History Corner Archive
 Harold's Boys (Autumn 2008)
On June 26, 1944, 2d Lt. Harold Leazer took the controls of his B-24 Liberator as it lifted off from its base in Creignola, Italy. That day he and the other nine crew members embarked on their most dangerous mission yet. The VHS owns the Leazer family papers, which includes several wartime letters from Harold to his parents in Remington, Virginia.
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 Craddock-Terry Records Walk on Over to the VHS (Spring 2008)
The Craddock-Terry Shoe Company, once the largest employer in Lynchburg, produced lines of boots and shoes, such as Natural Bridge, American Gentleman, and Billiken, which were mainstays in the national footwear market for decades. The records of this significant Piedmont Virginia business are a welcome addition to the collections of the VHS. Read more
 Children in Virginia (Winter 2008)
Prominent Virginians are well represented in the many manuscripts housed at the VHS. However, documents by individuals who did not achieve fame, or notoriety, comprise the bulk of the society's collections. Among this larger, lesser-known group of people are children. This article sheds light on the lives of Virginia's children through the manuscripts they left behind. Read more
 Surviving the Titanic (Autumn 2007)
On a starry night in April 1912, halfway through its maiden voyage from Southampton to New York, RMS Titanic sideswiped an iceberg in the North Atlantic and sank with a tremendous loss of life. One of the survivors was a twenty-eight-year-old Virginia banker, Robert W. Daniel. A few scraps of paper in the VHS's collections give a glimpse into Daniel's ordeal. Read more
 General Orders No. 61 (Summer 2007)
On May 2, 1863, during the battle of Chancellorsville, friendly fire struck Lt. Gen. Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson while he and others rode amid the chaos of the still-forming Confederate lines. Thus began the series of events that led eventually to Robert E. Lee composing General Orders No. 61, which announced to his army the death of Jackson. Read more
 Clementina Rind, Printer (Spring 2007)
Among the artifacts in the exhibition Virginians at Work is the deed of mortgage to Clementina Rind's deceased husband's printing business in Williamsburg. The document offers a glimpse into an important but often overlooked aspect of colonial history and early literary endeavors, the role of female printers. Read more
 The Battle of Five Forks (Winter 2007)
On April 1, 1865, a combined force of Union cavalry and infantry assaulted the far left of the Confederate lines southwest of Petersburg. Union victory that day resulted in the capture of the Southside Railroad and ushered in the final moments of the Petersburg Campaign. In 2006, the VHS acquired a painting of the battle by Paul Dominique Philippoteaux. Read more
 The Honor of Membership (Autumn 2006)
The governing body of the VHS has elected close to 200 honorary members in its 175-year history. The long list includes statesmen, military leaders, historians, and prominent donors to the society. From John Marshall to David McCullough, the VHS has recognized those who have helped define Virginia's place in American history. Read more
 Great things are expected from the Virginians (Summer 2006)
Capt. John Chilton of the 3rd Virginia Infantry described his experiences in New York and New Jersey in 1776–77 in letters home to family and friends. Located in the society's manuscripts collection, Chilton's letters offer a fascinating glimpse of one Virginian's thoughts and experiences during a pivotal time in the Revolutionary War. Read more
 Robert E. Lee after the War (Spring 2006)
After the Civil War Robert E. Lee left his life in the military and accepted the position of president of Washington College in Lexington, where he worked tirelessly to help young men become educated citizens of the reunited nation. An artifact from this last period in Lee's life, the lap desk he used while living in Lexington, is in the society's museum collection. Read more
 Lane Cedar Chest (Winter 2006)
Few Virginia-manufactured items were as well known as the Lane Cedar Chest. When the Lane Company closed its Altavista plant in 2001, it marked the end of this iconic product. The company's legacy, however, lives on in the collections of the Virginia Historical Society.
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