Dear Historic Shepherdstown Commission Members and Supporters,
It is hard to believe that in just a few weeks, September will be here. It’s been a busy summer at Historic Shepherdstown Commission and Museum, and we have a lot to share with you.
Our annual meeting and Speaker Series talk will be held the first Wednesday in September. We will be voting on nominees for the Board of Directors and a bylaw change. We have received a donation of an S. Howell Brown 1883 map from the Jefferson County Historical Society, which will be part of a new map exhibit opening this fall; we have begun a new monthly exhibit, the Shepherdstown Antique Display; reenactors will be at the Museum on Saturday, Sept. 17, to commemorate the anniversary of the Battle of Antietam; this month we are saying goodbye to our summer intern Jessie Ramcharran; and finally, we are among the finalists for “Best Museum” in The Journal’s annual Best of the Best Reader’s Choice Award.
Annual Meeting and Speaker Series
The annual meeting of Historic Shepherdstown Commission will be held on Wednesday, September 7, 2022 at 6:45 p.m. The meeting will be held in the auditorium of the Robert C. Byrd Center for Congressional History and Education at Shepherd University. It will be followed by the September Speaker Series talk, given by Dr. Keith Alexander, associate professor of history at Shepherd University. To facilitate voting, the meeting will be in-person only. However, the Speaker Series talk will be available on Zoom. To request a Zoom link, please email us at hsc1786@gmail.com, or call the office at 304-876-0910.
Board Nominees
The HSC Board of Directors has nominated four well-qualified people to join our board. In addition, three current members have agreed to serve a second three-year term. Board members will be officially approved at the meeting.
The new nominees, in alphabetical order, are:
Dr. Jim Broomall: Dr. Broomall is the director of the George Tyler Moore Center for the Study of the Civil War at Shepherd University, where he also serves as an associate professor of history. He earned his Ph.D. from the University of North Florida in Jacksonville in 2011, where he worked under Prof. William A. Link, whose family is from the Shepherdstown area. Dr. Broomall has developed courses, conferences, and programs of interpretation focusing on the experiences of civilians, soldiers, and slaves during the mid-Nineteenth Century. His scholarship is dedicated to the Civil War-era. He most recently published Private Confederacies: The Emotional Worlds of Southern Men as Citizens and Soldiers as part of the University of North Carolina Press’s Civil War America series.
Yocencia Deal: Ms. Deal has been the Associate Vice President for Document Services at the American Public University System since 2018. She has a strong background in admissions administration, data analysis, and personnel management. In her current position at APUS, she has overall responsibility for providing leadership, management, and supervision for student record processes, systems, personnel, student needs, and for fostering institutional development. Prior to taking on that role, she was the Associate Vice President for International and Graduate Admissions, where she enabled the university to increase its graduate, international and corporate student populations, while ensuring student satisfaction and a smooth enrollment process. She holds a Master’s in Management from APUS and a Bachelor’s in Early Childhood Education from James Madison University.
Claudia Dressler: Ms. Dressler currently works with Fellowship Square Foundation. She is the liaison for board members, donors and volunteers; creates the budget for the administration department; organizes board and committee meetings; oversees events for the organization, and manages relationships with vendors, volunteers and other partners. She has more than 10 years of experience working in advancement. She is experienced with organizing annual campaigns and writing grants. She holds a Master’s in Arts Management from Claremont Graduate University and Bachelor’s degrees in Art History and in Religious Studies from the University of California, Riverside.
Stephanie Unger: Ms. Unger is a sixth-grade social studies teacher at Shepherdstown Middle School. She joined the Jefferson County school system in 2000 as a fifth-grade teacher at Shepherdstown Elementary School, but her love for teaching history prompted her to move to the middle school, where she has taught for the past 13 years. In addition to teaching, she and her husband and another partner own the production company Earth Vibe Production and Events. For 10 years, they produced the Panhandle Earth Day Celebration at Morgan’s Grove Park. Now they focus primarily on local musical events, providing stage, sound and lighting. She holds a Bachelor’s in Elementary Education from Shepherd University, and she is looking forward to connecting the middle school with The Historic Shepherdstown Museum.
In addition, three current board members have agreed to serve a second three-year term. They are current treasurer Wendy Beckner, current secretary Anne D’Alauro, and Al Levitan, the co-chair of the Building Committee.
Bylaw change
The HSC Board of Directors has approved the following change to the organization’s bylaws. It would amend Article II Section B to reduce the required number of HSC Board of Directors members from between 13 and 17 to between 11 and 17. The change must now be approved by the membership of HSC.
Current Bylaw:
Article II
B. The Board of Directors shall be comprised of no less than thirteen (13) and no more than 17 voting members (current 2009 board composition is grandfathered in). The regular term of office of members shall be three (3) years, beginning immediately following the Annual Meeting in September and shall continue until September 30 of the third year following. The election of Board members shall be such that the terms of not more than five (5) members shall expire in any year. (As amended 9/16/2009)
Proposed bylaw change:
Article II
B. The Board of Directors shall be comprised of no less than eleven (11) and no more than 17 voting members. The regular term of office of members shall be three (3) years, beginning immediately following the Annual Meeting in September and shall continue until September 30 of the third year following. The election of Board members shall be such that the terms of not more than five (5) members shall expire in any year.
