George M. Neese 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 not 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], [box #, folder #], George M. Neese Papers, SC 0355, 1859-1946, Special Collections, Carrier Library, James Madison University, Harrisonburg, Va.

Summary

Extent:
0.83 cubic feet 3 boxes
Creator:
Jeffrey S. Evans & Associates and Neese, George M. (George Michael), 1839-1921
Abstract:
The collection comprises the personal papers, correspondence, diaries, and writings of George M. Neese of New Market, Virginia.
Language:
English
Preferred citation:

[identification of item], [box #, folder #], George M. Neese Papers, SC 0355, 1859-1946, Special Collections, Carrier Library, James Madison University, Harrisonburg, Va.

Background

Scope and content:

The collection comprises the personal papers, correspondence, diaries, and writings of George M. Neese of New Market, Virginia.

Correspondence is primarily letters, postcards, and direct mail addressed to Neese.

Neese's personal papers comprise, among other materials, a handwritten draft manusript of Three Years in the Confederate Horse Artillery, post-Civil War diaries, field books documenting bird sightings around New Market, and poetry.

Biographical / historical:

George M. Neese (1839-1921), son of Michael and Elizabeth Zirkle Neese, was born in Shenandoah County, Virginia. As a youth, he attended New Market Academy. During the Civil War, Neese served for three years in the Confederate Army as a gunner in Chew's Battery, Stuart's Horse Artillery in the Army of Northern Virginia. He was captured approximately six miles north of Woodstock, Virginia on October 9, 1864. Neese was held as a prisoner at Point Lookout, Maryland for the remainder of the Civil War. After the war ended and he was released, Neese returned to Shenandoah County where he worked as a fresco painter, house painter, and wallpaper hanger for William F. Rupp. Neese also lived with Rupp's family in the Spitzer-Rupp House on Congress Street until his death in 1921. Neese kept diaries about his experience during the Civil War and published them under the title Three Years in the Confederate Horse Artillery (1911).

Acquisition information:
Acquired at Jeffrey S. Evans's Summer Americana Variety Auction on August 24, 2019.
Appraisal information:

A copy of Sketches accompanying the Annual report of the Superintendent of the United States Coast Survey (1851) was not retained due to its poor condition. All loose items were removed and incorporated into the collection. Pages with substantive annotations were photocopied and retained.

Custodial history:

From the Fritz and Loretta Orebaugh estate, New Market, Virginia.

Arrangement:

The collection is arranged in two series:

  1. Correspondence, 1868-1946
  2. Personal papers, 1859-1921
Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard