Miracles on the Nars'

Discover Giles County Historical Society article from the Virginian Leader, September 15, 2010

The Giles County Historical Society is fortunate to have Drs. Harvey Green Johnston I and II’s Doctor’s Office on the property to interpret the history of medicine in the county. Throughout the years, patients’ relationship with their doctors has changed nearly as much as medicine has. In earlier times, before telephones and ambulances if someone was ill, they would send a family member or friend to fetch the doctor who would come to the patient’s house, often on horseback or by horse and wagon, his medical bag in tow to treat the illness. The medical bag would be filled with different types of medicines (many of which are known to be highly toxic today), needles, a stethoscope, and other equipment that could be used for diagnosis and treatment. Doctors had different bags for different house calls – birthing a baby was different from treating pneumonia.

Dr. Richard M. Newton has written a book, Miracles on the Nars, about his father, Dr. Maury Newton, Sr.’s, experiences making house calls as a doctor in Narrows. Dr. Newton, Jr. reminisced about his father’s practice as the featured speaker at the Historical Society’s Annual Meeting in January with stories about driving the backroads in sometimes unreliable vehicles, payments in forms other than cash, and the many interesting cases he had over the years.

There are many in the county who remember Dr. Newton, Sr. fondly or were brought into the world by his caring hands. Dr. Newton's book is available at the Giles County Historical Society and the Narrows Gift Shop and Art Gallery at 302 Main Street in Narrows.

Caption: Dr. Maury Newton’s medical cabinet is on display in the Doctor’s Office at the Giles County Historical Society. Inside are doctor’s bags used by several of the early doctors in Giles County to treat patients at their homes when health care was much simpler than today.

School Days!

Discover Giles County Historical Society article from the Virginian Leader, August 18, 2010

The lessons learned in classrooms of the past were far different than those of today. Children are prepared for a world filled with technology and transportation and often visit the foreign countries whose languages they learn. In 1883, Giles County had about 2,217 children enrolled in 54 schools with 54 teachers making a little over $20 per month. The multitude of schools reflected a smaller world. The widespread population of the county and the difficulty of travel from one area to another made it necessary to locate schools near the students.

Classrooms looked different, with rows of wooden desks holding each students books and supplies and a place for the ink well. The seat of one desk was attached to the desk of the student in front, so classrooms seldom deviated from the row format. A blackboard and pot-bellied stove often rounded out the room’s décor.

Old school books seem quaint today, but reflect the agricultural roots of the community and a different way of life. The following word problems were in an 1848 arithmetic book:
“In a pile of wood, 96 feet long, 5 feet high, and 4 feet wide, how many cords?”
“How many yards of cloth are there in 19 pieces; each piece containing 27 yd. 3qr. 2na.?”

An 1858 English grammar book conjugates the regular verb “to love” in the singular, second person, present tense as “thou lovest” and third person, present tense as “he loveth.” A 1920 geography book has 48 states and very different countries and borders in Eastern Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa than those students learn about today. Old encyclopedia sets are much smaller than the world we can Google today.

Though a lot of the information in old books seems quaint today, we all could learn from the qualities on which a 1930s student was graded: trustworthiness, respect, careful use of materials, politeness, consideration, preparedness, and refraining from unnecessary talking.

No, We Aren't Selling the Collections

Discover Giles County Historical Society article from the Virginian Leader, August 11, 2010

The Giles County Historical Society periodically receives questions about whether we are going to sell items that people have donated to us. These questions usually come when the news features a story about a prominent museum selling portions of their collections or the economy is bad. Because the Historical Society will be having a Rummage Sale on Saturday, August 14th from 8am to noon, now seemed an appropriate time to publically address this topic. Items sold will be those donated by Historical Society members specifically for the Rummage Sale. No items from the Historical Society’s collections will be sold.