Speaker Series Talk
Immediately after the annual meeting, Dr. Keith Alexander will give the September Speaker Series talk. It is entitled Living Libraries: Using Oral History to Preserve the Past. Dr. Alexander’s talk is being given in association with The Historic Shepherdstown Museum’s new exhibit: Educational Opportunities for Black Jefferson County Resident Before and After Brown v. Board of Education.
Dr. Alexander will discuss the importance of oral history as a means to learn about and understand significant historical events. According to the Oral History Association, “Oral history is a field of study and a method of gathering, preserving and interpreting the voices and memories of people, communities, and participants in past events.” It provides a different perspective on history from what is found in traditional print sources, and it is often used with marginalized communities.
Dr. Alexander’s students conducted the interviews that are featured in the new Museum exhibit. The people interviewed were suggested by HSC and Jefferson County’s Black History Preservation Society. Copies of the recordings and transcripts, which the students transcribed themselves, are housed in the HSC archives. The exhibit and talk are being presented with financial assistance from the West Virginia Humanities Council, a state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities. Any views, findings, conclusions or recommendations do not necessarily represent those of the West Virginia Humanities Council or the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Map donation and exhibit
The Jefferson County Historic Society has donated a copy of S. Howell Brown’s 1883 Map of Jefferson County West Virginia to The Historic Shepherdstown Museum. In addition, the Jefferson County Landmarks Commission has provided us with a reproduction of the 1809 Charles Varle map of Frederick, Berkeley & Jefferson Counties in the State of Virginia. We want to thank both organizations for their generous donations. Both maps will be part of a new exhibit featuring maps of Shepherdstown and Jefferson County, which will open in the Museum this fall. The impetus for the new exhibit was the restoration of the Museum’s S. Howell Brown 1852 Map of Jefferson County Virginia. HSC received a grant from Americana Corner this winter to restore and conserve the map.
The exhibit will include maps in the Museum’s collection as well as maps made available by The Library of Congress, the American Battlefield Trust, the Jefferson County Assessor’s Office and the Jefferson County GIS/Addressing Office. The exhibit is expected to open in September, and remain in place through 2023. Stay tuned for more information about the exhibit and the exact opening date.
Shepherdstown Antique Exhibit
The Shepherdstown Antique Exhibit by The Historic Shepherdstown Museum is an opportunity for local residents to display their artifacts in the Museum. We will have a rotation of displayers each month depending on the number of volunteers. A table will be set up in the Museum for participants to display items during regular Museum hours. Some of the artifacts you display must have a direct connection to Shepherdstown. Items that may be of interest include old objects found around the house or yard, family heirlooms, family letters, historic documents, books, pottery, everyday household tools, etc.
The inspiration for The Shepherdstown Antique Exhibit is an article in the Shepherdstown Register in 1922 that described local residents getting together to show others their antiques. The Museum is seeking volunteers who are willing to display and talk about their items of interest to Museum visitors. If you are interested, please contact HSC at 304-876-0910 or by email at hsc1786@gmail.com.
Reenactors at the Museum
Saturday, September 17, marks the 160th anniversary of the Battle of Antietam. To commemorate the anniversary, The Historic Shepherdstown Museum will host reenactors that day. The reenactors will be both in front of and in the garden of the Museum. Stop by and ask questions about what life was like as a soldier. And when you’re done, head inside and check out the Museum’s exhibit about the Civil War, “Voices from the Storm: The War as Shepherdstown Saw It”. The exhibit tells the story of the Civil War as it was experienced by residents and soldiers from the area. The Museum is open Saturdays from noon to 4 p.m. and Sundays from 1 to 3 p.m.
Good luck, Jessie
HSC’s Board of Directors wants to wish our summer intern Jessie Ramcharran the best of luck as she returns for her senior year at Hood College. Jessie is a Communication Arts major, and she put her talent to work this summer on several projects. She wrote blog posts about the conservation and restoration of the S. Howell Brown 1852 Map of Jefferson County Virginia, and two new Museum acquisitions, a doll from 1832 that belonged to Virginia Blackford Engle, and a quilt made by Sarah Moler for her son Raleigh when he married Virginia Engle’s daughter Alice. She handled our social media this summer, posting regularly to Facebook and Instagram. And finally, she filmed a three-part virtual video tour of the Historic Museum. The blog posts can be found on our website, www.historicsheperdstown.com, and the videos will be available soon on HSC’s YouTube channel. To find the tour and HSC Speaker Series videos, search Historic Shepherdstown Museum on the YouTube website, www.youtube.com.
Vote for Us!
Finally, The Historic Shepherdstown Museum is one of five finalists for the title “Best Museum” in The Journal’s annual Best of the Best Reader’s Choice Awards. The next step is the final round of voting to determine the winner and two finalists in each category. Voting will be done online, on a specially dedicated website, from September 18-26. Keep an eye on our Facebook page, Historic Shepherdstown & Museum, for exact information about how to show your support for the Museum by voting for us. You can vote daily during the contest.
Enjoy what remains of the summer. We hope to see you either in person or online at our annual meeting and Speaker Series talk in September.
