consists of Mr. and Mrs. George J. McComas, and their son, B.C. “Curtis” McComas, and daughter, Margaret McComas. The majority of the folders contain correspondence from Curtis McComas detailing his experiences in France and Germany during the First World War. Other soldiers, including Curtis and Margaret’s cousin, Henry, also sent letters to Margaret detailing their experiences or thanks for gifts provided to the war front. The rest of the collection include letters received during Margaret’s stay in …

0864: Douglass High School Reunion Committee Records, 1924-1996, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

The collection is divided into three series:

Series 1: Reunion Planning and Alumni Materials – This series includes materials related to the planning and execution of Douglass High School reunions as planned by Douglass High School Foundation Incorporated and materials distributed to alumni outside of reunions. Materials include subcommittee and officer reports, alumni newsletters, and financial and organizational documents. Most materials date between 1988 and 1996.

Series 2: Clippings and Ephemera – This series includes assorted clippings and ephemera related to Douglass High School history, alumni, and Black Huntingtonians more broadly. Most materials are mounted on cardstock, seemingly for presentation …

0179: Dickinson Family Papers, 1804-1903, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

This collection primarily consists of materials related to running the business Dickinson & Shrewsbury, a multi-faceted affair that included a general store as well as agriculture, shipping, and salt manufacturing aspects principally run by Joel Shrewsbury, Sr. and William Dickinson, Sr. Collection items are primarily financial and related to business transactions and include day books, ledgers, journals, balance books, and various other book formats related to maintaining the business that do not fit neatly into those categories.

Day books, ledgers, journals, and balance books contain listings of customers, transactions, and financial exchanges to include maintaining credits and debts. Notable trade …

0778: Jim Taylor Photograph Collection, 1880s-1910s, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

This collection consists of 51 TIFF images representing 50 photographs of early Huntington, West Virginia. Photographic subjects include the D. E. Abbot frame factory in Huntington, WV, Twelve Pole Creek in Wayne County, WV, Norfolk and Western Railway and Chesapeake and Ohio railroad tracks, trestles, and trains, Big Sandy River, Kenova Electric Power Plant, log and timber in rivers, log cabins in Huntington and Kenova, WV, Camden Interstate Railway train cars, tie hoists, Johnson’s Lane car house, as well as a railway car wreck in 1906, Cabell County Courthouse, Cabell County Jail, Huntington Hospital, 20th Street Hill, Kessler Hospital, “H. …

Vertical File Index, 1970s-2000, Marshall University Special Collections

Miscellaneous Inventories

Meriam-Webster defines vertical file as, “a collection of articles (pamphlets and clippings) that is maintained (as in a library) to answer brief questions or to provide points of information not easily located.”

Vertical files were very popular in libraries before internet searching as a way to collate like materials found on specific subjects. The Special Collections vertical files contain clippings, pamphlets, articles, booklets and other literature that is too insignificant to catalog. This index serves as a guide to the folders contained within the collection.

The bulk of this collection was curated from the 1970s-2000 and is broken into two …

Iron Road: The Rise Of Huntington, West Virginia, 1870-1920, Brooks Bryant

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

The city of Huntington, West Virginia, did not occur gradually, nor did the city grow organically. Collis P. Huntington’s purchase of the Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad in the winter of 1869 led to the conception of the first new city of a State born out of the Civil War. Collis Huntington specifically chose the future site of Huntington for the terminus of the C&O Railroad to reach areas rich in coal, timber, and agriculture in West Virginia, providing natural resources a way to market. For Collis P. Huntington to profit from shipping natural resources out of West Virginia, he needed …

0847: John Hawes Miller, Jr. West Virginia Postcard Collection, 1910s-2000s, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

This collection consists of 1,346 postcards arranged in five binders. Binder 1 contains 237 postcards of various locations in West Virginia. Binder 2 contains 294 postcards of various locations in West Virginia. Binder 3 contains 241 postcards of various locations in West Virginia. Binder 4 contains 308 postcards of various locations in West Virginia. Binder 5 contains 266 postcards various locations in Huntington, West Virginia. Postcard subjects include buildings, sights, nature scenes, and people from all areas of the state.

To view materials from this collection that are digitized and available online, search the John Hawes Miller, Jr. West Virginia …

0838: Huntington Urban Renewal Authority Records, 1962-2003, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

Documents produced by the Huntington (West Virginia) Urban Renewal Authority (HURA). Bulk of the documents are related to the development of the downtown area of Huntington known as 'The Superblock'. Also included are by-laws for the HURA, Land Use and Marketability Studies. The largest single document is The Urban Renewal Plan, Downtown Project No.1, Urban Renewal Project No. W. VA. R-18, dated October 1, 1968 with amendments through May 23, 1977.

