Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

None

Use Restrictions

Consult repository for information

Preferred Citation

Halley Family Scrapbook, MSS 07-31, Virginia Room, Fairfax County Public Library

Acquisition Information

Donated by Gibran Parvez, January 2025.

Processing Information

Chris Barbuschak, January 2025
EAD generated by Ross Landis, 2025

Historical and Biographical Information

The Halley family has had a presence in Fairfax County, Virginia since the 18th century. Around 1735, James Halley (1707-1785) emigrated to America, married Elizabeth Simpson (1717-1785), and became a prosperous planter and farmer in Fairfax County. The couple had twelve children, six sons and six daughters. Two of James and Elizabeth’s great-great-grandchildren were William F. Halley (1874-1954) and Sallie Halley (1871-1952). They were born at Smokey Castle which stood in what is now South Run Park. Sallie never married and worked as a housekeeper in the Burke, Virginia area until her death at age 80. She is buried in the Fairfax City Cemetery.

She and her brother William Francis Halley both attended the Ox Road School which was located near the present-day Crosspointe Fire Station on Ox Road. Report cards signed by their teacher, Rezin H. Harrover, are included in this scrapbook. William Halley left school in the fifth grade and started a sawmill business. For over forty years, he roamed the forests of Virginia and North Carolina hauling his portable sawmill to cut up trees for timber.

In 1896, Halley married Dorsey Carol Beach in Washington, D.C. They had three children together and settled on a farm in Fairfax Station, Virginia. As a sawmill operator, the Fairfax County School Board hired Halley to provide firewood for the local rural schools. He later supplied the timber to rebuild the Lorton School after it burned down and convinced the school board to provide the first permanent school bus route in the Silverbrook Road vicinity. At age 80, Halley passed away suddenly at the home of his son, William F. Halley, Jr., in Fairfax Station. He is buried in Lee Chapel Cemetery in Burke, Virginia. William F. Halley Elementary School was named for him, and it opened on September 5, 1995. Halley's pocket watch and cuff links are currently on display in the school.

It is unknown which member of the Halley family created the scrapbook in this collection. Pasted inside the scrapbook are newspaper clippings featuring short stories and poetry, and colorful business advertisements mostly from Washington, D.C., and Alexandria, Virginia. Some of the businesses include: C. S. Price, Pharmacist, 407 7th Street NW, Washington, D.C.; B. Robinson & Co., Clothing & Furnishing Goods, 909 Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington, D.C.; Nicoll The Tailor, 617 Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington, D.C.; Baum's, 416 7th Street, Washington, D.C.; A. Dittrich, Hattier and Furrier, 724 7th Street NW, Washington, D.C.; George E. Franch, Bookseller and Stationer, 93-95 King Street, Alexandria, VA; Tennesson & Company, 114 King Street, Alexandria, VA; William D. Hadson, 265 King Street, Alexandria, VA; New Home Sewing Machine Company, New York; H. W. Alleger, Washington, New Jersey; Barkley & Hasson's Coffee; Browns Iron Bitters; Clark's Spool Cotton; Floreston Cologne; and Tarrant's Seltzer Aperient.

Scope and Content

The Halley Family Scrapbook consists of a scrapbook and the loose contents that were contained in it spanning the years 1841-1897. Items include newspaper clippings, newspapers, booklets, brochures, flyers, notecards and report cards. Items that were not glued in the scrapbook were rehoused into individual file folders. Of particular note are several Fairfax County Public School report cards for William F. Halley (1874-1954) and Sallie Halley (1871-1952). They were issued by Rezin H. Harrover, their teacher at the Ox Road School. Subjects include businesses in Alexandria, Virginia and Washington, D.C., and the history of the Halley family and Burke, Virginia.

Related Material

None

Separated Material

None

Index Terms

• Burke (Va.) - History
• Halley family
• Halley, Mary E., 1869-1953
• Halley, Sallie, 1871-1952
• Halley, William Francis, 1874-1954
• Sangster, John J, 1868-1927

Adjunct Descriptive Data