No special access restriction applies.
Researchers may access digitized materials by visiting the link attached to each item or by requesting to view the materials in person by appointment or remotely by contacting the West Virginia & Regional History Center reference department at https://westvirginia.libanswers.com/wvrhc.
[Description and date of item], [Box/folder number], Brooks McCabe, Compiler, Papers of Aretas Brooks Fleming and Records of Charles Ward Engineering, A&M 3697, West Virginia and Regional History Center, West Virginia University Libraries, Morgantown, West Virginia.
Papers of Aretas Brooks Fleming, Governor of West Virginia (1890-1893), and records of the Charles Ward Engineering Works of Charleston, West Virginia, compiled by Brooks McCabe. The A.B. Fleming papers include: two memoranda of decisions books and one commonplace law book containing Fleming's notes pertaining to cases from his career as a lawyer and circuit court judge (1878-1888); photographs of Governor Fleming, his daughter Gypsy Fleming Ward (who married into the Ward family) and other family members, and his staff (4 items, ca.1890-1920); papers regarding the A.B. Fleming estate and its heirs (1923-1952); genealogical and historical information related to the Fleming family (1890-1934); and a scrapbook containing clippings, speeches, and proclamations documenting Fleming's term as Governor of West Virginia (1889-1939). The Charles Ward Engineering Works records include: a technical paper by Charles Ward titled "Shallow-Draught River Steamers"; a photograph of the historic contest between a stern wheel boat (The D.T. Lane) and a propeller powered boat (The James Rumsey), (ca. 1903); financial statements (1931-1942); minutes of stockholder's meetings (1931-1942); and a photograph album of ships built by Ward Engineering (ca.1923-1932). There are also five personal letters addressed to Margaret Fleming Ward (1914), including a 24 September 1914 letter relating the "exciting times" of relatives caught in Europe when World War I (WWI) broke out.
The collection also includes motion picture footage documenting several Ward Engineering boat projects, including launchings, the company's facilities on the Kanawha River, and Ward family activities (ca. 1927-1932). Film elements include one reel of 1100 feet of 16 mm silent positive film compiled from footage originally on 11 reels, a duplicate archival negative derived from the compilation, a copy on Betacam D40 tape, and two DVD copies. In addition, the original boxes containing the reels have been preserved for the historical information recorded to them.
Permission to publish or reproduce is required from the copyright holder. For more information, please see the Permissions and Copyright page on the West Virginia and Regional History Center website.