Forging A Bluegrass Commonwealth: The Kentucky Statehood Movement And The Politics Of The Trans-Appalachian West, 1783–1792, Christopher L. Leadingham

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

In 1893 historian Frederick Jackson Turner first presented his frontier thesis to a group of historians at the World’s Columbian Exposition, a fair honoring the four-hundredth anniversary of Christopher Columbus’ expedition, in Chicago, Illinois. Since then, scholars have long debated the role that the frontier played in shaping the development of the United States. The Kentucky statehood movement emerged at a critical juncture in the early republic’s history, and, when viewed in a transatlantic context, becomes much more important to the development of the United States and larger Atlantic world than what has generally been recognized. Kentuckians found themselves at …

Surviving Fallout In Appalachia: An Examination Of Class Differences Within Civil Defense Preparation In West Virginia During The Early Years Of The Cold War, Tristan Miranda Williams

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Civil defense and West Virginia are not likely to be considered in tandem. What would make West Virginia significant during the Cold War? West Virginia is a state that has been synonymous with family feuds, hillbillies, moonshine, and coal mining. Few have considered West Virginia beyond these stereotypes and scant work has been done beyond that. The impact of the Cold War has been looked at through multiple angles but few have looked at the significant role West Virginia played during this time. Possibly, few have even considered that it played a role at all. Through examination of primary sources …

0838: Huntington Urban Renewal Authority Records, 1962-2003, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

Documents produced by the Huntington (West Virginia) Urban Renewal Authority (HURA). Bulk of the documents are related to the development of the downtown area of Huntington known as 'The Superblock'. Also included are by-laws for the HURA, Land Use and Marketability Studies. The largest single document is The Urban Renewal Plan, Downtown Project No.1, Urban Renewal Project No. W. VA. R-18, dated October 1, 1968 with amendments through May 23, 1977.

0837: Cora P. Teel Mintner Research Papers, 2010, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

This collection consists of a photocopy of a 1916 Mintner Homes Corporation Catalog and research notes compiled by Ms. Teel during her research for the following article cited here: Teel, Cora P. "Minter Homes." e-WV: The West Virginia Encyclopedia. 20 October 2010. Web. 16 August 2017. https://www.wvencyclopedia.org/articles/2001

A Cartographic History Of Huntington, West Virginia, 1871-1903, Brooks Bryant

Manuscripts

Excerpt:

Maps provide a visual representation of the space that surrounds us, revealing how streets, towns, cities, states and countries developed physical boundaries. Plotting change over time through maps allows people to study and reflect on the environment leading to a better understanding of spatial reality. Just like any other primary source, maps are a creation of their social and cultural context conveying certain details while omitting others.

Historic Huntington Businesses: The Birth Of Huntington, W.Va. 1871-1900, Jack L. Dickinson, Alison K. Summer-Ramirez

Manuscripts

In the post-Civil War period of 1871 to 1900 the newly formed city of Huntington boomed in population and industry. Both immigrants and migrants alike flocked to the growing city which offered not only a fresh start and job opportunities but also educational opportunities such as the local Marshall College. This city’s strategic placement was ideal in that not only was it the halfway point between Pittsburgh and Cincinnati, but it was also connected to the rest of the country by the growing railroad and the great Ohio River. These factors allowed for businesses of every want and need to …

Special Collections Microfilm Newspaper Index, Marshall University Special Collections

Miscellaneous Inventories

This is a list of newspapers that Special Collections has in the department. Items in this index include the name of the newspaper and the respective date ranges with each title. Newspapers include materials from West Virginia, with fewer newspapers from Ohio, Virginia, and Pennsylvania.

0836: M. Homer Cummings Papers, 1909-1968, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

The 31 boxes in this collection contain the following materials by Cummings: college examination papers; sermons and radio addresses; newspaper columns; letters; poems (single copies, booklets, and a spiral-bound book); and songs (single copies, booklets, song books, printing plates, and recordings). There are also letters written to him; newspaper articles about him and his family; materials from the Literary and Bible Training School and McCrum Slavonic Training School (Rev. and Mrs. Cummings’ alma maters); song books and vinyl records from his collection; and various miscellaneous items.

To view materials from this collection that are digitized and available online, search the …

0835: The Links, Incorporated Collection, 1955-2016, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

Established in 1955, the Huntington, West Virginia chapter of The Links, Incorporated is a women’s volunteer organization that works to support culture, education, health and wellness for seniors, adults, and youth in the African American community. The national Links, Incorporated organization, founded in 1946 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, oversees four regional areas, including the Central Area, which consists of 69 Links chapters in Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, Tennessee, West Virginia, and Wisconsin. The Huntington, WV chapter is the only Links, Incorporated chapter in West Virginia, and its activities extend to Williamson and Bluefield. Chapter members such …

0826: Carlton D. "Buck" Weaver Map Collection, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

This collection consists of 33 early American maps documenting the Trans-Allegheny region between 1631 and 1881 collected by Carlton D. Weaver. Sizes, formats, and printing processes vary greatly. Of particular note are maps featuring railroads and coal. Maps numbered 12 and 13 are high-quality reproductions; the others are original.

To view materials from this collection that are digitized and available online, search the Carlton D. "Buck" Weaver Map Collection here.