The proposed sale of art from Randolph College’s Maier Museum of Art brought the issue of selling museum collections to the forefront. In this instance, it was proposed that the art be sold to help the financial situation of the college. Controversy ensued because the art was purchased with money donated for the purpose of furthering student’s art education. Sale of the pieces violated public trust and museum ethics, as well as the intent of the donation. Museum employees quit over the decision to sell the art, lawsuits were brought against the college, and alumni stopped donating. The proposed art sale became international news.

The flare up came because a museum holds its collections in trust for the public it serves and has the duty to preserve and protect these collections and use them for the good of the public. For a museum to remain an effective steward of its collections, it must maintain the confidence of the public. While it is legal to remove items from a museum’s collection for which the museum has clear title, such deaccessioning must be done ethically and professionally. Reasons for deacessioning include weeding duplicates from collections, eliminating items that do not match the museum’s collections plan, or removing items that are irrevocably damaged or too costly to preserve. An example of the latter is the recent auction held by the Town of Pulaski to sell items from the Raymond F. Ratcliffe Memorial Museum that were damaged by fire. No removal of items from collections should be done without extensive review and consideration. Efforts should be made to transfer items removed from the collections to another museum so that they are still available to the public. If that is not feasible, items should be auctioned in a transparent and public manner with proceeds going to acquisition or care of collections.

Though you may find some treasures at Saturday’s Rummage Sale, rest assured that the Giles County Historical Society is an ethical institution and will not be selling any items from its collections!

Drop Spindle Class - August 7 and 14

Discover Giles County Historical Society article from the Virginian Leader, July 28, 2010

The Giles County Historical Society and the Giles Arts Council have sponsored needle arts classes for several years now. This year, the offerings have extended to other heritage arts. On Saturdays, August 7th and 14th, a Drop Spindle Class with Mary Orr is offered from 2:30-4:30pm. Mary has participated in events at the Historical Society for many years, demonstrating spinning and dying wool.

Spinning fibers into thread or yarn is an ancient art with archaeological evidence of spun fiber dating to 20,000 years ago. Early thread was made by rolling animal hair or plant fibers on a person’s thigh, adding fiber and continuing to roll until the length of thread reached the desired length. Later, the thread was tied to a rock which was hung and rotated until the thread was sufficiently twisted.

Spindles were an improvement on the rock method of spinning. A spindle is an 8 to 12 inch stick on which the thread was wound after twisting the fibers. The left hand holds the wool, while the right hand twists the fibers together. The spindle is dropped to let the natural forces twist the threads which are then wound onto the spindle. Since a spindle with yarn weighing the bottom of it spins better than just the stick, a spindle whorl or disk was added to the bottom of the spindle to help the spinning process, thus creating the drop spindle that is still used today.

Harry Potter's World: Renassiance Science, Magic, and Medicine

Discover Giles County Historical Society article from the Virginian Leader, July 21, 2010

Are you a Harry Potter fan? If so, be sure to check out the “Harry Potter’s World: Renaissance Science, Magic, and Medicine” exhibit at Christiansburg Library until July 25th, Virginia College of Osteopathic Medicine until August 8th, and Blacksburg Library until August 21st. The exhibit explores historical scientific theories that influenced J. K. Rowling’s writing of the Harry Potter books.

Along with the libraries, a number of the museums in the New River Valley are participating in a Harry Potter’s World Passport, where visitors to their Harry Potter-related exhibits and programs will receive a passport stamp and a removable tattoo. Those who receive 6 or more stamps will be eligible to win prizes at the exhibit’s closing event at Blacksburg Library on August 21st.

Giles County Historical Society is participating in the Harry Potter’s World Passport program. A tour of the Doctor’s Office earns a passport stamp and tattoo. In the 19th century Doctor’s Office visitors learn about Drs. Harvey Green Johnston I and II who practiced in the office for nearly a century from the 1850s to the 1940s and how the practice of medicine differs from today.

Stop by the Historical Society for your tour and Harry Potter’s World Passport. Visit Montgomery Floyd Regional Library for more information about the exhibit in the New River Valley or the National Library of Medicine for more information about the exhibit.

