Administrative Information

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Preferred Citation

Birckhead family papers, 1827-1950, Accession #10667-a, Special Collections Dept., University of Virginia Library, Charlottesville, Va.

Acquisition Information

This collection was made a gift to the Library on February 16, 1994, by Landon Douglas Birckhead, Jr. and Mrs. Landon Douglas Birckhead, Sr., both of Charlottesville, Virginia.

Scope and Content Information

This collection consists of ca. 230 items, ca. 1827-1950, pertaining to the Birckhead family of Albemarle County, Virginia. Family members represented include Edward Holland Birckhead, Edward Francis Birckhead, Edward Francis Birckhead, Jr., and Mary Eloise Kipps Birckhead, among others. There are correspondence, financial and legal papers, certificates and diplomas, photographs, and miscellaneous material.

There is limited genealogical information on Cornelius Thomas and James and Samuel Magruder, an announcement and invitation for the wedding of Bessie Isabel Preddy and Landon Douglas Birckhead, and some unidentified photographs in the Birckhead and related families.

Papers, 1858-1901, on Buck Mountain Church contain correspondence and other papers of the vestrymen of the church. There are correspondence and papers in support of Dabney Davis, William N. Nelson, and D. C. T. Davis as rectors; subscription accounts; and, Diocesan Missionary Society of Virginia correspondence . There are also legal documents: agreement of St. Paul's and Emmanuel's vestries for the purchase of the rectory held by the vestry of Buck Mountain vestry (June 1867) and one conveying the wish to sell the old Buck Mountain land (Dec 1890). A January 12, 1882 letter concerns a petition to the next council asking for an independent parish to be assigned to St. Paul's and to be called "Joy Parish Albemarle Co."

There are certificates for Edward Holland Birckhead from the University of Virginia (June 1882); certificates of distinction for Edward Francis Birckhead from the College of William and Mary (June 1901); a state teachers certificate from the Commonwealth of Virginia for Mary Eloise Kipps Birckhead (May 1947); and, various certificates for Edward Francis Birckhead, Jr. from the University of Pennsylvania Medical Department and Hospital (1840-1843). Oversize diplomas (located in Tray 15) include a certificate of proficiency from the University of Virginia (June 1882) and a diploma for degree of doctor in medicine from Bellevue Hospital Medical College (July 1883) for Edward Holland Birckhead; and, a diploma from Harvard University (June 1923) and one from Pennsylvania University for degree of doctor in medicine (1943) for Edward Francis Birckhead.

Among the papers concerning land transactions, 1833-1890, are deeds, memorandum of agreements, and surveys pertaining to lands in Albemarle County. There are documents, 1833 and 1881, concerning the Ferneyhough-Dickinson tract on the north fork of the Rivanna River and the Roland Munday and Munday family lands (1839, 1884, 1886). There are a deed and memorandum of agreement, December 1845, between Mildred Birckhead and her son Edward F. Birckhead to divide the estate of her husband Thomas Birckhead along with slaves Anderson, Frances, Richard, and Thomas, household furnishings and stock, and for the support of said Mildred Birckhead. There is also a survey, March 1890, of the tract of land sold by J. Augustus Michie to E[dward] H[olland] Birckhead on the west side of the north prong of the Rivanna River.

Papers on properties, 1839-1905, and 1950, include material on the sale of personal property, lists and payments to legatees, and accounts pertaining to the estate of William P. Wilkerson for 1889. There is also an account, 1950, with the law offices of Paxson, Williams and Fife for the preparation of the deed and other expenses for the sale of "Morven" by Mary Birckhead to Kendall P. Birckhead.

Papers pertaining to "Solitude," Madison County, 1847-1896, include a survey for 1847; correspondence, 1890-1891, between E[dward] F. Birckhead and R. T. Groves; correspondence and contract between Birckhead and A[llen] W. Viar about renting and cultivating the farm, 1893-1894, and n.d.; contracts, October 1894 and August 1895, between Birckhead and Waller M. Colvin for renting and cultivating a portion of the farm; and, two deeds, 1896.

There are tax receipts, 1888-1930, of Albemarle County for Robert G. Birckhead, Miss N. R. M. Birckhead, Cornelia Birckhead, and others.