The materials from Washington and Lee University Special Collections are made available for use in research, teaching, and private study, pursuant to U.S. Copyright law. The user assumes full responsibility for any use of the materials, including but not limited to, infringement of copyright and publication rights of reproduced materials. Any materials used should be fully credited with the source. Permission for publication of this material, in part or in full, must be secured with the Head of Special Collections.
Preferred citation: [Identification of item], Lee Memorial Association Records, WLU Coll. 0148, Special Collections and Archives, James G. Leyburn Library, Washington and Lee University, Lexington, VA
In some cases the citation format may vary. Please contact Special Collections' staff to verify the appropriate format.
This collection consists of records related to the formation and history of the Lee Memorial Association (L.M.A.). The association was formed in October 1870 immediately following the death of Robert E. Lee with the goal of creating a monument to honor him on the campus of Washington College, subsequently renamed Washington and Lee University. Between 1870 and 1883, the L.M.A. successfully raised the funds for the creation and installation of what is known as the "Recumbent Lee" statue, sculpted in marble by Edward Virginius Valentine and located in the Lee Chapel, the burial site of the Lee family at Washington and Lee University. The collection consists of documents, letters, and printed matter, including broadsides and ribbons, related to the fundraising process and the unveiling ceremonies which took place in 1883.
The materials in this collection are open for research use.
Washington and Lee University Special Collections houses the Rockbridge Historical Society (RHS) Archives. Contact WLU Special Collections for information about the RHS Lee Memorial Association Collection.
In the control folder, a photocopy of a picture of the quilt, which VMI owns, that Mary Randolph Custis Lee, her daughter and Rose Pendleton made to raffle off to help raise funds for the Lee Memorial Chapel, after Lee's death. This includes e-mail from Linda Nassie, a descendant of Mary Randolph Custis Lee, who also made a quilt similiar to it, and sent a photocopy of a picture of it too.
A printed booklet with illustratyions about Robert E. Lee and his legacy for donors to the Lee Memorial Fund, a fundraising project for the proposed renovation and/or enlargement of the Lee Chapel at Washington and Lee University. The plan had initial footing, but was ultimately vetoed by the university on the advice of the local chapter of the United Daughters of the Confederacy who opposed the plan.