Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections Library
Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections Library P.O. Box 400110 University of Virginia Charlottesville, Virginia 22904-4110 URL: https://small.library.virginia.edu/
Tanner Greene
Repository
Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections Library
Joel E. Stowe, Sr. operated a grocery store in Petersburg, Virginia as of the 1880 Census. Stowe and his wife Rosa had at
least two children: a son, J.D. Stowe, Jr., and a daughter, Ella Stowe. Ella later married Dr. Virgil R. May, by which time
the Stowe family had moved to Richmond.
The Stowe grocery store ledgers (1870-1934; 0.4 cubic feet) document the operation of the titular family's grocery store in
Petersburg, Virginia. Ledgers document monthly expenses for items ranging from rent to flour to labor. The collection also
contains a small file of personal letters and bills for appliances.