Key to the Past
STEWART BELL JR. ARCHIVES Winter 2026
Mary Elizabeth Pidgeon, age 10, on the steps of her house in Clarke County, est, 1900. Mary Robare Collection, Stewart Bell Jr. Archives, Handley Regional Library
From the Archivist Happy New Year! We are looking forward to another year of assisting our community with their research and offering great history and genealogy programs. Our collections continued to grow last year, thanks to the generosity of our donors. Our last quarterly accession report of 2025 is at the end of this newsletter and a new collection is featured in our collection highlights column. We’re excited to announce that beginning in January 2026, Family History Hunters will be moving to the Bowman Library in Stephens City. This location has the advantage of a larger meeting room and better parking and accessibility.
Led by volunteers Joan, Janet, and Anne, these monthly meetings are open to anyone interested in researching their family history, whether a beginner or a veteran genealogist. In addition to our other programs and events, we will have an outreach table at Shenandoah County’s Roots and Resilience event on February 28 at 11 am in the Mount Jackson Community Center.
Lorna Loring Archives Manager
Archives by the Numbers Here’s a quick round up of our stats for 2025. One of my favorite parts of working in an Archives is that we are visited by people from all over the United States, as well as other countries. We welcomed researchers from 34 states, plus the the District of Columbia, and 3 countries. There was a total of 1538 research visits. We processed 12 linear feet of new archival and manuscript collections, plus new books and journals. We hosted 40 programs, outreach events and tours.
Events and Programs Help with Lineage Society Applications Tuesday, January 27 10:30 am to 12:30 pm Benham Gallery, Handley Library Family History Hunters Thursday, January 12 10:30 am to 12:30 pm Bowman Library How to Apply to the Daughters of the American Revolution Thursday, February 12 12:00 pm to 3:00 pm Benham Gallery, Handley Library Webinar: What do do When Vital Records Don’t Exist Wednesday, February 18 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm Virtual - Zoom Registration Required Coming to the Table: Black History Then and Now Saturday, February 21 1:00 pm am to 4:00 pm Auditorium & Benham Gallery, Handley Library How to Apply to the Daughters of the American Revolution Thursday, March 12 10:00 am to 1:00 pm Benham Gallery, Handley Library Family History Hunters Thursday, March 12 10:30 am to 12:30 pm Bowman Library Hidden in Plain Sight: Revealing the Concealed, Harpers Ferry Cemeteries Saturday, March 21 10:30 am to 1:00pm Robinson Auditorium, Handley Library Archives After Hours: Maps Thursday, March 26 5:30 pm to 6:30 pm Archives Reading Room Registration Required
Collection Highlights: Patrick Mulvey Collection Late last year, we completed processing of a new collection donated by Patrick Mulvey. Patrick grew up in Winchester and his family owned two clothing stores: Mulvey’s Haberdashery and The Oxford Shop. Mulvey’s Haberdashery was started around 1949 by Patrick’s father, Ralph Mulvey. The shop sold men’s clothing and accessories. In 1965, the Oxford Shop, a high-end clothing store specializing in men and women’s clothing opened. Both locations were jointly run by Ralph and sons, and Mulvey’s moved to their secondary location on South Loudoun Street in 1954.
ABOVE: Photograph of the interior of the Oxford Shop on opening day at it’s new location on the Loudoun Street Mall. The image shows part of the Honda motorcycle that was raffled off for the occasion. BELOW: Patrick also donated a number of band cards for Winchester based musical acts from the 1960s and 1970s.
The Oxford Shop operated on North Loudoun Street until its closing in 1991. The location is now occupied by Romas. We are grateful to Patrick for sharing the history of this Winchester business with us. The Stewart Bell Jr. Archives is a local history and genealogy center jointly operated by the Handley Regional Library and the Winchester-Frederick County Historical Society. Our holdings include a variety of materials documenting the history of the Lower Shenandoah Valley from 1732 to the present, with an emphasis on the City of Winchester and Frederick County, Virginia.
