Dr. W. B. Conway and Julia Ellen Thomas Correspondence,

Access and use

Location of collection:
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Special Collections, University Libraries (0434)
Newman Library
Virginia Tech
P.O. Box 90001
560 Drillfield Drive
Blacksburg, VA 24062-9001
Contact for questions and access:
Phone: (540) 231-6308
Fax: (540) 231-3694
Restrictions:

Collection is open for research.

Terms of access:

Permission to publish material from the Dr. W. B. Conway and Julia Ellen Thomas Correspondence must be obtained from Special Collections, Virginia Tech.

Preferred citation:

Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: Dr. W. B. Conway and Julia Ellen Thomas Correspondence, Ms2014-015, Special Collections, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.

Summary

Extent:
0.5 Cubic Feet 1 box
Creator:
Conway, William Buchanan, 1845-1920 and Conway, Julia Ellen Thomas, 1848-1916
Abstract:
The Dr. W. B. Conway and Julia Ellen Thomas Correspondence contains letters exchanged between the couple from 1869 to 1870 before they were married.
Language:
English .
Preferred citation:

Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: Dr. W. B. Conway and Julia Ellen Thomas Correspondence, Ms2014-015, Special Collections, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.

Background

Scope and content:

This collection contains approximately sixty letters exchanged between Dr. William B. Conway and Julia Ellen Thomas (later Conway) during their courtship in 1869-1870. The letters discuss a number of topics including the couple's relationship, their families, mutual friends, and local and national events.

Biographical / historical:

Dr. William B. Conway was born in Ellerslie, Virginia, in 1845. Conway studied at Virginia Military Institute for a year, but left school to enlist as a private in Company C, 4th Virginia Cavalry. He served through the war, and afterwards studied medicine under the tutelage of Dr. Alfred Taliaferro at Culpeper Courthouse. He then studied at Washington University in Baltimore and graduated in 1869. Upon graduation, he left Baltimore to practice medicine at Mount Vernon Iron Works in Rockingham County, Virginia.

Julia Ellen Thomas was born in 1848 in Blacksburg Virginia the daughter of Col. William Thomas. Julia and William were married in 1870 and settled for a time in Blacksburg where William became a surgeon for the Virginia Agricultural and Mechanical College (now Virginia Tech). They had five children: Daisy, Alfred, William, Archie, and Mary, all of which, except William, reached adulthood. Julia died in 1916. William died in College Park, Georgia, in 1920.

Acquisition information:
The Dr. W. B. Conway and Julia Ellen Thomas Correspondence was donated to Special Collections in 2014.
Processing information:

The processing, arrangement, and description of the Dr. W. B. Conway and Julia Ellen Thomas Correspondence was completed in December 2014.

Arrangement:

The letters in the collection are arranged chronologically.