PUBLIC "-//Randolph-Macon College::McGraw-Page Library::Special Collections Dept.//TEXT (US::ViAsR::viasr00002::A Guide to the Leroy S. Edwards Papers)//EN" "viasr00002" A Guide to the Leroy S. Edwards Papers 1853-1899 Edwards, Leroy S., Papers R-MC Shelves 6B2 Judee Showalter Archives and Special Collections, McGraw-Page Library, Randolph-Macon College © 2005 By Randolph-Macon College. All rights reserved.

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Machine-readable finding aid derived from MS Word 6.0, created by Judee Showalter,January 2005 Description is in English 2013-11-21 Converted to schema conforming EAD by dtd2schema.vh.xsl. A Guide to the LeRoy S. Edwards papers 1853-1899 A Collection in theArchives and Special Collections Department ofthe McGraw-Page Library R-MC Shelves 6B2 Judee Showalter

Archives and Special Collections, McGraw-Page Library, Randolph-Macon College 2005 Special Collections Staff - Judee Showalter Archives and Special Collections, McGraw-Page Library, Randolph-Macon College Descriptive Summary Archives and Special Collections, McGraw-Page Library, Randolph-Macon College A Guide to the Leroy S. Edwards Papers 1853-1899 R-MC Shelves 6B2 The collections is contained in 4 archival boxes English Administrative Information Access Restrictions

Collection is open to research.

Use Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Preferred Citation

[The Leroy S. Edwards Papers, Accession ,R-MC Shelves 6B2 ,Archives and Special Collections, McGraw-Page Library, Randolph-Macon College, Ashland, Va.

Acquisition Information

The collection belongs to Randolph-Macon College. Much of the collection was donated to the college by Mrs. Frederick N. Thompson, grandaughter of Leroy Edwards.

Biographical/Historical Information

Leroy Summerfield Edwards was born November 27th, 1839 in Lynchburg, Virginia. He was the oldest of three sons born to Rev. John Ellis Edwards, D.D. and Elizabeth A. Clark Edwards (daughter of Col. John Clark). His father was a prominent Methodist pastor, serving in the North Carolina Conference and then in the Virginia Conference, and as a Trustee of Randolph Macon College. Leroy attended Randolph-Macon College, then in Boydton, VA, from 1857-1859, receiving an A. B. He then attended the University of Virginia from 1859-1860. He was teaching at Farmville Female College in 1861 when he enlisted in the 12th Virginia Infantry, Company E. He was injured in 1862, and captured in May, 1864. He was sent to Point Lookout Prison Camp in Maryland and transferred to Elmira, New York around August, 1864. He returned to Richmond around March, 1865. Apparently he returned to R-MC, where he received an A. M. degree in 1866. On August 8, 1866 he married Elizabeth Ferguson, and their son, Ellis, was born May 14, 1867. By 1868 he and fellow R-MC alumnus E.E. Parham had founded the Female Collegiate Institute at Richmond. Another son, Leroy Jr., was born October 3, 1881. Leroy, Jr.'s Randolph-Macon diary is included in the collection as well. It is assumed there were other children. Leroy Edwards died in 1901 and is buried in Hollywood Cemetery.

Scope and Content

The collection contains letters and other personal materials, primarily diaries. Diaries included in the collection were written by Leroy Edwards, his wife, and his son, Leroy Jr., and span 1853-1899. Some additional material onthe Edwards Family is available in the R-MC Alumni files.

Arrangement

The material didvided into letters and other materials. Its arranged chronologically when possible, although several notebooks skip years.

Contents List Letters 1854-1880 Civil War Letters 1854-1864 Box 1 1-3

Chronological

Correspondence 1868-1880 Box 2 1

Primarily dealing with reunion and other matters concerning the Virginia Division of the Army of Northern Virginia

Chronological

Manuscript 1985 1

Manuscript copy of Letters of Leroy S. Edwards Written During the War Between the States . Compiled by Terry A. Walton.(E467.1 E48 1985)

Notebooks and Diaries 1853-1899 2 8 notebooks

Material is by multiple authors, although primarily Leroy S. Edwards.

Arrangement is chronological when possible, although several journals contain non-consecutive material.

Notebook 1853

The President's Book of "The Lynchburg Youth Debating Society"

Notebook 1857-1858

Diary - Sophomore and Junior years at Randolph Macon College

Notebook 1859

Diary - Senior year at Randolph Macon College

Notebook 1859-1863

Contains "jottings" from University of Virginia, 1859-1860, Civil war diary entries from 1862 (Lynchburg) and 1863 (Richmond)

Notebook 1861-1868

Rollbook from Farmville Female College, March 25, 1861/also contains diary entries 1865-1868, some written by his wife, Elizabeth

Notebook 1857 3 items in notebook

Roll of the members of the H. Chapter of Phi Kappa Sigma Fraternity, ab initio, in the order of initiation. Sessions 1854-55, 55-56, 56-57 (UVA),

Thank you note from "the Senior Class"

Resolution of the Jefferson Society of UVA, June 16, 1860, to give $50 to Mrs. Cle(?), mother-in-law to Edgar A. Poe

Notebook 1868-1869

Class notes and lectures 1868-1869

Notebook inserts 7 items

Class notes

Clippings: ("Man's Life" (poem), "The Dear Dead Woman Up Stairs" (poem), "The Voiceless" (poem))

Notes on Exodus XX: 4-6 / Biblical/Personal notes/ Civil War/ political

Programme of the Commencement Exercises of the Farmville Female College on the 28th of June, 1866.

Notebook 1875 leather wallet and notebook Notebook 1893-1899

Leroy Edwards Jr. diary - begins at RMC 1989

Speeches and Exercises 1859, 1866 Box 2 2 Inaugural Address delievered in the Franklin Leterary Society, May 15, 1858 Valedictory Address to the FLS Commencement Night, June 22, 1859 "Modern Poetics" Second Senior Speech, Feb. 11, 1859 "David" Feb., 1868 "Odes of Horace" May and June, 1854, Feb., 1855 "Alas,Poor Chatterton", First Senior Oration, Dec.10, 1858 "Literary Dietetics" Graduating Oration, Wed., June 22, 1859

chronological

Miscellany 1861-1977 Box 2 3 Virginia election memorabilia, 1877 Soldiers Pocket Bible RMC Commencement, 1875-76 Virginia Division Association, Army of Northern Virginia Catalogue of the Female Collegiate Institute 1869-70 Invitation to participate in the Inauguration of the Jackson Statue, October, 1875 Newspaper Issues 1846-1880 3 Clippings Clippings Scrapes of Randolph-Macon College History; and Personals of old Students, Professors and Trustees: a series in the Richmond Christian Advocate 1878-79 (incomplete) R-MC Misc. Local Governmanet - City Councilman representing Clay Ward 1878-1884 (?) Family Virginia Division of the Army of Northern Virginia - Confederate Veterans Handbill

For Senate - W.C. Knight, P.H. Starke

Richmond Daily Whig no. 273, Nov. 16, 1880 Richmond Christian Advocate July 20, 1846, Feb. 5, 1846 Richmond Enquirer October 30, 1874, March 25, 1876, Aug. 10, 1877 The Daily Express July 3, 1861, April 5, 1861, The Daily News May 11, 1875 Daily Dispatch October 26, 1875, May 1, 1876 Books 4 Bound Book of R-MC materials Phi Kappa Sigma - Rolls of Chapters (1858-1860) Diploma 1859

Leroy Edward's R-MC Diploma