Calendar of Events Celebrating History of Jefferson County WV
This page describes events sponsored by or benefiting the Jefferson County Historical Society as well as links to other web sites hosted by groups conducting historic events in nearby parts of West Virginia and adjacent states throughout the year.
2008 Jefferson County Historical Society Calendar of Events
Through May 4, 2008 - http://www.shenandoahmuseum.org/galleries/changing_gallery.html On view through May 4, 2008 at the Museum of the Shenandoah Valley in Winchester, VA: Garnet Jex: Harpers Ferry Landscapes displays 18 paintings by Washington, DC, artist Garnet Jex (1895-1979). Jex worked in Washington, DC, his entire life. But his heart was in the country. Beginning in the 1920's and over some 36 years, Jex and his fellow artists in the Landscape Club of Washington often traveled to Harpers Ferry, West Virginia for inspiration and subject matter. Jex delighted in setting up his easel and painting “beside the rivers and upon the hills” of this Shenandoah Valley town. His vibrant images captured the beauty of Harpers Ferry long before tourists discovered it.
January 5 - 10:00 am: Board meeting in Perry Room of Olde Charles Town Library
February 2 - 6:00 pm - Mardi Gras benefit for Olde Charles Town Library and Museum See details at http://www.mystickrewe.org/
March 1 - 10:00 am: Board meeting in Perry Room of Olde Charles Town Library
April 5 - 2:00 pm - Spring Membership Meeting in basement meeting room of the Olde Charles Town Library at the corner of Washington and Samuel Streets (use the Museum entrance on Samuel Street).
The program speaker will be Kit McGinnis of the National Park Trust, who is leading the development of the Washington Family Legacy Park initiative, a local effort to have several of the Washington family homes in the county incorporated into the National Park Service. Please click here for a complete description of the initiative.
April 16 - JEFFERSON COUNTY HISTORIC LANDMARKS COMMISION MEETING & LANDMARK AWARDS, 6:30 PM In the meeting room of the Charles Town Library.
April 19 - 2:00 pm - A lecture by Dr. Philander Chase, editor of the Colonial Series of the Papers of George Washington at 2pm on April 19th. The lecture will be hosted by the Byrd Center for Legislative Studies and will be held in the Center's auditorium on the campus of Shepherd University at 213 N. King Street, Shepherdstown, WV.
Dr. Chase will discuss George Washington's experiences as a Shenandoah Valley surveyor and landowner in what is now Jefferson County, WV, and how those experiences fostered his commitment to western development and American nationalism. Dr. Chase will also discuss briefly the Washington Papers project. Much of this lecture will be drawn from his essay "A Stake in the West: George Washington as Backcountry Surveyor and Landholder," published in Warren R. Hofstra, ed., George Washington and the Virginia Backcountry (Madison, WI: Madison House Publishers, 1998). Quoting from an online description of Washington's surveying experiences (http://gwpapers.virginia.edu/education/life/life2.html):
"In the three years he spent as a surveyor, young George earned a large sum of money and also acquired over 2,000 acres of land for himself. Later in life, Washington used his surveying skills to measure his own property and farms, and his familiarity with approximating distances and using a compass aided him in the French and Indian and Revolutionary Wars."
Philander Chase is the senior editor of the Papers of George Washington at the University of Virginia. He is now in his thirty-fifth year of editing Washington's papers, having joined the project's editorial staff in 1973, the same year in which he received his Ph.D. in early American history from Duke University. In addition to his editing duties, Dr. Chase has written numerous articles and reviews. The formal portion of the lecture will last for about forty minutes. Additional time will be provided for questions and answers about any other aspects of Washington's life the audience may wish to raise.
April 19 - Workshop: How Does Your Garden Grow? Harpers Ferry National Historical Park, 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM - CLICK HERE for more info.
What are kitchen gardens & heirloom vegetables and how do they differ from today`s gardens?
April 20 - HARPERS FERRY, AMERICAN SUBLIME: THE ART AND THE PLACE: 2 p.m. at the Museum of the Shenandoah Valley in Winchester
Learn how Harpers Ferry emerged and evolved in American and European landscape art from 1840 to 1940 in this illustrated lecture by Shenandoah University Assistant Professor of Art History and Art Geraldine W. Kiefer, Ph.D. This fascinating program—which Professor Kiefer created in collaboration with her History of Photography students—will include photographic presentations of the Harpers Ferry area and a historical and contextual reading of the Garnet Jex paintings of Harpers Ferry on display in the MSV Changing Exhibition Gallery.
More information available at http://www.shenandoahmuseum.org/calendar/calendar_item.php?group_id=140
May 3 - 10:00 am: Board meeting in Perry Room of Olde Charles Town Library
May 3 - The Eyes of the Army: The Cavalry Factor, Harpers Ferry National Historical Park, 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM - CLICK HERE for more info.
May 16 - WEST VIRGINIA ARCHIVES AND HISTORY MEETING - In Shepherdstown, WV.
May 17 - SHPO LANDMARKS COMMISSION CONFERENCE - In Shepherdstown, WV.
