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Preferred Citation
[identification of item], [box #, folder #], Grove Family Papers, 1884-1932, SC 0292, Special Collections, Carrier Library,
James Madison University, Harrisonburg, VA.
Acquisition Information
This collection was acquired at the Large Antiques and Firearms Estate auction held by Green Valley Auctions on January 16,
2018.
Processing Information
Duplicates of brochures in the ephemera were discarded as well as blank envelopes or sheets of paper found amidst the correspondence.
John William Grove was born December 16, 1844, in Luray, Page County, Virginia. As an adult, he served as a Corporal with
the Confederate Army from 1863-1865 as part of the 35th Battalion of the Virginia Cavalry until being paroled from the army
on May 8, 1865. He then married Eliza Jane Koontz (1850-1871) in 1869 and had two children: Ella Grove (1870-1932) and William
Wallace Grove (1872-1874). After Eliza's death on October 19, 1871, John William Grove married Laura Ann Brumback (1851-1926),
and had four children with her: Arthur Ashby Grove (1883 - 1940), Jessimine "Jessie" Lee Grove (1887 - 1966), Harold Elton
Grove (1889 - 1970), and Julia Anita Grove (1892 - 1976). In the mid-1880s, John William Grove opened the Grove and Brothers
store with his brother Charles H. Grove (1849 –1925) in Luray. John William Grove's sons Arthur and Harold took over the store
after their father's death in August 1924.
Arthur, often addressed as A. A. Grove, was a member of the National Guard and veteran of World War I, having fought in France
as part of the 116th Infantry, 29th Division. He was also an active member of the community, participating in the Luray Rotary
Club, the Summers-Koontz Camp No. 490, Sons of Confederate Veterans, and others.
After receiving her bachelor's degree in music from Vassar College in 1910, Julia "Anita" Grove became a music teacher and
spent several months almost every year traveling throughout the United States visiting relatives (e.g., cousins, extended
family) and friends of the family or friends from her time at school.
Jessie Grove married William Pendleton Hershberger on January 28, 1919.
The Grove Family Papers, 1884-1932, consist of 21 boxes, primarily comprising family correspondence. The bulk of the collection
is made up of family correspondence and the rest is made up of ephemera collected by the family. The correspondence is mainly
letters sent to the group or individual indicated by the series, with the bulk of the correspondence in this collection being
letters sent to Arthur and Julia Grove. Most of the letters concern updates concerning other family members and the community.
Much of the collection consists of holiday cards sent to all members of the Grove Family over the years.
The collection is arranged in nine series, with the first eight series comprising family correspondence, arranged by recipient
and chronologically. Series 9 consists of ephemera accumulated by the family and is arranged alphabetically.
Grove Family Correspondence, 1884-1932
Arthur Ashby Grove Correspondence, 1892-1932
Julia Anita Grove Correspondence, 1900-1932
Jessie Grove Hershberger Correspondence, 1903-1932
Harold Elton Grove Correspondence, 1920-1932
Laura Brumback Grove Correspondence, 1886-1926
John William Grove Correspondence, 1890-1924
Charles H. Grove Correspondence, 1891-1930
Ephemera, 1887-1932
"Corp John William Grove (1844-1924) - Find A Grave..." Find A Grave. Accessed June 11, 2019. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/8423540/john-william-grove.
"Women's College Finals This Week." Times Dispatch (Richmond, VA), May 23, 1910. https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn85038615/1910-05-23/ed-1/seq-12/#date1=1900&index=1&date2=1930&searchType=advanced&language=&sequence=0&words=Anita+Grove&proxdistance=5&state=Virginia&rows=20&ortext=&proxtext=Anita+Grove&phrasetext=&andtext=&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1
Series 1: Grove Family Correspondence, 1884-1932, comprises correspondence that is either addressed to the Grove Family or
correspondence for which there is no discernable individual family member that is the sender. Correspondence addressed to
Elizabeth P. Barry, a friend of Julia and Jessie Grove, is included in this series. Most of the series is made up of correspondence
either to the Grove and Brother Store from satisfied customers (thanking them for gifts, discounts, etc) or small holiday
cards and wedding invitations from other members of the community.
Series 2: Arthur Ashby Grove Correspondence, 1892-1932, deals with the correspondence received by Arthur Ashby Grove between
1892 and 1932. Some interesting items in this series include letters sent by family while he was away training with the national
guard in Virginia Beach and Richmond, Virginia and in Brownsville, Texas (dropping hints about potential brides in the area),
some documents pertaining to military orders,inspections, some letters written in French, a letter from Anita telling Arthur
about her first music pupil, letters from former comrades, and a letter written in 1922 from a Bulah Patterson that briefly
asks Arthur's opinion on the Ku Klux Klan.
Series 3: Julia Anita Grove Correspondence, 1900-1932, deals with the correspondence received by Julia Anita Grove between
the years 1900 and 1932. Most of the correspondence in this series come from family members and friends asking her about her
travels and updating her on day-to-day activities in Luray. Examples of updates include a new "Ford shop" being built and
their parents buying a new car, and an item of note is a souvenir folder from Rochester, New York that holds drawings of landmarks
and facts about the city.
