More than 160 types of plants will be available for purchase at the Museum of the Shenandoah Valley (MSV) Heritage Plant Sale taking place from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, May 16 and 17. Admission to the plant sale is free.
Prehistoric Giants Forged from Scrap Metal on View in the Gardens April 1–October 19, 2025
A traveling exhibition featuring prints created by Jacob Lawrence—one of the first nationally recognized Black artists in U.S. history—opens at the Museum of the Shenandoah Valley (MSV) on February 1 and will be on view through August 3, 2025.
The Board of Directors of the Museum of the Shenandoah Valley (MSV) has named Scott Stroh as the Museum’s next executive director and chief executive officer. Currently the executive director of George Mason’s Gunston Hall in Mason Neck, Virginia, Stroh was selected after a national search that began in June 2024.
The Museum of the Shenandoah Valley (MSV) will host the Virginia Gourd Show & Sale from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. this Saturday and Sunday, November 9 and 10. Admission to the show and sale is free.
The Museum of the Shenandoah Valley will celebrate LGBTQ+ History Month with free admission for all visitors from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. this Saturday, October 5, during Pride at the MSV.
All of the plants in the Heritage Plant Sale have been handpicked by the horticultural staff for their ability to thrive in Shenandoah Valley gardens. In this blog, Perry Mathewes—MSV Director of Gardens—shares his top 10 plant picks at this year’s sale.
In the 1950s, Julian Wood Glass Jr. (1910–1992), descendent of Winchester founder James Wood, and his partner, R. Lee Taylor (1924–2000), began a massive project to renovate the Glen Burnie House and beautify its surrounding grounds.
Compiled by Sally Meyer, Nick Powers, and Sam Scalph
Curator of Collections Nick Powers discusses Storer College in Harpers Ferry, WV and the ways in which its community reflected on its history decades after emancipation.
“When is the best time to visit the garden?” This is a question Director of Gardens Perry Mathewes gets frequently. The short answer is “Any time we are open.” Of course, a longer more complex answer requires you to pull up a chair for this read.
Curator of Collections Nick Powers discusses the history and unique contributions of artists in the Shenandoah Valley throughout its 250 year history.
Guest blogger James R. Coates Jr., PhD, shares personal reflections inspired by photographs in the exhibition Danny Lyon: Memories of the Southern Civil Rights Movement, on view at the MSV from April 2–July 31, 2022, and organized by art2art Circulating Exhibitions.
One of the many stories told in the new exhibition, Contributions: African Americans in the Shenandoah Valley, is that of free Blacks living in the region. Including those who were either born free or achieved their freedom through manumission (release from enslavement), free blacks in Virginia numbered approximately 58,000 people just before the Civil War … Continued
This past Full Moon on November 19, we took a group out on the Trails to experience the nighttime environment for the second time since opening the Trails to the public. The moon was stunning, if tough to capture on a cell phone camera. When you think about a Full Moon, what comes to mind? … Continued
Was there ever a time in your life when you saw the yellow spine of a National Geographic magazine and didn’t feel even the slightest curiosity about what was inside its pages? I still remember the anticipation I would feel as a small child waiting for my dad to unwrap a new issue so I … Continued
By Perry Mathewes, Deputy Director, Museum Operations and Director of Gardens One of the great things about working in the MSV Gardens is that you get to spend lots of time around beautiful plants and nature. Yes, there is the drudgery of weeding, mulching and other mundane tasks, but there are also sublime moments as … Continued
Many of us likely recall exactly where we were the day the attacks took place on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon on September 11, 2001.