Collections : [Washington and Lee University, Leyburn Library]

Washington and Lee University, Leyburn Library

Special Collections and Archives
James G. Leyburn Library
Washington and Lee University
204 W. Washington Street
Lexington, VA 24450
Primary Collecting Areas:
American and Virginia history, regional genealogy, history of propaganda, Southern literature, theater, local and regional portraiture, landscapes and architecture, late 19th-century travel
Description:

The Washington and Lee University Special Collections and Archives Department houses over 1,000 unique manuscript collections including those of the Rockbridge Historical Society, The American Shakespeare Center, and the Mountain Valley Preservation Association. These collections vary greatly in size, format, and scope. Subjects covered within the collections are diverse and include concentrations in American and Virginia history, regional genealogy, history of propaganda, Southern literature, and theater.

It also houses over 10,000 photographs and prints. Beyond our photograph and print collections, which include scrapbooks, images can also be found within the manuscript collections and University Archives described above. Our photographic holdings vary greatly in size and include numerous formats representative of the evolution of the photographic process. Strengths are local and regional portraiture, landscapes and architecture, W&L University history, including athletics, and late 19th-century travel.

POC: Tom Camden
Phone: (540) 458-8649
Phone: (540) 463-8109
Fax: (540) 463-8964
Start Over Repository Washington and Lee University, Leyburn Library Date range 1756

Land Grants, 1749/1985 14 folders in RHS-Coll-0067 Files

This collection includes copies and originals of 18th and 19th century land grants for acreage in Rockbridge County, Augusta County, Bath County, and other areas in southwestern Virginia. Three folders relate to the Borden land grant, which established Rockbridge County. There is a fragment of an undated, handwritten copy of the Borden land grant. Other folders related to the Borden grant include historical analysis and recounting of the development of the grant by E.P. Tompkins. Some land grants pre-date the Borden grant. Folders with the parenthetical note of "Copy" only include photocopies of the original land grants. The Trimble land grants can be found in oversized drawer 33.

  1. Washington and Lee University, Leyburn Library

Legal Documents, 1742/1895 39 Files

This collection consists of a variety of legal documents related to citizens of Rockbrige County. Includes indentures, bonds, materials related to wills, legal agreements, and insurance policies amongst other documents.

  1. Washington and Lee University, Leyburn Library

Manuscript leaves from the Qur'an and Dala'il al-Khayrat, 1700/1900 4 Leaves

This collection contains two single leaves from early manuscript (calligraphic) copies of the Qur'an (Koran) and two leaves from a manuscript copy of Dala'il al-Khayrat, a book of prayers for the prophet Muhammad by Moroccan Sufi scholar Muhammad ibn Sulayman Jazuli. Each leaf is written in Arabic. One Qu'ran leaf is from the Ottoman Period (c. 1847 AD) and retains its gold and color illumination. Its text contains the first sixteen verses of the Surat Al - Bagarah (the Cow). The second leaf likely dates to the 19th century and is also illuminated and contains the first twelve verses of Surat Al - Ghafir (the Forgiver). The two manuscript leaves of the Dala'il Al - Khayrat both predate the 20th century and include text framed by colored borders of red and purple.

  1. Washington and Lee University, Leyburn Library

Mining Industry, 1000/2000 14 Files

This file includes a document of share in the Goodman Gold and Silver Mining Company, as well as the manuscript entitled "Rockbridge County Furnaces," which includes historical information and photographs concerning local furnaces.

  1. Washington and Lee University, Leyburn Library

Museums at Washington and Lee records, 1649/2016 10 Linear Feet

Washington and Lee University. Chapel

This record group contains archived materials about and created by Washington and Lee University's museums, comprised of Lee Chapel and Museum, the Reeves Collection, and the university's art collection, during the course of its regular business, such as official publications and records of its management.

  1. Washington and Lee University, Leyburn Library

Content Warning

ARVAS is an aggregator of archival resources. ARVAS does not have control of the descriptive language used in our members’ finding aids.

Finding aids may contain historical terms and phrases, reflecting the shared attitudes and values of the community from which they were collected, but are offensive to modern readers. These include demeaning and dehumanizing references to race, ethnicity, and nationality; enslaved or free status; physical or mental ability; religion; sex; and sexual orientation and gender identity.

Many institutions and organizations are in the process of reviewing and revising their descriptive language, with the intent to describe materials in more humanizing, inclusive, and harm-reductive ways. As members revise their descriptive language, their changes will eventually be reflected in their ARVAS finding aids.