Series 4: Jessie Grove Hershberger Correspondence, 1903-1932, comprises correspondence received by Jessie Grove Hershberger
between the years 1903 and 1932. Most of the correspondence is addressed to "Mrs. William P. Hershberger" or "Jessie Grove."
Some interesting items include a small note where Jessie and Harold are invited to a spelling bee and instructed to "impersonate
country school-children" in 1907 and a letter from a friend named Lottie in which she recounts interactions with patients
in a hospital and asks Jessie for relationship advice (telling Jessie to "destroy the letter" after reading it).
Series 5: Harold Elton Grove Correspondence, 1920-1932, includes correspondence received by Harold Elton Grove between the
years 1920-1932. Much of the correspondence comprises postcards from his relatives, updating him on the weather and sights.
Some of the postcards come from Wyoming, New York, and Atlantic City.
Series 6: Laura Brumback Grove Correspondence, 1886-1926, deals with correspondence received by Laura Brumback Grove between
1886 and 1926. Much of Laura's correspondence is from her children and step-children. Many of the envelopes are addressed
not only to Laura but also to J.W (John William), but the greetings to these letters are always addressed to "Mama" or "Aunt
Laura." Most of the correspondence during 1924 are letters of condolences and sympathies after John William Grove's death.
Series 7: John William Grove Correspondence, 1890-1924, deals with correspondence received by John William Grove between 1890
and 1924. Much of the correspondence comprises marriage and graduation invitations, holiday cards, and two letters written
in 1924: one from his wife Laura and the other from his daughter Jessie.
Series 8: Charles H. Grove Correspondence, 1891-1930, deals with correspondence received by Charles H. Grove between 1891
and 1930. As with his brother John, Charles's correspondence includes marriage announcements and graduation invitations, some
letters from hotels asking for his business, and a couple of postcards from Anita telling him about her travels.
Series 9: Ephemera, 1887-1932, includes myriad ephemeral materials that were accumulated the Grove Family. The series is arranged
alphabetically. Some items of note within this series include military ephemera (containing some transfer orders and programs
to numerous military events); music education ephemera (which include sheet music and small booklets pertaining to the popular
songs of the time); some photos of a storefront and two unidentified individuals; and travel brochures, maps, and promotional
materials of Virginia and other locations.
Mixed Materials [1000886425] box: 18 folder: 9
Banquet Menus
1903-1907
Mixed Materials [1000886425] box: 18 folder: 10
Book Catalogs/Libraries
1925-1932, undated
Mixed Materials [1000886425] box: 18 folder: 11
Calendars/Notepads
1917-1929
Mixed Materials [1000886425] box: 18 folder: 12
Church Pamphlets
1916-1925
Mixed Materials [1000886425] box: 18 folder: 13
Commencement Programs and Invitations (Folder 1 of 2)
1887-1930
Mixed Materials [1000886426] box: 19 folder: 1
Commencement Programs and Invitations (Folder 2 of 2)
1891-1932
Mixed Materials [1000886426] box: 19 folder: 2
Educational Materials
1890-1930
Mixed Materials [1000886426] box: 19 folder: 3
Financial and Business Files
1918-1929
Mixed Materials [1000886426] box: 19 folder: 4
Grove and Brother Store Ephemera
1905-1932
Mixed Materials [1000886426] box: 19 folder: 5
Handwritten Notes
1912-1925
Mixed Materials [1000886426] box: 19 folder: 6
Life Insurance Ephemera
1920-1928
Mixed Materials [1000886426] box: 19 folder: 7
Military Ephemera
1906-1923
Mixed Materials [1000886426] box: 19 folder: 8
Military Ephemera
1919-1929
Mixed Materials [1000886426] box: 19 folder: 9
Miscellaneous Ephemera
1861-1923
Mixed Materials [1000886427] box: 20 folder: 1
Music Ephemera
1919-1929
Mixed Materials [1000886427] box: 20 folder: 2
Music Ephemera
1920-1933
Mixed Materials [1000886427] box: 20 folder: 3
Newspapers
1861-1929
Mixed Materials [1000886427] box: 20 folder: 4
Page Valley National Bank Ephemera
1904-1922, undated
Mixed Materials [1000886427] box: 20 folder: 5
Photographs
1913-1929
Mixed Materials [1000886427] box: 20 folder: 6
Poetry
1906, undated
Mixed Materials [1000886427] box: 20 folder: 7
Postcards and Tags
undated
Mixed Materials [1000886427] box: 20 folder: 8
Promotional Materials and Advertisements (Folder 1 of 6)
1890-1930, undated
Mixed Materials [1000886427] box: 20 folder: 9
Promotional Materials and Advertisements (Folder 2 of 6)
1901-1929, undated
Mixed Materials [1000886428] box: 21 folder: 1
Promotional Materials and Advertisements (Folder 3 of 6)
1904-1929, undated
Mixed Materials [1000886428] box: 21 folder: 2
Promotional Materials and Advertisements (Folder 4 of 6)
1906-1920, undated
Mixed Materials [1000886428] box: 21 folder: 3
Promotional Materials and Advertisements (Folder 5 of 6)
1925, undated
Mixed Materials [1000886428] box: 21 folder: 4
Promotional Materials and Advertisements (Folder 6 of 6)