Browse Items (1533 total)

This metal sign, posted just a few miles outside of Louisa, was intended to lure tired travelers with the promise of meals and a night's lodging for $2.00 (plus the added attraction of a garage for those who arrived by automobile).

The Louisa…

Built shortly after the Civil War, the church is still located on its original site on Old Factory Road in the lower portion of Louisa County. The church operated a school for African-American children in the area from the early 1900s until about…

This quaint white church was built in 1881. It resulted through the efforts of Reverend James Grammer. One hundred years later it received full church status under the leadership of reverend John Von Hemert. The Parish Hall was added in 1961 (and…

FOUNDED: current church built in 1881

LOCATION: Ellisville Road, town of Louisa

INFORMATION: The church was started after the Civil War and shared space with the Methodist Church in Louisa for many years. By 1881, the congregation raised…

Miscellaneous items could be purchased with the use of the stamps marked "Spare."

The Louisa Chapter of the United Daughters of the Confederacy was chartered in 1919 but its members had been at work for years to help honor those, living and dead, who served the Confederacy during the Civil War.

The UDC was instrumental in…

In 1935, Congress passed the Soil Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act to combat the effects of erosion that had led to the Dust Bowl and exacerbated the effects of the Great Depression on farmers. The Act created the Agricultural Conservation…

These are scans of a booklet with the National Constitution of the Socialist Party and application for membership both belonging to Dr. Robert Shelton. These may have been for his use or possibly to distribute to new members.

Auctioneer RC Stiegman; Names of Slaves: Harry, Louisa and child, Isaac, Isaac and Mahala and 3 children, Mills, Edmund, William and child
Tammy, Daniel, Sydney and four children, Judy Ann, Phillip, Jim Boy and Little Mary and 5 children, Charney,…

The institution of slavery system kept family connections obscure and few slaves had last names. Establishing the roots and identity that come from knowing one’s family heritage became important for freedmen in the generations after the war. …

This is the advertisement and its receipt for a slave auction. Mr. Robert M. Kent states that he is auctioning off nineteen slaves, consisting of men, boys, girls, women and children. He states that at the same time, he will also auction off thirteen…

Sisters Lessie and Ida Sims, daughters of Garland and Barbara Ann Butler Sims

This metal sign hung outside Joseph Ham's shop on Main Street in Stanardsville in the mid-19th century. He was not only a tailor but sold other goods, from at least 1856; he became Stanardsville's postmaster in September 1865, a post he held for the…

The Virginia Central Railroad was a vital link between the region just east of the Blue Ridge Mountains and Richmond. When vast mineral deposits were being mined in Mineral City in Louisa County, the railroad was vital for transporting shipments of…

This bond was signed by James Gooch, Edmund Swift, David Swift, William Longan, William Walton, and Thomas Gooch on June 8, 1863 to ensure the character of the sheriff. If the sheriff were to show false character during his two year term, the men…

First Published December 1969

After riding across Virginia for three days on a raid to destroy parts of the Virginia Central Railroad, Gen. Philip H. Sheridan’s 9,300 cavalrymen and horse artillerists crossed the North Anna River at Carpenter’s Ford about two miles north,…

Julius Rosenwald (1862-1932) is credited with the establishment of the Rosenwald Foundation, an organization that worked to promote and improve African-American schools. The fund helped build over 5,300 schools across the South, including 381 r in…

Securing funds for a new school in 1923