A Guide to the
John L. Heatwole Collection of Shenandoah Valley History, 1802-1901
SC 0092
Compiled by: Chris Bolgiano, February 1988;
Revised by Orville Bame, September 1988;
Chris Bolgiano, March 1989; Tiffany Cole, January 2010, April 2017
Descriptive Summary
Repository: Special Collections, Carrier Library, James Madison University
Title: John L. Heatwole Collection of Shenandoah Valley History, 1802-1901
Collection No.: SC 0092
Creator: John L. Heatwole
Extent: 3 folders, .2 cubic feet
Abstract: The John L. Heatwole Collection of Shenandoah Valley History, 1802-1901, consists of three folders containing 102 items pertaining to Shenandoah Valley history. The collection is arranged topically into three folders: General Valley Documents, Page County Documents, and Recipes.
Administrative Information
Access Restrictions: Collection is open to research. Researchers must register and agree to copyright and privacy laws before using this collection. Please contact Research Services staff before visiting the James Madison University Special Collections Library to use this collection.
Use Restrictions: The copyright interests in this collection have been transferred to the James Madison University Special Collection Library. For more information, contact the Special Collections Library Reference Desk (library-special@jmu.edu).
Preferred Citation: [Identification of item], [box #, folder #], John L. Heatwole Collection of Shenandoah Valley History, 1802-1901, SC 0092, Special Collections, Carrier Library, James Madison University, Harrisonburg, Va.
Acquisition Information: Donated to Carrier Library by John L. Heatwole of Bridgewater, Virginia on several occasions beginning in December 1987.
Provenance: The collector's theme was to acquire documents that held some relationship to Shenandaoh Valley history, either by virtue of the people, places, or events mentioned.
Processing Information: This collection was minimally reprocessed in April 2017 and renamed John L. Heatwole Collection of Shenandoah Valley History, a change from John L. Heatwole Collection. In order to streamline the process of applying collection numbers, Special Collections staff completed a large-scale renumbering campaigin in the spring of 2017. This collection was previously cataloged as SC 2040.
Biographical Note
Born in Washington D.C., John L. Heatwole (1948-2006) was an artist, woodcarver, tour guide, local historian and folklorist. After serving in the U.S. Marine Corps and working at the Library of Congress, Heatwole moved to Dayton in 1974 with his wife, Miriam. Throughout his lifetime he sat on various committees and boards related to both art and history, and received many awards for his work. He chaired the Rockingham County Bicentennial Committee and in 1991 he was the first Virginian to display art in the National Capital Rotunda. Heatwole also authored several books relating to superstitions, folkways, and the Civil War. Heatwole was dedicated to preserving Shenandoah Valley history, historic sites and battlefields, and folklore as is reflected in this collection of materials.
Scope and Content
The John L. Heatwole Collection of Shenandoah Valley History, 1802-1901, consists of three folders containing 102 items pertaining to Shenandaoh Valley history. The collection is arranged topically into three folders: General Valley Documents, Page County Documents, and Recipes.
General Valley Documents, 1802-1901, include arrest warrants, summonses, orders for the seizure of goods for non-payment of debt, legal receipts, tax receipts, and billheads. Individual items are chronologically arranged and described to the item level as per the donor's explanatory notes. Documents related to the Zigler Family of Timberville have been placed at the front of the folder and consist of five receipts of muster fines and orders granting private entertainment to John or David Zigler, 1828-1850.
Page County Documents, 1854-1879, contain various court documents summonses, treasury receipts, handwritten receipts, and orders for the seizure of goods for non-payment of debt. Individual items are arranged chronologically.
Recipes, undated, consist of two handwritten and two printed recipes for herbal cures and a recipe for making gunpowder. One recipe, printed in Pennsylvania Dutch or a variation of German, gives steps for curing a "mad dog bite" (i.e. rabies). A second recipe, also written in Pennsylvania Dutch, describes an incantation against sties. For complete translations see John L. Heatwole's Shenandoah Voices: Folklore, Legends and Traditions of the Valley (Berryville, Va.: Rockbridge Publishing Company, 1995), 47, 57-59.
Arrangement
The collection is arranged topically into three folders.
Bibliography
Heatwole, John L. Shenandoah Voices: Folklore, Legends, and Traditions of the Valley. Berryville, Va: Rockbridge Publishing Company, 1995.
DeHart, Carol Maureen. John L. Heatwole: The Word Gatherer, Oral History Interview. Staunton, Va.: Lot's Wife Publishing, 2007.
Related Material
Contents
[Click here for item-level description of General Valley Documents, Folder 1]
| General Valley Documents, 1802-1901 | Folder 1 |
| Page County Documents, 1854-1879 | Folder 2 |
| Recipes, undated | Folder 3 |
