Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

Collection is open to research.

Use Restrictions

See the University of Virginia Library’s use policy.

Preferred Citation

Page County Virginia Papers, Accession 4148, Special Collections Department, University of Virginia Library

Acquisition Information

This collection was loaned to the Library by Roger W. Milbourne of Charles Town, West Virginia, on February 2, 1953.

Funding Note

Funded in part by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities

Scope and Content

This collection consists of ca. 2,500 items, ca. 1904-1944, and n.d., compiled by Virginia Strickler Milbourne , and includes genealogical and historical information about Page County, Virginia . The historical information includes Indian settlement and archaeology in the area at the time of the first settlers, Governor Spottswood's expedition into the Valley, the Revolutionary War Period, and information on Page when it was part of other counties-- Augusta , Frederick , Orange , and Spotsylvania Counties--mostly in deed and will books. There is also information on the period of the Civil War, and the late nineteenth and early twentieth century periods: particularly notable is the information on the industry in the area, such as forges and mining. There is also information on the Shenandoah National Park , the Shenandoah Valley Railroad (S. V. R. R.), history of utilities in the Valley, area post office and road history, area property and railroad assessments, and the area's national and state politicians and late eighteenth-early nineteenth century area censuses. The genealogical information includes family histories, with some genealogical charts, of Shenandoah Valley families, particularly the German settlers. Information on area parishes emphasizes those of Baptist or Mennonite origins, as many early German settlers were of these denominations.

In addition, there are muster lists from the Revolutionary War and one from the Civil War ( 35th Battalion of Virginia Volunteers ). Maps of the Shenandoah Valley region are included as well, including an extensive one for Massanutten (now George Washington) National Forest . Among the newspaper clippings, there are articles on the historic sites of the area. Photographs of area landmarks are included. The 1904-1906 issues of the "Baptist Outlook" of Charles Town are included, as well as "Our Unfinished Task," a history of the Baptists from their beginnings in Europe to their experiences in America. While not extensive, some information can be found on the history of blacks in the Valley. With the information on the Shenandoah River , the reminiscences of the 1870 flood are notable.

Among the bound volumes, there is a collection of literary materials written or collected by area residents. Also, there are two notebooks consisting of a bibliography of materials for Shenandoah Valley history research. Another notebook which contains notes on Shenandoah Valley history contains gravestone inscriptions from area gravesites.