Donna Bertazzoni
President, Historic Shepherdstown Commission Board of Directors
Historic Shepherdstown Newsletter Feb. 24, 2023
Historic Shepherdstown is excited to share some good news with our members and supporters. This year marks the 40th anniversary of the opening of the Historic Shepherdstown Museum, and we are delighted to announce that we are opening a new exhibit; John Kavaliunas, the chair of our Museum Committee, has been named a West Virginia History Hero; and we have received a grant from Volunteer West Virginia to update our training materials for volunteers and docents.
40th Anniversary Celebration
The Historic Shepherdstown Museum will kick off its 40th year on Saturday, April 15, when the Museum reopens to the public. The highlight of the year will be a new exhibit entitled “Great Dreams: Maps of Shepherdstown and Jefferson County from the 17th through the 21st Century.” The exhibit includes several original maps owned by the Museum, including what is believed to be Thomas Shepherd’s original plat map of Mecklenburg, both an 1852 and an 1883 Map of Jefferson County by S. Howell Brown, an 1890 plat map of Shepherdstown by S.E. Humrickhouse, and a 1920s Shaw and Whitmer map of Jefferson County. In addition, the exhibit includes maps that show the evolution of Jefferson County, several Civil War-era maps, and an aerial map that outlines the Historic District of Shepherdstown.
The exhibit is located on the third floor of the Museum. Thanks must be extended to Americana Corner for funding the restoration of the 1852 S. Howell Brown map, the reproduction of several maps from the Library of Congress map database, and the signage for the exhibit. We also need to thank the Jefferson County Historical Society for donating an original copy of S. Howell Brown’s 1883 map of Jefferson County. That map is being conserved, and we expect it to be in place by the time the Museum opens.
For our celebration, we are also assembling an exhibit of photographs that highlight the Historic Entler Hotel, including its restoration by local residents after it was turned over to Shepherdstown by the West Virginia legislature.
Stay tuned for other 40th anniversary-themed events.
History Hero
John Kavaliunas, a long-time member of the Historic Shepherdstown Board of Directors and the current chair of our Museum Committee, has been named a 2023 West Virginia History Hero. Historic Shepherdstown Commission nominated John for the award because of his dedication to the Museum. John is always on the lookout for new Shepherdstown-related acquisitions. He also was the driving force behind our new map exhibit. He researched early maps of the area, selected those that best told the story of Shepherdstown and Jefferson County, and wrote many of the descriptions that accompany the maps. John received his award in Charleston on Feb. 23, from the West Virginia Department of Arts, Culture and History. Congratulations John!
Volunteer West Virginia grant and call for volunteers
Historic Shepherdstown was recently notified that we have received a grant of more than $6,000 from Volunteer West Virginia to update our volunteer training materials. We plan to use the funds to develop a new docent handbook with information about important artifacts within the Museum. We will share the handbooks with current and new docents as well as with new members of the Board of Directors. In addition, we will be looking at best practices for recruiting and retaining volunteers, including for the Board, committees, and docents. Thanks to our grants committee – Frances Bernstein and Claudia Dressler – and our vice president Jerry Bock for writing and submitting the grant proposal.
Historic Shepherdstown welcomes volunteers to serve as Museum docents, members of the various Board committees, and as members of the Board of Directors. Docents commit to volunteering for two to three hours a month while the Museum is open. Board members are elected in September and commit to attending six board meetings, a strategic planning meeting, the annual meeting in September, and to serving on committees. If you don’t have time to serve as a docent or on the board but are still interested in volunteering, we also have a number of committees that support our organization, including for the Museum, the Entler building and grounds, grants, marketing, and events. Anyone who is interested in volunteering can contact us at hsc1786@gmail.com, or by calling 304-876-0910.
Annual membership drive
HSC is holding its annual membership drive. We depend on the support of our members to fulfill our mission to tell the story of Shepherdstown, and to help us maintain the historic Entler Hotel complex and the Historic Shepherdstown Museum. We welcome new and renewing members. You can mail your membership contribution to Historic Shepherdstown Commission, PO Box 1786, Shepherdstown, WV, or join through our website, www.historicshepherdstown.com. Select “Support” from the menu at the top of the page and then “Join or Renew” from the drop-down menu.
George Tyler Moore Center news
Dr. Jim Broomall, the director of the George Tyler Moore Center for the Study of the Civil War, is now a member of the Historic Shepherdstown Board of Directors. The center will be featuring Dr. Emilie Amt, professor emerita of history from Hood College, on Thursday, March 2, at the Byrd Center at Shepherd University. In her lecture, “Black Antietam: Searching for African American Civil War History,” Amt will talk about the hundreds of Black civilians, both enslaved and free, who lived on and around the battlefield at Antietam. Amt will cover how they experienced the war and the battle, how they reconstructed their lives afterward, what America’s bloodiest day and the Emancipation Proclamation meant to them, and how their memories of this pivotal event were preserved or erased. The 7 p.m. lecture is free and open to the public.
Finally, save the date. Members will be receiving an invitation to the Spring Opening Reception, scheduled for April 21. Keep an eye out for it and thank you for continued support.
Donna M. Bertazzoni
President, HSC Board of Directors
A New Map Exhibit Opens in April 2023
Some 20 maps of Shepherdstown, Jefferson County and the surrounding area will be on display in a new exhibit that will kick off the 2023 season at the Historic Shepherdstown Museum. The maps span several centuries of the region’s history from the 17th through the 21st Centuries and include reproductions of maps from the Library of Congress and elsewhere, as well as maps from the Museum’s own collection. Included are the 1612 John Smith Map of Virginia, a copy of the Thomas Shepherd land grant of 1734, several Civil War Era maps, and a recent aerial view of Shepherdstown.
