Have you run out of puzzles to do at home? If so, you are in luck because we have created three digital puzzles through Jigsaw Explorer using images from our collection.
By Registrar / Collections Manager Lauren Fleming
One of my first thoughts when visiting a museum is either “Oh, that’s so clean!” or “Ew, they haven’t dusted in ages.”
by Registrar/Collections Manager Lauren Fleming
With Easter approaching, thoughts naturally turn to children toting colorful baskets filled with equally vivid dyed eggs. But with the coronavirus threatening to put public gatherings like Easter egg hunts on hold, I thought this might present an opportunity to talk about another type of basket formerly found in Valley households: key baskets.
by Curator of Collections Nick Powers
Powell W. Gibson (1875-1959) is best remembered in Shenandoah Valley history as the principal of the segregated Douglas School in Winchester for a quarter of its nearly century-long history.
by Curator of Collections Nick Powers
Later this month, Winchester historian Judy Humbert will share some of her recollections of the Douglas School that Gibson helped build in the second of the MSV’s new Lunch & Learn series.
This hoard of papers, along with personal photographs, made its way into the MSV in 1996 as part of Julian Wood Glass Jr.’s estate. Since that time the materials have been sitting in collections storage with their contents largely unknown and inaccessible to researchers and staff members.
By Registrar/Collections Manager Lauren Fleming
There is a saying that history is not always pretty. That sentiment is certainly true of material culture—everyday objects created and used by people in the past.
By Registrar/Collections Manager Lauren Fleming
Fall in the Shenandoah Valley means one thing: color. The leaves on the many oaks, maples, dogwoods, and other native trees begin to fade from deep green to brilliant hues of red, orange, and yellow.
By Curator of Collections Nick Powers
Happy National Walnut Day! While this holiday was created to celebrate the hard-shelled nut the walnut tree produces, we are instead “going nuts” about a few objects made with the beautifully-grained wood at the heart of the tree.
by Curator of Collections Nick Powers
May 7 marks National Teacher Appreciation Day, an opportunity to celebrate and honor educators of all types who make lasting contributions to our communities. Teachers change the lives of millions of children every day, inspiring a lifelong love of learning and molding young minds in a positive direction.
Have you met some of our favorite furry friends?
Potter Samuel Bell (1811-1891) of Winchester made this pair of molded whippet figurines in 1841. Whippets are an English sighthound breed descended from greyhounds. The Bell family of potters made numerous whippets as decorative pieces for Valley homes, some of which retain their original paint decoration.
