Bettie Hiter Willis Papers

Access and use

Location of collection:
James Madison University
Second Floor Room 203, MSC 1704
Carrier Library
James Madison University
880 Madison Drive
Harrisonburg, VA 22807
Contact for questions and access:
POC: Tiffany Cole
Phone: (540) 568-3444
Phone: (540) 568-3612
Fax: (540) 568-3405
Restrictions:

Collection is open for research. Researchers must register and agree to copyright and privacy laws before using this collection. Please contact Research Services staff before visiting the James Madison University Special Collections Library to use this collection.

Terms of access:

The copyright interests in this collection have been transferred to the James Madison University Special Collections Library. For more information, contact the Special Collections Library Reference Desk. (library-special@jmu.edu).

Preferred citation:

[identification of item], Bettie Hiter Willis Papers, 1864-1942, SC 0224, Special Collections, Carrier Library, James Madison University, Harrisonburg, Va.

Summary

Extent:
0.48 Gigabytes 41 digital files
Creator:
Willis, Bettie Hiter, 1850-1923 and Angelil, MaryMay
Abstract:
The Bettie Hiter Willis Papers, 1864-1942, is comprised of digitized diary entries and letters from Willis, including documents created during the Civil War.
Language:
English
Preferred citation:

[identification of item], Bettie Hiter Willis Papers, 1864-1942, SC 0224, Special Collections, Carrier Library, James Madison University, Harrisonburg, Va.

Background

Scope and content:

The Bettie Hiter Willis Papers, 1864-1942 consist of 41 digital files that were created by Special Collections from thirty-eight letters, three journal segments, and one poem. The bulk of the letters were written to family members in Virginia. Several letters and diary entries written by Bettie Hiter Willis as a young girl describe local events from the Civil War.

Biographical / historical:

This collection contains digital images of the correspondence and diaries of Bettie Hiter Willis, including journals from 1864-1865 and 1878-1879. She writes about her experiences with the Civil War as well as personal relations. She lived in the Culpepper, VA, and for a short period in the Shenandoah Valley, and wrote about local deaths in the War as well as her own personal take on Abraham Lincoln's assassination. The collection begins at age 13, in 1864, and continues with her children's correspondence until 1942.

Acquisition information:
The items loaned to Special Collections by MaryMay Angelil in September 2012 for scanning, after which, the originals were returned to the donor.
Custodial history:

MaryMay Angelil is the great-granddaughter of Bettie Hiter Willis. The letters have been in the family's possession since the Civil War.

Processing information:

The pages were flattened and then scanned on an Epson 10000 XL scanner at 600 dpi. The scans have been separated into the original journal segments and letters. The collection was kept in the original order for scanning. The scans were created as TIF files and assigned sequential unique identifiers. These files were subsequently converted to pdfs for access, and the files were renamed by form of content and the date of creation. The collection was formerly assigned collection number SC 5053.

Arrangement:

The material is arranged into two series:

  1. Journals, 1864-1874, undated, is comprised of scanned excerpts of journals written by Bettie Hiter Willis, and further arranged by date. The scanned documents are accessible as 3 pdfs.
  2. Correspondence, 1867-1942, undated, is comprised of scanned letters, a postcard and a poem, and further arranged by date. The scanned documents are accessible as 39 pdfs.
Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard