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Stokesville and North River Gap oral histories

 Collection
Identifier: SdArch 35
  • Not requestable

  • Staff Only

Scope and Content

The Stokesville and North River Gap Oral Histories, 1996-1997, is comprised of audiorecordings and research files from the professional papers of Dr. Clarence Geier, a professor emeritus of Sociology and Anthropology at James Madison University. Materials include recordings, scanned photographs and other documents gathered from oral histories conducted with people in the Stokesville, and North River Gap area in August County. Narrators in the recordings discuss various topics, including the practice of tanbarking, the flood of 1949 in Stokesville, buildings in Stokesville, the Mt. Solon CCC camp, and personal family histories. The collection also contains genealogical studies of the North River Gap area.

Family names represented in the collection include Maichel, Sheffer (Scheffer, Shaver), Hise, Cramer, Loyd, Floyd, Todd, Daggy, Wilfong, Sirk, Karicofe, among others.

Dates

  • Creation: 1996-1997

Creator

Access Restrictions

Audio is restricted pending processing. 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.

Use Conditions

Rights assessment is the responsibility of the researchers. For more information, contact the Special Collections Library Reference Desk (library-special@jmu.edu).

Biographical / Historical

The collection is comprised of research materials created by Kay Veith, Kathryn Monger and C. Thomas Chapman, James Madison University students who took courses taught by Dr. Clarence Geier, professor of Anthropology. Their research contributed to the book, “North River Gap – Stokesville, Augusta County, Virginia: A Selected Genealogy and Oral History of Residents,” authored by Kay Veith, with contributions by Carole Nation and Clarence Geier, published in 1996. The project was a joint venture between members of the JMU history and anthropology departments, and the George Washington and Jefferson National Forests of Roanoke. Photograph scans were made from photographs belonging to individuals that participated in field survey.

Dr. Clarence Geier is a professor emeritus of Anthropology at James Madison University, where one of his primary research areas was the archeology of the American Civil War, specifically in the Shenandoah Valley. Kay Veith, who conducted many of the oral histories in this collection, was a student at JMU in the mid-1990s. Veith was a member of the Massanutten Chapter of the Archeological Society of Virginia, where she served as Secretary and chief organizer. Veith conducted fieldwork on many projects, including the Shenandoah National Park Archaeological Survey Program in the early 2000s. James Madison University established the Kay Veith Field Archeology Award to support young archeologists. Kathryn Monger undertook the geneology project on Reba Sirk Floyd.

Extent

0.42 cubic feet (1 box, 14 audiocassettes)

Language of Materials

English

Abstract

The Stokesville and North River Gap Oral Histories, 1996-1997, are comprised of audio interviews, census data, genealogy research and scans of photographs related to prominent families of the North River Gap area and town of Stokesville, in Augusta County, Virginia.

Arrangement

The interviews are arranged alphabetically by last name, and further arranged chronologically.

Acquisition Information

Materials were transferred by Dr. Clarence Geier on September 11, 2017.

Related Resources

“North River Gap – Stokesville, Augusta County, Virginia: a selected geneology and oral history of residents” Kay Veith; with contributions by Carole Nash and Clarence R. Geier. James Madison University, Dept. of Sociology and Anthropology, 1999.

Bibliography

  • Nash, Carole. “Kay Veith Named ASV Avocational Archaeologist of the Year,” Archeological Society of Virginia Massanutten Chapter. Volume 35, Issue 11, November 2014. http://www.mcasv.org/Points/NOV_2014.pdf (accessed on July 23, 2018).
Title
A Guide to the Stokesville and North River Gap Oral Histories, 1996-1997
Status
Completed
Author
Sarah Roth-Mullet
Date
2018
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin

Repository Details

Part of the James Madison University Libraries Special Collections Repository

Contact:
820 Madison Drive
MSC 1706
Harrisonburg Virginia 22807
(540) 568-3612