May 17 - Workshop: How Does Your Garden Grow? Harpers Ferry National Historical Park, 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM - CLICK HERE for more info.
What are kitchen gardens & heirloom vegetables and how do they differ from today`s gardens?
May 17 - (Saturday). Virginia Lodge 1, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, will be celebrating the 175th anniversary of the beginning of the order in Virginia/West Virginia in 1833. An open house will be held at the Lodge hall in Harpers Ferry, WV from 10 am to 5 PM, complete with refreshments and special music.
250 unique commemorative coins have been minted. The design of the coin was inspired by the original 1834 lodge banner, which bears the seal of the State of Virginia, and the Latin motto from the Roman poet Virgil, “Sic Itur Ad Astra”(Thus upward to the stars).
These handsome mementoes are 1 3/4 inches in diameter, of brass with an antique bronze finish. They are available for $15 each, plus $2.35 shipping(check payable to Virginia Lodge No. 1, IOOF), from Virginia Lodge No. 1, IOOF, P. O. Box 896, Harpers Ferry, WV 25425.
May 24 & 25 - Defend and Protect: Arming America`s Soldiers, Harpers Ferry National Historical Park, 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM - CLICK HERE for more info.
Special exhibits, historic weapons firing demonstration, and programs highlight the Harpers Ferry Armory, technology, invention and how soldiers used these weapons for national defense and exploration.
June 7 - National Trails Day, Harpers Ferry National Historical Park, 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM - CLICK HERE for more info.
Join Harpers Ferry Park and partners Harpers Ferry Main Street, the Appalachian Trail Conservancy, and Appalachian Trail Museum Society for our annual National Trails Day events, Americas largest annual single-day trails and outdoor celebration.
June 13-15 - Mountain Heritage Arts and Crafts Festival
June 14 & 15 - Under Fire: The Battle of Harpers Ferry 1862, Harpers Ferry National Historical Park, 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM - CLICK HERE for more info.
Interprets the Battle of Harpers Ferry and the surrender of the Union garrisoned town to southern forces under General Stonewall Jackson.
July 12 - 10:00 am: Board meeting in Perry Room of Olde Charles Town Library
August 6th - 5:00 pm - Summer Picnic. The 2008 picnic will be held at Mount Ellen, the home of Mr. and Mrs. Yves Tencalla, at the intersection of Summit Point Road and Steptoe Street in Summit Point, beginning at 5pm. Please bring a covered dish, beverages, and folding chairs.
September 6 - 10:00 am: Board meeting in Perry Room of Olde Charles Town Library
September 20 - All day: Charles Town Heritage Day
September 21 - Potomac Pedalers Touring Club will again conduct its "Backroads Century Tours" in the historic and scenic Shenandoah Valley counties of Jefferson (WV) and Clarke (VA). In addition to the 100 miles of a full English century, there will still be shorter routes as well, with distances of quarter century (25 miles), half century (50 miles), and metric century (100 km or 62 miles). Period entertainment at the White House Farm rest stop will be provided by Charlie Casabona on string instruments, Jay Hurley on the hammered dulcimer, and Genevieve O'Laughlin on the harp and drum. In the past two years the club has contributed $1500 to the Society to expand the public's appreciation of the unique history of our fair county and its people.
September 26-28 - Mountain Heritage Arts and Crafts Festival
October 4 - 10:00 am: Board meeting in Perry Room of Olde Charles Town Library
November 1 - - 2:00 pm - Fall Meeting in Meeting Room in basement of the Olde Charles Town Library at the corner of Washington and Samuel Streets (use the Museum entrance on Samuel Street)
2009 Jefferson County Historical Society Calendar of Events
2009: The theme for the JCHS Magazine for 2009 will commemorate the 150th anniversary of the events surrounding John Brown's raid on the federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry. Contributions to the magazine from Society members and others are welcomed.
October 16-19, 2009: - 150th Commemoration of the John Browns Raid, and first event to kick off of 150th Commemoration of the Civil War
Other Jefferson County Historical Event Calendars
JCHS Visitor Events Page
http://www.jeffersonhistoricalwv.org/visitorevents.html
Events at Harpers Ferry National Historical Park
Click HERE to visit
Harpers Ferry National Historic Park
http://www.nps.gov/hafe/planyourvisit/events.htm
Jefferson County Historic Landmarks Commission:
http://www.jeffersoncountyhlc.org/events.html
Washington Heritage Trail
http://www.washingtonheritagetrail.org/cultural.asp
Jefferson County Chamber of Commerce
http://www.jeffersoncounty.com/calendar.html
Jefferson County Convention and Visitors Bureau
http://www.hello-wv.com/index_new.asp
Beyond Jefferson County HISTORICAL Events
West Virginia Division of Culture and History
http://www.wvculture.org/events.aspx
West Virginia Tourism Council
http://www.wvtourism.com/spec.aspx?pgid=53
Mosby Heritage Area
http://www.mosbyheritagearea.org/events.htm
