Conditions Governing Reproduction and Use

The copyright status of this collection is unknown. Copyright restrictions may apply. Contact Special Collections and University Archives for assistance in determining the use of these materials.

Reproduction or digitization of materials for personal or research use can be requested using our reproduction/digitization form: http://bit.ly/scuareproduction . Reproduction or digitization of materials for publication or exhibit use can be requested using our publication/exhibition form: http://bit.ly/scuapublication . Please contact Special Collections and University Archives (specref@vt.edu or 540-231-6308) if you need assistance with forms or to submit a completed form.

Conditions Governing Access

The collection is open for research.

Preferred Citation

Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: [identification of item], [box], [folder], John Harper Dawson Book Manuscript, Ms2009-005, Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.

Source of Acquisition

The John Harper Dawson Book Manuscript was donated to Special Collections.

Processing Information

The processing and description of the John Harper Dawson Book Manuscript commenced and was completed in January 2009.

Biographical Note

John Harper Dawson, the son of John A. and Julia Peters Dawson, grew up in rural southwestern Pennsylvania. Dawson attended the University of Pittsburgh before transferring in 1935 to Adrian College, from which he graduated in 1938. In 1941, Dawson married fellow Adrian alum Virginia Bates; the couple would have two children. Dawson was a 40-year-old Methodist minister in Pittsburgh when he returned to Adrian in 1955 to serve as the college's president. He would hold that position until 1978. Following retirement, Dawson remained active in the community and published two books. John Harper Dawson died on April 20, 2002.

Historical Note

During the American Civil War, the 17th Virginia Cavalry was organized at Salem, Virginia in January, 1863, through a combination of three newly raised companies with seven companies which had been in the 33rd Battalion of Virginia Cavalry. The 17th served in the Jenkins-McCausland Brigade, seeing action in the Gettysburg Campaign and in western Virginia. The regiment served in the Battle of Cloyd's Mountain, in Early's Shenandoah Campaign, and at Appomattox.

Scope and Content

This collection consists of a typescript draft of John Harper Dawson's Wildcat Cavalry: a Synoptic History of the Seventeenth Virginia Cavalry Regiment of the Jenkins-McCausland Brigade in the War Between the States (published by Morningside House in 1982). The draft, comprised of 100 pages, contains only a few handwritten revisions, though its text is noticeably different from that which would be eventually published.

Related Material

Dawson, John Harper, Wildcat Cavalry: a Synoptic History of the Seventeenth Virginia Cavalry Regiment of the Jenkins-McCausland Brigade in the War Between the States (Dayton, OH: Morningside House, 1982). E581.6 17th D38 1982 Civil War Spec

Subjects and Indexing Terms

• Civil War
• United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865

Rights Statement for Archival Description

The guide to the John Harper Dawson Book Manuscript by Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, is licensed under a CC0 ( https://creativecommons.org/share-your-work/public-domain/cc0/ ).