Funding for the exhibit, as well as for the restoration of the Museum’s 1852 S. Howell-Brown Map of Jefferson County, was provided by the Americana Corner.
This April will also marks the 40th anniversary of the opening of the Historic Shepherdstown Museum.
Historic Shepherdstown newsletter – December 2022
Dear Members and Supporters of Historic Shepherdstown,
Season’s Greetings! As we head toward the start of 2023, we at Historic Shepherdstown Commission and Museum want to thank all of you for your financial and volunteer support this past year. We want to share just a few highlights of what you’ve helped us accomplish since our last newsletter.
Recognition of Clarence E. CEM Martin III
At the holiday party in December, Historic Shepherdstown recognized former State Del. CEM Martin, who was instrumental in helping to save the historic Entler Hotel complex from destruction. In 1978, CEM represented both Jefferson and Berkeley Counties in the state legislature. Ret. Gen. William Van Ryzin approached him on behalf of town residents, raising concerns about plans by Shepherd College to raze what was then known as Rumsey Hall and replace it with a parking lot. Working with other legislators from the area, CEM introduced the bill that ultimately resulted in the state Board of Regents selling the Entler complex to the corporation of Shepherdstown for $1. Residents of the town renovated the building and Historic Shepherdstown Commission accepted the responsibility to maintain it on behalf of the town. The Museum opened in 1983, and we plan to celebrate its 40th anniversary during 2023. A copy of the bill hangs in the museum beside some before-and-after pictures of the renovations.
After leaving the legislature, CEM worked with Martin & Seibert in Martinsburg for many years. More recently, he has been involved in initiatives to stop human trafficking, has served as a Vatican liaison, and is a fellow of the Catholic University Institute of Policy Research. He has received a number of honors and awards, including ones from both Pope Benedict and Pope Francis, an honorary doctorate from Shepherd University, and a Distinguished West Virginian Award, the highest civilian honor awarded by the governor.
CEM and his family – his wife Judy and his daughters McKenna Martin and Morgan Martin Boyer – attended the reception. HSC presented CEM with a plaque, which read:
Presented to Clarence E. CEM Martin III in recognition of your important role in saving the Historic Entler Hotel, and it was signed Historic Shepherdstown Commission and dated December 9, 2022.
In his remarks, CEM made it a point to thank everyone involved in Historic Shepherdstown for their efforts through the years to ensure that the history represented by the museum and the other buildings in the complex has remained accessible to both local residents and tourists. Thank you, CEM Martin!
Tour of Historic Houses of Worship
HSC is once again co-sponsoring the Tour of Historic Houses of Worship from 4-7 p.m. on the day after Christmas, Dec. 26. Seven churches, the War Memorial Building, the Historic Shepherdstown Museum, and the Shepherdstown Opera House will all be open to visitors. The best place to pick up brochures for the self-guided walking tour is the War Memorial Building, although a limited number of brochures will be available at the other locations on the tour. To mark the beginning of the event, participating local churches will ring their bells at 4 p.m. The tour is a wonderful way to introduce out-of-town visitors to Shepherdstown.
Museum update
We welcomed more than 1,100 visitors to the Historic Shepherdstown Museum this year and hosted field trips from Shepherdstown Elementary School, the Shepherdstown Day Care Center, and Shepherd University. We ran ghost tours during Boofest, gave out candy during the town’s Halloween celebration, and entertained a special visitor – Santa Claus – after the annual Christmas parade.
As we’ve noted before, a new exhibit opened in May, Educational Opportunities for Black Jefferson County Residents Before and After Brown v. Board of Education. We received a $1,500 mini-grant from the West Virginia Humanities Council to help fund that exhibit.
We now have a second new exhibit in place. We received a $7,000 grant from Americana Corner, which enabled us to get our S. Howell Brown 1852 Map of Jefferson County Virginia with Farm Limits restored. That map is the centerpiece for “Great Dreams: Maps of Shepherdstown and Jefferson County from the 17th through the 21st Centuries.” The Jefferson County Historical Society donated a copy of S. Howell Brown’s 1883 Map of Jefferson County West Virginia with Farm Limits to the museum in August. It is being restored and will become part of the new exhibit in the spring. The grand opening of the map exhibit will be held during our Spring Opening Reception in April.
Holiday ornaments still available
This year’s holiday ornament, featuring the James Rumsey Steamboat, is still available for purchase via our website. Previous years’ ornaments are also available. Because we mail them, we would expect that any ornaments ordered at this point would arrive after Christmas.
Membership update
Our annual membership drive will begin at the end of January. We will be mailing our appeal letters, and we hope you will continue to support our efforts to tell the story of Shepherdstown and the surrounding area.
Have a wonderful holiday season. We are looking forward to seeing you in 2023 as we celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Historic Shepherdstown Museum.
Best wishes,
Donna M. Bertazzoni
President, Historic Shepherdstown Board of Directors
Holiday Tour of Historic Houses of Worship scheduled.