Contact Tel.: (540) 662-9041, ext. 17
Reading Room Hours Monday - Tuesday: 10:00 am to 5:00 pm
Location Lower Level, Handley
Email: archives@handleyregional.org Website: www.handleyregional.org/
Wednesday: 10:00 am to 8:00 pm Thursday - Saturday: 10:00 am to 5:00 pm
Library 100 W. Piccadilly Street
archives
Winchester, Virginia 22601 Please note that we close for lunch daily from 12:30 pm to 1:15 pm
Stewart Bell Jr. Archives Handley Regional Library & Winchester-Frederick County Historical Society Quarterly Report of Newly Available Archival & Manuscript Accessions October to December 2025 Miscellaneous Manuscript Files Cather-Lupton Winchester Property Records, 1864-1935, #2097. 1 folder Records of a property purchase. Loan to scan. Gift of James Reardon. (Accession Number: 2025.0 Maxwell Lacy Postcard Collection, #2095. 1 folder Gift of Maxwell Lacy. (Accession Number: 2025.071 THL) Cedar Creek Presbyterian Church Records, #2045. 1 volume Gift of Donna Leight (Accession Number: 2025.073 THL) Thomas Blackburn Baylis Day Book, #2096. 1 volume Loaned to scan by Donna Leight (Accession Number: 2025.073 THL) Norris & Beatty, Letter to Messrs. Barton & Williams, December 19, 1857, #2098. 1 folder. Received from the Winchester-Frederick County Historical Society. (Accession Number: 2024.009 WFCHS) John Greenwood, Letter to David Greenwood, March 21, 1819, #2099, 1 folder Received from the Winchester-Frederick County Historical Society. (Accession Number: 2024.010 WFCHS) Frank Stine, Indemnity bond securing payment of damages on behalf of J. Vance Bell, September 29, 1871, #2101. 1 folder Received from the Winchester-Frederick County Historical Society. (Accession Number: 2025.021 WFCHS) Lichliter, D H L and George Ward, $1000 bond, June 29, 1892, #2100. 1 folder Received from the Winchester-Frederick County Historical Society. (Accession Number: 2025.017 WFCHS) 1
Corydon S. Booth Correspondence, 1861-1862, #2078. 1 folder Three letters written by Corydon S. Booth converning personal matters and Civil War. Purchased at auction. (Accession Number: 2025.058 THL) John M. Brome, Correspondence, 1824, #2037. 1 folder Two letters addressed to John M. Brome, a merchant doing business in Winchester, VA. Transfer from the Louisa County Historical Society. (Accession Number: 2025.050 THL) Joseph (aka, José) Borras, Bond upon his appointment as U.S. consul for the Port of Barcelona in Spain, March 1835, #2105. 1 folder Received from the Handley Library Collections. (Accession Number: 2025.076 THL) Account of Vacation Tour of the Shenandoah Valley, July 1931. #2108. 1 folder Received from the Winchester-Frederick County Historical Society. (Accession Number: 2025.022 WFCHS) Philip Sherer, Letter to Barnet Cushwa, November 19, 1850, #2032. 1 folder Sherer was a wagon maker in Winchester. Acquired as a purchase. (Accession Number: 2025.064 THL) Mary Casey Newman, Letter to Mother, Brother, and Sisters, April 14, 1857, #2033. 1 folder. Mary Casey Newman was a teacher at Winchester Female Seminary. Gift of Carl M. Volz. (Accession Number: 2025.018 WFCHS) Godfrey S. Miller and John A. Bell, Articles of Agreement, May1, 1868, #2109. 1 folder Gift of Jenny Powers. (Accession Number: 2025.079 THL) Alfred H. Powell’s Defense of his Wife against accusation of lying about preacher, February 5, 1823, #2123. 1 folder Received from the Winchester-Frederick County Historical Society. (Accession Number: 2025.024 WFCHS) Miss A. L. Letter to Mrs. Carter, #2124. 1 folder Received from the Winchester-Frederick County Historical Society. (Accession Number: 2025.025 WFCHS)
