Photograph showing the county jail in Woodstock Virginia. It operated from 1906-1974.
Photograph showing the Shenandoah Fire Company's quarters on Court Street. Inside was a single hand powered engine and two hose reels. It was also home to the town offices and the militia company.
This photograph most likely shows a locomotive of the B&O Railroad that had been involved in a wreck in Woodstock Virginia. Local reports indicate that the wreck occurred on August 27, 1892. A northbound train, pulled by engine Number 199, a “camel type” locomotive that dated to before the Civil War. Sometime during the late 19th century Engine Number 199 came under the direction of John T.A. “Red” Deck. He would be operating the locomotive as it left Harrisonburg around 10:00AM on that August morning pulling 16 cars. As he entered Woodstock and rounded the curve near what is now Benchoff Drive, he spotted the aptly named cow “Bossy” astride the tracks. Red’s attempts to frighten the cow with his whistle failed and he ordered his brakeman, atop the cars, to begin applying the brakes. However, they were unable to stop in time and the locomotive struck the cow and was thrown from the tracks. The engine and cars plowed down the bank near Spring Hollow Creek and came to rest in a pile of splintered wood and metal. Several members of the train crew survived. Red Deck was able to save himself by jumping as the train left the tracks and then by outrunning it. Head brakeman Frank Laughlin, riding atop the cars, jumped down the opposite embankment and was dazed but uninjured. Conductor W.M. Swain not only was able to jump from his car, but he also grabbed his signal flag and ran south to stop an oncoming passenger train before it reached the wreck. J.W. Fisher, the rear brakeman, and passenger R.E. Stoneburner of Edinburg, were in the caboose when the wreck happen also escaped by jumping and helped extinguish the fire in the locomotive so an explosion did not occur. The only fatality was the fireman, Lemuel Wine who was crushed by the engine. It took several hours to recover his body which was sent to Fravel and Feller’s funeral home in Woodstock. They did what they could to repair the body and sent it south to Harrisonburg around 10:00PM. He left behind a wife and one child. On the day of the incident, the annual Fisher’s Hill Confederate Veterans Reunion was being held. The railroad hastened to clean up the accident to ensure special trains filled with veterans were able to reach the site. A few hours after the crash, the line was once again reopened. Hundreds of locals, and visiting veterans, flocked to the site over the next several days to see the destruction. In this photograph we can see these spectators, and numerous workers alongside the destroyed engine, which had been moved onto hastily laid track beside the main line before its removal. Eventually the picture ended up in the hands of William F. Lichliter, a B&O manager at the Strasburg Junction during this period.
Cohen, Bob. "The 1892 B&O Wreck at Woodstock, Virginia." The Sentinel, Third Quater 2010, pages 29-31.
Letter to Pauline Lichliter from J.R. Selz
On June 1, 1915 J.R. Selz, of the Chicago-based Selz, Schwab & Co., sent this letter to Pauline Lichliter of Strasburg Virginia, notifying her that she had been awarded the coveted Morris Selz Liberty Bell Medal. Named for the Selz Company’s founder, Morris Selz, this award was given to students across the country who obtained the highest averages in their schools in specific subjects. While we are not sure what subject Pauline excelled in, her later career in newspapers, indicates it may have been in English. The Selz Company, founded in 1871, was a major shoe manufacturer and distribute in the mid-west. It would operate until 1929 when it closed as a result of the Great Depression. Pauline Lichliter would go on to have a distinguished career working for the Keister family and the Northern Virginia Daily, and later at the Presbyterian Church’s General Assembly Training School in Richmond, and various other educational organizations in the state. She died in Strasburg in 1972. Today her papers, and those of her family, are housed in the Truban Archives. They include hundreds of letters, photographs, postcards, and railroad items owned by her father who managed the Strasburg Junction for the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad.
Lichliter Collection Shenandoah County Library's Truban Archives
In 1955 Triplett and Vehrencamp closed their downtown store and reopened under the name Vehrencamp's on the north end of town. Their Grand Opening celebration can be seen in this photograph. This new structure had been operating as the Rinker Brother's Filling Station but originally had been the Mt. Jackson Graded and High School. The new business sold John Deere, and later Oliver Tractors, other farm supplies, hardware, and much more. In 1965 Bill Vehrencamp, the business's owner died. His wife continued operations but ceased the sale of heavy machinery. They serve as the community’s central repair center and sold appliances, mowers, hardware, and farm supplies until the late 20th century.
Triplett and Vehrencamp (Mt. Jackson Va)
Throughout the 20th century, one of Mt. Jackson’s most prominent commercial establishments was Triplett and Vehrencamp, a farm supply and hardware business. Located on Main Street, near the current town hall, this organization occupied a sprawling warehouse complex. This business had originally been founded by Dr. J.I. Triplett, a prominent local businessman, who was also responsible for founding Mt. Jackson National Bank and for operating the Mt. Jackson Mill. He had purchased a series of grain elevators on the site from S.P. Lonas in 1915 and expanded the business to include hardware and farm equipment. Later it became known as Triplett and Coffman, and finally as Triplett and Vehrencamp. The firm dealt in general merchandise, housewares, hardware, building materials, gasoline, and Goodyear Tires. In 1930 Triplett died and the business was purchased by the Vehrencamp family who had already been partners in the store. Twenty-five years later they moved the business to the Rinker Brother’s Filling Station, originally the Mt. Jackson Graded and High School on the north end of town. At the same time, they began selling John Deere Tractors. They ceased their heavy machinery business in 1965 but continued to serve as the community’s central repair center and sell appliances, mowers, hardware, and farm supplies until the late 20th century.