Shepherdstown’s third Holiday Tour of Historic Houses of Worship will be held Monday, December 26, 2022, from 4 to 7 p.m. The self-guided walking tour includes several downtown historic churches, including one from as early as 1747. The tour is open to the public and there is no admission charge.
The churches on the tour include Christ Reformed United Church of Christ; New Street United Methodist; Shepherdstown Presbyterian; St. Agnes Catholic; St. Agnes Chapel; St. Peter’s Lutheran; and Trinity Episcopal. Greeters and docents will be stationed at each church to welcome visitors with information about the history of the congregation and the church, the architecture of the buildings, and the interior accoutrements of the sanctuaries. The Historic Shepherdstown Museum at the corner of East German and Princess Streets, and the newly-renovated Shepherdstown Opera House, at 131 W. German St., will also be open for visitors.
Walking tour brochures can be picked up at the War Memorial Building, and a few will be available at each of the sites on the tour. The War Memorial Building is located at the corner of German and King Streets. Refreshments and hospitality for tour visitors will also be available there.
“This is a wonderful opportunity for Shepherdstown residents and out of town visitors to admire the interior beauty of the town’s houses of worship,” said Jerry Bock, one of the founders of the tour and the vice president of Historic Shepherdstown Commission. All of the churches are within easy walking distance of each other and will be marked by luminaries. The tour will begin with a citywide ringing of the church bells at 4 p.m.
The tour is sponsored by a partnership of the churches, the Historic Shepherdstown Commission, the Shepherdstown Community Club, the Jefferson County Convention & Visitors Center, and the Corporation of Shepherdstown. Questions about the tour may be directed to Jerry Bock at jerrybock@comcast.net.
Historic Shepherdstown Museum Ghost Tours October 29 and 30
Halloween is coming and that means it’s time for Shepherdstown’s BooFest and the Historic Shepherdstown Museum Ghost Tours. Here, at the most haunted building in the most haunted town in America, you will hear about some of our most prominent spirits — the lady in white, the amorous Frenchman, Civil War soldiers, and the unlucky duelist. Don’t miss the Traveler’s Room that according to some, is the most haunted room in the building. This year, tours will be offered on Saturday, October 29, every half hour from 12:30 to 3:30 PM. On Sunday, October 30, tours will start at 1:30 with the last tour at 2:30.
2022 holiday ornament
Historic Shepherdstown Museum – virtual video tour
Have you ever wondered what artifacts are housed in the Historic Shepherdstown Museum and how it tells the story of Shepherdstown? Or, have you visited the Museum and wished you could show it off to friends who don’t live in the area? Now, you have a chance. You can preview the Museum via YouTube.
During the summer of 2022, Jessie Ramchurran, a Communication Arts major from Hood College who interned with Historic Shepherdstown Commission, completed a three-part video tour of the Museum. The tour gives an overview of each floor of the Museum, and it also highlights artifacts from several of the rooms. The tour is now available on Historic Shepherdstown YouTube channel
The museum is housed in the historic Entler Hotel. The first floor is set up to resemble the parlor and dining area of a 19th century inn. Highlights include three tall clocks; Col. John Francis Hamtramck’s sword and West Point commission; and furniture made by Adam Link, James Shepherd and Thomas Hopkins. Visitors are then invited to tour the garden and the James Rumsey Steamboat Museum, which houses a working half-size replica of Rumsey’s steamboat. Rumsey conducted the first successful steamboat demonstration on the Potomac River at Shepherdstown on December 3, 1787. The first-floor video can be found at HSM – First Floor Video Tour
Chronologically, the next video to watch features the third floor of the Museum, which focuses on the early-Colonial era through the late 19th century. Highlights of this floor include a 1760s plat map of Mechlenburgh (now Shepherdstown); Shepherdstown samplers, Sheetz rifles and Schindler kettles; a room dedicated to the impact of the Civil War on Shepherdstown; the importance of the Potomac River and the railroad; and maps of Shepherdstown and Jefferson County. The third-floor video can be found at HSM – Third Floor Video Tour
Finally, view the video of the second floor of the Museum, which is mostly dedicated to the 20th century. The Traveler’s Room (purported to be the most haunted room in the Museum) features rope beds and a 19th century bathtub. Other highlights include the Small Town America room, which is dominated by an early Rural Free Delivery horse-drawn mail cart; the 20th century room which features posters from Morgan’s Grove agricultural fairs and circuses, and pictures from the Israeli-Syrian Peace Talks that were held in Shepherdstown in 2000; and the African American room, which houses exhibits related to the educational opportunities for and leisure activities of the area’s Black community. The second-floor video can be found at HSM – Second Floor Video Tour
We hope the virtual tour will inspire you to take a trip to Shepherdstown and visit the Historic Shepherdstown Museum in person. The Museum is open Saturdays from noon to 4 p.m., and Sundays from 1 to 3 p.m., from April through October and during Christmas in Shepherdstown. For more information about our museum, hours and artifacts, visit our Facebook page Historic Shepherdstown Museum Facebook or check out the digital exhibits section of this website.