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R. V. Pierce (Dr.) to F. G. Kerns, September 1, 1898, #2077. 1 folder Gift of Dr. C. Steve and Jean Vinson (Accession Number: 2025.018 THL) Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Frederick County, Virginia Collection, #2047. 1 folder. Received from Joan Wood (Accession Number: 2024.048 THL) Mary Louise Swimley Bragg Reminiscences, #2046. 1 album Gift of Kenneth P. Bragg (Accession Number: 2024.047 THL) Cemetery Records Collection, #812. 2 items DVDs (2), Harpers Ferry Cemeteries, Hidden in Plain Sight- Revealing the Concealed, produced by Rabbit Hole History Productions, 2000 (Accession Number: 2025.069 THL) Benjamin Ashby Collection, #175. 0.21 linear feet Material concerning lineage and Revolutionary War service of Benjamin Ashby (1747-1823). Gift of Kathy Rust Trotter. (Accession Number: 2025.060 THL) Fort Loudoun Chapter, NSDAR, Records, #479. 0.21 linear feet Minutes of meetings, June 2022 to May 2025. Received from Secretary, Fort Loudoun Chapter, NSDAR. (Accession Number: 2025.072 THL) Apple Blossom Festival Collection, #46. 0.21 linear feet Photographs and ephemera, 1929-1948. Gift of Melody Harmon. (Accession Number: 2025.062 THL) Ephemera, Winchester-Frederick County Historical Society Collection, #149-0016. 1 folder Jonah and the Whale, verse, handwritten. Undated. Received from the Winchester-Frederick County Historical Society. (Accession Number: 2025.020 WFCHS) Veterans History Collection, #1841. 1 folder Certificate of Award issued to Isaac F. Allamong, July 9, 1918. Gift of Bill Dalton. (Accession Number: 2025.077 THL)
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Veterans History Collection, #1841. 1 folder World War I memoir of Shadrick F. Easter. Gift of Danny Easter. (Accession Number: 2025.054 THL) Big Brothers, Big Sisters of Winchester and Frederick County Scrapbook, #6. 1 volume Diana Tate compiled this scrapbook to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Winchester’s Big Brothers. Big Sisters organization. Gift of John Lamanna. (Accession Number: 2025.015 THL) Family Records Collection Samuel Selby Santmyer, Ancestry and photograph, #1307-329. Gift of John Hart, American Pomeroys. (Accession Number: 2025.052 THL) Bailey Brothers Records, #783. 1 item Promotional fan. Gift of Joan Everhart. (Accession Number: 2025.085 THL) John Barton Guard Family Collection, #1834, 0.42 linear feet plus 3 dolls and doll tea set. Civil War diary, correspondence, photographs, poetry, various published materials, etc. Gift of M. Leslie Graber. (Accession Number: 2024.061 THL) Cooper Family Papers, #130. 0.21 linear feet Gift of Katherine Cooper Hoffman. (Accession Number: 2024.062 THL) Veterans History Collection, #1841. 2 folders The Mess Kit, Vol. 1, No. 1, France, June 1919. Published for the Soldiers of the A.E.F.; Veterans Fun and Facts, Vol. 1, No. 11, 1922. Gift of Joan Everhart. (Accession Number: 2025.085 THL) William Byrd Papers, #8. 0.42 linear feet Correspondence to William Byrd Jr. (1879-1965) from c. 1913-1921. Gift of Mary Ward. (Accession Number: 2025.091 THL) Hott-Streit Family Papers, #22. 0.66 linear feet Financial records, estate and land records, correspondence, certificates, family records, ephemera, notes and notebooks, and some photographs relating to the Hott, Streit, and Hogshead family in the Frederick County area. Transfer from the Augusta County Historical Society. (Accession Number: 2025.075 THL) 4
Shoop-Cather Family Papers, #54. 0.21 linear feet Materials primarily related to Georgia Catherine Shoop (1903-1991), and her husband Morris Edward Cather (1901-1955). (Accession Number: 2025.087 THL) Patrick Mulvey Collection, #226. 0.42 linear feet Materials pertaining to the local Winchester businesses, The Oxford Shop and Mulvey's Haberdashery. Gift of Patrick Mulvey (Accession Number: 2024.066 THL) Mary G. Caldwell Papers, #1829. 0.21 linear feet Additional correspondence to Mary G. Caldwell of Fredericksburg and Frederick County, Virginia received from the Handley Library Collections. (Accession Number: 2023.043 THL)
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