Virginia's Endangered Historic Family Cemeteries

Discover Giles County Historical Society article from the Virginian Leader, July 14, 2010

Preservation Virginia recently announced their 2010 Most Endangered Historic Sites List. These are buildings and archaeological sites across the Commonwealth that face imminent or sustained threats to their integrity or survival. Included in the list are Historic Family Cemeteries Across the Commonwealth: “Cemeteries are among the most valuable of historic genealogical resources. Rural (and urban) family cemeteries can also provide an abundance of information through the study of gravestones and grave marker designs, cemetery landscapes and religious and mortuary practices and can provide information on rural Virginia settlement patterns and the ethnic character of the residents of an area. While much can be gained through the study of historic cemeteries, the major significance of these sites lies in the fact that they are sacred. The graves help to perpetuate the memories of the deceased and the remains of the people buried there should be treated with the utmost respect and dignity. Development and neglect continue to create an urgent threat to these sacred sites across the Commonwealth.”

For genealogists visiting the Giles County Historical Society, cemeteries provide an invaluable resource. Finding a long-sought grave marker for a family member often provides an integral piece to a family tree. The marker itself may provide birth, death, and marriage information. The location of the cemetery provides key information about where the family lived. Other grave markers in the cemetery may provide information about marriages, births, deaths, and unknown siblings, aunts, uncles, and other relatives.

Giles County has a number of family cemeteries, many of which are listed in the Giles County History – Families books. Undoubtedly, there are other family cemeteries in the County, today grown up with weeds or missing their grave markers that tell stories of earlier settlers to the county. Care of family cemeteries can help remove them from the Most Endangered List. The Pearis Cemetery and Chapman Cemetery are historic Giles County cemeteries that have recently been in the news for their restoration projects.

For more information about cemetery preservation in Virginia, contact Preservation Virginia (www.preservationvirginia.org) or the Virginia Department of Historic Resources (www.dhr.virginia.gov).

Historical Society Receives Celanese Coning Machine

Discover Giles County Historical Society article from the Virginian Leader, July 7, 2010

The Celco plant in Narrows has been an important industry in Giles County since the plant opened on Christmas Day in 1939. Celanese Acetate has been an economic driver requiring housing, businesses, and amenities to be built for plant workers throughout the county. Production at the Celco plant has shifted over the years as markets have changed. One of the products that the plant no longer makes is acetate yarn for manufacturing fabrics.

In 1905, Swiss brothers, Camille and Henri Dreyfus, were the first to develop a commercial manufacturing process for cellulose acetate, which could be used to make films, fibers, molded objects, and toilet articles. In the 1920s, acetate fiber was first spun in Cumberland, Maryland and a weaving mill was built to turn the acetate yarn into cloth. The Celanese name first appeared at this time as well, a combination of the words “cellulose” and “ease” for the ease of wearing the acetate fabric. The name was a marketing tactic, as the silk market worked hard to discredit the new fabric.

Acetate had several qualities that were superior to silk, including the ability to hold permanent moiré designs and pleating. These qualities revolutionized the dress industry, influencing fashions of the time. Later acetate was woven with silk, cotton, wool, and other fibers to provide wrinkle-free, quick-drying clothing at a reasonable price.

Celanese recently donated a coning machine and several bobbins of Celanese acetate yarn, including the last one to be spun at the Celco plant. According to John Kinney, Jr.: “Installed in the 1940s, coning machines manufactured a filling yarn, used between sheets of yarn from Celco bobbins. Some of the U.S. textile companies that purchased cones from Narrows were Satkin Mills, Burlington/New River Mills, Woodhall Mills, and National Velvet. Most U.S. textile manufacturers went out of business, beginning in the 1990s, due to foreign competition. This also led to ending coning production at Celco.”

Look for the Celco coning machine to be part of a new textile exhibit later this summer in the Historical Society’s Museum!