Speaker Series, 2022 -Keith Alexander, Living Libraries: Using Oral History to Preserve the Past
Dr. Keith Alexander, associate professor of history at Shepherd University, discusses the importance of oral history in his talk entitled “Living Libraries: Using Oral History to Preserve the Past.” The talk was given to accompany Historic Shepherdstown Museum’s exhibit: Educational Opportunities for Black Jefferson County Residents Before and After Brown v Board of Education, which was based on oral interviews conducted by Dr. Alexander’s students. The talk and the exhibit were funded in part by the West Virginia Humanities Council
Doll given to local girl in 1832 and a quilt made by Sarah Moler acquired by museum
August, 1832. One can imagine the soft smiles and joyous tears as a healthy baby girl was born to Jane and Corban Blackford on the family farm near what is now Bardane, West Virginia. But who was the child and what is her connection to an 1830s-era doll recently acquired by the Historic Shepherdstown Museum?
A note that accompanied the doll, written by Hugh S. Moler, a descendant, indicates the following:
“Great Grand Mother’s cousin William Anderson was going west to make his fortune and gave this doll to James [although it could have been Janie] Jackson Blackford for Virginia (not 100 percent sure of that name) Hellen Blackford in the year 1832.”
Virginia Helen Blackford was a daughter, mother and wife who lived a long 83 years of life. Her parents were Corban Blackford (1792-1841) and Jane Jackson Blackford (1802-1856).
Jane (Jackson) Blackford migrated to the United States at age 14 from Ireland with help from members of the Jackson family. In particular, she was assisted by her uncle, a Presbyterian minister named Anderson, whose mother was a Jackson. That made Jane a cousin of the seventh President of the United States, Andrew Jackson.
Jane originally settled in Baltimore but eventually she met Corban Blackford. They were married at Corban Blackford’s family home Ferry Hill, the home in Washington County, Maryland, that overlooks the Potomac River on the border of Shepherdstown and Sharpsburg. After their marriage, they moved to the farm in Bardane and raised five children, one of them being Virginia.
“There were a number of reasons why the Historic Shepherdstown Museum was interested in acquiring this doll,” said Donna Bertazzoni, president of the Historic Shepherdstown Commission Board of Directors. “First, it is a well-preserved example of an 1830s doll. But more important is the fact that the Museum already owns a sampler made by Virginia Helen Blackford. The doll is a wonderful complement to the sampler.”
Eleanor Lakin, a doll expert and retired architect, examined the doll before it was purchased by the museum. Lakin determined that the doll was from the early 1830s and had been imported from Germany. Germany was one of the world’s largest toy manufacturers during the 19th century. “Well, we really didn’t have much in doll manufacturing in America,” Lakin said. “Most dolls and toys came from Germany.”
According to Lakin, the design of the doll has some notable characteristics. The legs and arms of the doll are wooden, and the head is paper-mâché. The clothing is made of gauze and possibly silk. The style of the dress and the painted shoes are typical of the era.
However, the doll the Museum purchased does have an unusual hairstyle. According to Lakin, most female dolls of that era featured a hairstyle called an Apollo knot. In this style, the front section of hair was parted in the center, and the back section was collected into a knot-like bun at the very top of the head. There would also be some framing hair pieces in the front, generally represented by a cluster of curls around each ear. Like the face, the hair would be painted on the doll.
The Museum’s new doll does have the front framing hair pieces. However, there is no Apollo knot. Underneath the doll’s gauze cap, there is simply a bun on the back of the head.
Lakin determines a doll’s age based on her experience and research, including through researching costume books. “I collected [dolls] many, many years and went to a lot of auctions, a lot of sales, read a lot. … You learn by experience,” Lakin said. “I have a whole collection of costume books and that shows the hairstyle and clothing…so you use that.”
So what happened to Virginia, the original owner of the doll? In 1855, Virginia Helen Blackford married Jacob Henry Engle. Engle had been born in 1825 on a farm in Jefferson County, Virginia. In 1849, he was among a group of men from Charles Town who headed to California to seek their fortune in the gold rush. Engle succeeded, and returned to farming in Jefferson County in 1853. During the Civil War, he served in the Confederate army, reaching the rank of captain.
Following the war, Engle returned to his farm near Engle Station in Jefferson County. He and Virginia had three children: Alice Jane Engle Moler, Varena (Irene) Catherine Engle, and Lodenza Corban Engle. Jacob Engle died in 1900 and Virginia Engle died in 1915. They are both buried in Elmwood Cemetery in Shepherdstown.
The doll eventually descended through the Moler family. Virginia and Jacob’s daughter Alice Jane Engle married Raleigh Moler, and their son Hugh Swagler Moler wrote the note that accompanied the doll.
At the same time that the Museum bought Virginia’s doll, it also purchased a lover’s knot quilt made by Raleigh Moler’s mother Sarah Moler, in honor of her son Raleigh’s marriage to Alice Engle. The Museum has discovered a possible connection between that quilt and “Aunt Sallie’s Quilt,” which has hung in the Museum for many years.
“In researching Sarah Moler, HSC board member Terry Fulton found her obituary. It mentions that she was known as Aunt Sallie,” Bertazzoni said. “We are excited that we may not only have purchased a beautiful locally-made quilt, but that we may also have finally discovered the identity of Aunt Sallie. We are looking forward to displaying both the doll and the quilt.”
The Historic Shepherdstown Museum purchased both the doll and the quilt from a local antique dealer, who acquired them at an auction. They are expected to be on display when the Museum opens for the 2023 season.
