Use Restrictions

The copyright interests in this collection have not been transferred to the James Madison University Special Collection Library. For more information, contact the Special Collections Library Reference Desk (library-special@jmu.edu).

Access Restrictions

Collection is open for research. 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.

Preferred Citation

[identification of item], [box #, folder #], Varner Family Papers, 1774-1933, SC 0129, Special Collections, Carrier Library, James Madison University, Harrisonburg, Va.

Acquisition Information

This collection is on deposit from the Harrisonburg-Rockingham Historical Society.

Processing Information

In order to streamline the process of applying collection numbers, Special Collections staff completed a large-scale renumbering campaign in the spring of 2017. This collection was previously cataloged as SC 3035.

Bio/Historical Note

The Varner family of Page County, Virginia was of German descent, and their name appears as early as 1801 on records of the Antioch Christian Church near Stony Man Creek, Virginia.

Despite wide-spread anti-liquor sentiment in the Shenandoah Valley in the nineteenth century, the Varners operated a distillery. Documentary evidence of the business begins in 1869 and includes state permits to distill, Internal Revenue "Distillery Gauger" forms, and several orders for brandy.

Scope and Content

The Varner Family Papers, 1774-1933, document the Varner family of Page County, Virginia with particular emphasis on correspondence, legal and financial documents, and documents relating to their distillery business.

Series 1: Letters, 1816-1910, contains documents from relatives of the Varners in the Midwest and from other family members within Virginia. Most of these documents date from the latter half of the nineteenth century. In general these letters discuss health, the weather and farming; however, there are several accounts relating to the Civil War and its devastating effects on the family.

Series 2: Legal Documents, 1774-1931, contains a thorough collection of tax receipts dating from 1803-1930; several papers pertaining to John Varner's duties as an executor; a folder of receipts for various financial transactions; and, among other papers in the miscellaneous folder, a Confederate States of America Bond.

Series 3: Distillery Papers, 1869-1893, contains documents related to the Varner's distillery business in Luray, Virginia. Despite wide-spread anti-liquor sentiment in the Shenandoah Valley in the nineteenth century, the Varners operated a distillery. Documentary evidence of the business begins in 1869 and includes state permits to distill, Internal Revenue "Distillery Gauger" forms and several orders for brandy.

Arrangement

The collection is arranged into three series:

Subjects and Indexing Terms

• Agriculture -- Virginia -- History -- 19th century
• Distilleries -- Virginia -- Sources
• Estates (Law) -- Virginia -- Sources
• Family papers
• Financial statements -- Virginia
• Harrisonburg-Rockingham Historical Society
• Legal documents
• Letters (correspondence)
• Liquor -- Selling
• Liquor laws -- Virginia
• Page County (Va.) -- Economic conditions
• Page County (Va.) -- History -- Sources
• Page County (Va.) -- Social life and customs -- Sources
• Shenandoah River Valley (Va. and W. Va.) -- Economic conditions -- Sources
• Shenandoah River Valley (Va. and W. Va.) -- History -- Sources
• Shenandoah River Valley (Va. and W. Va.) -- Social life and customs -- Sources
• United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Destruction and pillage
• United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Personal narratives, Confederate
• Varner family
• Varner family -- Correspondence
• Varner, John
• Virginia -- Economic conditions -- Sources
• Virginia -- History, Local -- Sources
• Virginia -- Social life and customs -- Sources
• Virginia -- Sources