Folder 1.9: Mt. Jackson photos, including Mt. Jackson Fire Department; Triplett & Vehrencamp, undated, Shenandoah County Photograph Collection, Truban Archives, Shenandoah County Library, Edinburg, Virginia.
Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial (CC-BY-NC)
This photograph of bicycles for sale at the Schmitt Drugstore in Woodstock was taken sometime in the late 19th century. Around that time the country was experiencing a “bicycle craze.” This new form of transportation was popular among the members of the nation’s middle and elite classes. Schmidt’s drug store would have taken advantage of the phenomena. Founded in 1834 by Dr. John G. Schmitt, a Swiss immigrant, the institution not only produced prescriptions, it also sold a variety of general merchandise items and operated a soda fountain. The store, located on Main Street, was one of the most popular in Woodstock, their eatery became a social attraction, and the Schmitts became community leaders. They were also an authorized Columbia Bicycle dealer. Pictured here is the company’s model 1879 high wheeler. Schmitt’s decision to carry and display such a large number in front of their store means it must have been very popular locally. In 1885 a new drug store building was built on the same site as the old store on Main Street. In this picture we can see the front steps of that new building. This fact, coupled with popular demand for, and Columbia’s release of a new “safety” bicycle with two equal size wheels in 1890, indicates the picture was taken between 1885 and 1890. Schmitt’s drug store would continue to operate through the mid part of the 20th century. In 1944 it was purchased by long time employee Joseph B. Clower who managed operations until 1956 when the business was sold to its local competitor Walton and Smoot who closed the drug store. The building would be sold again in the 1980s and in the early 2000s. It has been recently remodeled and now houses a branch of the First Bank and Trust Company and the All things Virginia store at the Farmhouse.
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike (CC-BY-NC-SA)
Picture of the Third Grade Class at Toms Brook School during the 1961-1962 school year.
Picture of the second grade class at the Toms Brook School during the 1959-1960 school year.
Picture of the Second Grade at the Toms Brook School during the 1960-1961 school year.
Photograph of the First Grade Class at Toms Brook School in 1959.
Picture of Sidney Sibert's classroom located at the former Toms Brook School.
Picture of students at the Toms Brook School building that was located on the site of the current building.
Picture of teacher Robert Sibert with his students at the Zepp School.
Picture of the former school located in Toms Brook Virginia.
Powells Fort Community and Improvement League Minutes
Ledger book containing the minutes of the Powells Fort Community and Improvement League Minutes from 1915-1916.
Powells Fort Community and Improvement League (Fort Valley Va)
Powell's Fort Community Improvement League Meeting Minutes Collection
Creative Commons-Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike
Teachers register for Slate Hill School No. 10 located in Fort Valley Virginia.
Cover of the Fort Valley Works book produced by the Fort Valley Elementary School. The book features stories from Fort Valley residents, surveys about their community, and analysis by students.
Cover and a page from Samuel Coverstone's journal. Coverstone lived in Fort Valley Virginia.
St. Davids Lutheran Church (Fort Valley Va)
Picture of the St. Davids Lutheran Church in Fort Valley Virginia. The congregation was formed around 1816 when the Lutheran worshipers in Fort Valley established their own church. The building pictured was constructed in 1873 after the previous church burned. The church would be used until 1965 when a new Lutheran Church was built and the previous structure was sold. Today it is a private residence.
Fort Valley, VA Photographs (Historical) Collection
Mt. Zion Lutheran Church (Fort Valley Va)
Photograph of Mt. Zion Lutheran Church located in Fort Valley Virginia. The church was constructed in 1897 by a group of dissidents who left the St. David's Church Congregation. The two churches would reunite in 1965.
Burner's Springs Resort (Fort Valley Va)
Drawing of Burner's Springs Resort, also known as Shenandoah Springs, in Fort Valley Virginia. The resort was constructed in "bowl-like hollow" that was surrounded by seven fountains. Six were within one acre of the resort but the seventh was piped in using wooden logs. The hotel was three stories and 100ft x 40ft. There were also several detached cottages, bathhouses, and pavilions. Construction was done by local carpenters and slaves. The resort was very popular but owner, Noah Burner, suffered from financial difficulties through the 1850s. In 1859 the ownership transferred to Solomon McInturff who changed the name to the Seven Fountains Resort. It closed sometime after the end of the Civil War.
Postcard with a picture taken of the Fairview community located just west of Woodstock Virginia.
Postcard with a drawing of a woman on a policeman's lap with the title "Holding down the Law in Woodstock Va."
Picture showing "Mr. Duke's House" near Harrisonburg Virginia with description of the view from that location.