By Jessie Ramcharran, HSC summer intern, 2022
Historic Shepherdstown newsletter – August 2022
Dear Historic Shepherdstown Commission Members and Supporters,
It is hard to believe that in just a few weeks, September will be here. It’s been a busy summer at Historic Shepherdstown Commission and Museum, and we have a lot to share with you.
Our annual meeting and Speaker Series talk will be held the first Wednesday in September. We will be voting on nominees for the Board of Directors and a bylaw change. We have received a donation of an S. Howell Brown 1883 map from the Jefferson County Historical Society, which will be part of a new map exhibit opening this fall; we have begun a new monthly exhibit, the Shepherdstown Antique Display; reenactors will be at the Museum on Saturday, Sept. 17, to commemorate the anniversary of the Battle of Antietam; this month we are saying goodbye to our summer intern Jessie Ramcharran; and finally, we are among the finalists for “Best Museum” in The Journal’s annual Best of the Best Reader’s Choice Award.
Annual Meeting and Speaker Series
The annual meeting of Historic Shepherdstown Commission will be held on Wednesday, September 7, 2022 at 6:45 p.m. The meeting will be held in the auditorium of the Robert C. Byrd Center for Congressional History and Education at Shepherd University. It will be followed by the September Speaker Series talk, given by Dr. Keith Alexander, associate professor of history at Shepherd University. To facilitate voting, the meeting will be in-person only. However, the Speaker Series talk will be available on Zoom. To request a Zoom link, please email us at hsc1786@gmail.com, or call the office at 304-876-0910.
Board Nominees
The HSC Board of Directors has nominated four well-qualified people to join our board. In addition, three current members have agreed to serve a second three-year term. Board members will be officially approved at the meeting.
The new nominees, in alphabetical order, are:
Dr. Jim Broomall: Dr. Broomall is the director of the George Tyler Moore Center for the Study of the Civil War at Shepherd University, where he also serves as an associate professor of history. He earned his Ph.D. from the University of North Florida in Jacksonville in 2011, where he worked under Prof. William A. Link, whose family is from the Shepherdstown area. Dr. Broomall has developed courses, conferences, and programs of interpretation focusing on the experiences of civilians, soldiers, and slaves during the mid-Nineteenth Century. His scholarship is dedicated to the Civil War-era. He most recently published Private Confederacies: The Emotional Worlds of Southern Men as Citizens and Soldiers as part of the University of North Carolina Press’s Civil War America series.
Yocencia Deal: Ms. Deal has been the Associate Vice President for Document Services at the American Public University System since 2018. She has a strong background in admissions administration, data analysis, and personnel management. In her current position at APUS, she has overall responsibility for providing leadership, management, and supervision for student record processes, systems, personnel, student needs, and for fostering institutional development. Prior to taking on that role, she was the Associate Vice President for International and Graduate Admissions, where she enabled the university to increase its graduate, international and corporate student populations, while ensuring student satisfaction and a smooth enrollment process. She holds a Master’s in Management from APUS and a Bachelor’s in Early Childhood Education from James Madison University.
Claudia Dressler: Ms. Dressler currently works with Fellowship Square Foundation. She is the liaison for board members, donors and volunteers; creates the budget for the administration department; organizes board and committee meetings; oversees events for the organization, and manages relationships with vendors, volunteers and other partners. She has more than 10 years of experience working in advancement. She is experienced with organizing annual campaigns and writing grants. She holds a Master’s in Arts Management from Claremont Graduate University and Bachelor’s degrees in Art History and in Religious Studies from the University of California, Riverside.
Stephanie Unger: Ms. Unger is a sixth-grade social studies teacher at Shepherdstown Middle School. She joined the Jefferson County school system in 2000 as a fifth-grade teacher at Shepherdstown Elementary School, but her love for teaching history prompted her to move to the middle school, where she has taught for the past 13 years. In addition to teaching, she and her husband and another partner own the production company Earth Vibe Production and Events. For 10 years, they produced the Panhandle Earth Day Celebration at Morgan’s Grove Park. Now they focus primarily on local musical events, providing stage, sound and lighting. She holds a Bachelor’s in Elementary Education from Shepherd University, and she is looking forward to connecting the middle school with The Historic Shepherdstown Museum.
In addition, three current board members have agreed to serve a second three-year term. They are current treasurer Wendy Beckner, current secretary Anne D’Alauro, and Al Levitan, the co-chair of the Building Committee.
Bylaw change
The HSC Board of Directors has approved the following change to the organization’s bylaws. It would amend Article II Section B to reduce the required number of HSC Board of Directors members from between 13 and 17 to between 11 and 17. The change must now be approved by the membership of HSC.
Current Bylaw:
Article II
B. The Board of Directors shall be comprised of no less than thirteen (13) and no more than 17 voting members (current 2009 board composition is grandfathered in). The regular term of office of members shall be three (3) years, beginning immediately following the Annual Meeting in September and shall continue until September 30 of the third year following. The election of Board members shall be such that the terms of not more than five (5) members shall expire in any year. (As amended 9/16/2009)
Proposed bylaw change:
Article II
B. The Board of Directors shall be comprised of no less than eleven (11) and no more than 17 voting members. The regular term of office of members shall be three (3) years, beginning immediately following the Annual Meeting in September and shall continue until September 30 of the third year following. The election of Board members shall be such that the terms of not more than five (5) members shall expire in any year.