0827: Rotary International - Huntington, Wv Chapter Collection, 1915-2015, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

The collection includes an assortment of Rotary business files, artifacts, and images. It contains a variety of correspondence, meeting records, membership forms, awards, newsletters, memos, financial documents, newspapers, bulletins, and various Rotary artifacts including Rotary flags, proclamations, and Rotary themed desktop items. The collection showcases the Rotary Club of Huntington’s influence both in the Huntington area and within the district and international Rotary community. Many of these files, although mostly dating from time period of 1990-2015, do contain records and documents dating as far back to the founding of the Rotary Club of Huntington in 1915.

0829: John Mckernan Collection, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

The John McKernan Collection contains mostly published materials that John McKernan collected related to his own poetry. There are a limited number of non-McKernan publications that he saved.

Buffalo Soldier, Deserter, Criminal: The Remarkably Complicated Life Of Charles Ringo, Cicero Fain

History Faculty Research

This case study chronicles the remarkably complicated life of Charles Ringo who served nearly two enlistments as a Buffalo Soldier before deserting and embarking on a life of petty crime. It details his military service, his nomadic occupational life, his marriage, his acquittal of two sets of murders--one of his stepsons in West Virginia, the other of a white married couple in Illinois, and the assistance of white authorities who intervened to save and protect Ringo from the predations of angry mobs and racist courts. It situates Ringo’s exploits within the oppositional/alternative nature of African American working-class life, the failure …

West Virginia State Documents Inventory, Marshall University Special Collections

Miscellaneous Inventories

Marshall University is an official repository for West Virginia State Documents. The West Virginia State Documents are a collection of documents published by various state entities from the state’s inception to today. This includes publications from a variety of public departments as well as the state legislature. The collection includes newsletters, maps, pamphlets, legislative bills, reports, and more.

0822: Lawrence H. "Bud" Rogers Papers, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

The collection consists primarily of newspaper articles, biographical sketches, and historical summaries of Mr. Roger's career in the television industry and the Federal Reserve Board. The bulk of the materials are related to his time as the General Manager of the WSAZ-TV station in Huntington, West Virginia and as the President of Taft Broadcasting Company in Cincinnati, Ohio. The collection contains some correspondence, both personal and business related. The collection is organized into two series; Series I, Personal Papers and, Series II, WSAZ-TV.

0817: Rikki Miller Collection, 2012-2014, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

This collection consists of research materials gathered by Rikki Miller while doing research on the Colored Orphan's Home and the Barnett Hospital and Nursing School, an African American hospital, in Huntington, West Virginia. Materials are primarily photocopies of articles, photographs, surveys, and reports from various sources. Also included is Miller’s final presentation titled, “Case Study: An Appalachian ‘Black Hospital’”

0802: Kay Wildman Collection, 1900-2006, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

The Kay Wildman Collection explores the history of music in Huntington, WV. This collection consists of oral histories, photographs, newspaper clippings, and research materials. In most of the oral histories you will find a copy of the interview on a CD and a typed outline of the interview. A diary by Robert Grant, a member of numerous musical groups in Huntington, can also be found in this collection. This diary covers the period of time Grant was a student at Marshall University with some additional entries that go beyond that period of time.

0807: American Association Of University Women (Aauw), Wv Division, 1929-2011, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

This collection contains paper and multimedia materials related to the American Association of University Women- West Virginia Division from 1929-2011. The collection includes meeting minutes, agendas, and officer reports, publications, initiative plans, and correspondence. Branch yearbooks and statewide directories are also included, as well as workshop materials. The “kits” associated with the collection were produced by the AAUW on a national level, and distributed to chapters. Each kit is representative of AAUW workshops.

The African American Experience In Antebellum Cabell County, Virginia/West Virginia, 1810-1865, Cicero Fain

History Faculty Research

Located on the Ohio River in western Virginia, adjacent to southeastern Ohio and eastern Kentucky, antebellum Cabell County lay at the fulcrum of east and west, north and south, freedom and slavery. Possessed of a bountiful countryside—replete with wildlife, timber, pristine streams and creeks, and rich river-bottom soil along the navigable Ohio and Guyandotte rivers—it held great potential for settlers who sought to put down roots. Drawn by its promising location and cheap, arable land, migrants settled in the county in increasing numbers in the early 1800s, and many settlers took their slaves with them. Yet like most counties on …

Early Black Migration And The Post-Emancipation Black Community In Cabell County, West Virginia, 1865-1871, Cicero Fain

History Faculty Research

West Virginia’s formation divided many groups within the new state. Grievances born of secession inflamed questions of taxation, political representation, and constitutional change, and greatly complicated black aspirations during the state’s formative years. Moreover, long-standing attitudes on race and slavery held great sway throughout Appalachia. Thus, the quest by the state’s black residents to achieve the full measure of freedom in the immediate post-Civil War years faced formidable challenges. To meet the mandates for statehood recognition established by President Lincoln, the state’s legislators were forced to rectify a particularly troublesome conundrum: how to grant citizenship to the state’s black residents …