Speaker Series Talk
Immediately after the annual meeting, Dr. Keith Alexander will give the September Speaker Series talk. It is entitled Living Libraries: Using Oral History to Preserve the Past. Dr. Alexander’s talk is being given in association with The Historic Shepherdstown Museum’s new exhibit: Educational Opportunities for Black Jefferson County Resident Before and After Brown v. Board of Education.
Dr. Alexander will discuss the importance of oral history as a means to learn about and understand significant historical events. According to the Oral History Association, “Oral history is a field of study and a method of gathering, preserving and interpreting the voices and memories of people, communities, and participants in past events.” It provides a different perspective on history from what is found in traditional print sources, and it is often used with marginalized communities.
Dr. Alexander’s students conducted the interviews that are featured in the new Museum exhibit. The people interviewed were suggested by HSC and Jefferson County’s Black History Preservation Society. Copies of the recordings and transcripts, which the students transcribed themselves, are housed in the HSC archives. The exhibit and talk are being presented with financial assistance from the West Virginia Humanities Council, a state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities. Any views, findings, conclusions or recommendations do not necessarily represent those of the West Virginia Humanities Council or the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Map donation and exhibit
The Jefferson County Historic Society has donated a copy of S. Howell Brown’s 1883 Map of Jefferson County West Virginia to The Historic Shepherdstown Museum. In addition, the Jefferson County Landmarks Commission has provided us with a reproduction of the 1809 Charles Varle map of Frederick, Berkeley & Jefferson Counties in the State of Virginia. We want to thank both organizations for their generous donations. Both maps will be part of a new exhibit featuring maps of Shepherdstown and Jefferson County, which will open in the Museum this fall. The impetus for the new exhibit was the restoration of the Museum’s S. Howell Brown 1852 Map of Jefferson County Virginia. HSC received a grant from Americana Corner this winter to restore and conserve the map.
The exhibit will include maps in the Museum’s collection as well as maps made available by The Library of Congress, the American Battlefield Trust, the Jefferson County Assessor’s Office and the Jefferson County GIS/Addressing Office. The exhibit is expected to open in September, and remain in place through 2023. Stay tuned for more information about the exhibit and the exact opening date.
Shepherdstown Antique Exhibit
The Shepherdstown Antique Exhibit by The Historic Shepherdstown Museum is an opportunity for local residents to display their artifacts in the Museum. We will have a rotation of displayers each month depending on the number of volunteers. A table will be set up in the Museum for participants to display items during regular Museum hours. Some of the artifacts you display must have a direct connection to Shepherdstown. Items that may be of interest include old objects found around the house or yard, family heirlooms, family letters, historic documents, books, pottery, everyday household tools, etc.
The inspiration for The Shepherdstown Antique Exhibit is an article in the Shepherdstown Register in 1922 that described local residents getting together to show others their antiques. The Museum is seeking volunteers who are willing to display and talk about their items of interest to Museum visitors. If you are interested, please contact HSC at 304-876-0910 or by email at hsc1786@gmail.com.
Reenactors at the Museum
Saturday, September 17, marks the 160th anniversary of the Battle of Antietam. To commemorate the anniversary, The Historic Shepherdstown Museum will host reenactors that day. The reenactors will be both in front of and in the garden of the Museum. Stop by and ask questions about what life was like as a soldier. And when you’re done, head inside and check out the Museum’s exhibit about the Civil War, “Voices from the Storm: The War as Shepherdstown Saw It”. The exhibit tells the story of the Civil War as it was experienced by residents and soldiers from the area. The Museum is open Saturdays from noon to 4 p.m. and Sundays from 1 to 3 p.m.
Good luck, Jessie
HSC’s Board of Directors wants to wish our summer intern Jessie Ramcharran the best of luck as she returns for her senior year at Hood College. Jessie is a Communication Arts major, and she put her talent to work this summer on several projects. She wrote blog posts about the conservation and restoration of the S. Howell Brown 1852 Map of Jefferson County Virginia, and two new Museum acquisitions, a doll from 1832 that belonged to Virginia Blackford Engle, and a quilt made by Sarah Moler for her son Raleigh when he married Virginia Engle’s daughter Alice. She handled our social media this summer, posting regularly to Facebook and Instagram. And finally, she filmed a three-part virtual video tour of the Historic Museum. The blog posts can be found on our website, www.historicsheperdstown.com, and the videos will be available soon on HSC’s YouTube channel. To find the tour and HSC Speaker Series videos, search Historic Shepherdstown Museum on the YouTube website, www.youtube.com.
Vote for Us!
Finally, The Historic Shepherdstown Museum is one of five finalists for the title “Best Museum” in The Journal’s annual Best of the Best Reader’s Choice Awards. The next step is the final round of voting to determine the winner and two finalists in each category. Voting will be done online, on a specially dedicated website, from September 18-26. Keep an eye on our Facebook page, Historic Shepherdstown & Museum, for exact information about how to show your support for the Museum by voting for us. You can vote daily during the contest.
Enjoy what remains of the summer. We hope to see you either in person or online at our annual meeting and Speaker Series talk in September.
Donna Bertazzoni
President, Historic Shepherdstown Commission Board of Directors