The Museum in the Park at Chief Logan State Park will present a Civil War Genealogy program on Saturday, Sept. 27, from 10 a.m. - 6 p.m., and on Sunday, Sept. 28, from 1 - 6 p.m. The program is timed to coincide with the Civil War Heritage Weekend being held in the park. The program is free and the public is invited to attend.
Local historian and genealogist Eldean Wellman will be featured in the program to help people discover if they are descended from a member of the Confederate Army’s Company D, 36th Virginia Infantry, formed in 1861, and later known as the Logan County Wildcats. She will help visitors research their genealogy and fill out a five-generation lineage chart of their family at the Museum on both days
A longtime resident of Logan County and graduate of Marshall University, Wellman has researched and written Logan County Wildcats, a history of the group. Other recent publications include Thomas Moore and Descendants, an account of the Moore family lineage through 2001 and six states; History of Maryetta United Baptist Church 1899-2000; Our Pioneer Heritage, 45 sketches of the earliest pioneers of Kentucky, Virginia and West Virginia; and An American Vendetta: Hatfields and McCoys, an edited volume of T. C. Crawford’s definitive 1888 recounting of the world-famous feud.
In addition, Wellman has compiled numerous volumes of birth, marriage and death records from public records in several southern West Virginia counties. She is a member of the Westmoreland Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution and the Logan County Genealogical Society and a past Logan County Belle.
Wellman is bringing three volumes of The Virginia Regimental History Series and the Logan County Federal Census from 1850 through 1920 to aid people in their explorations.
Visitors also are invited to tour the current exhibits at the Museum. Ladies Fashion Dolls of the Nineteenth Century features 56 costumed dolls from the West Virginia State Museum collection made of papier mache. The dolls, created by West Virginia artist Pete Ballard of Peterstown, Monroe County, span the three periods that dominated ladies’ fashion in the 19th century including the revival of the Classical Period (1800 - 1820); the Romantic Period (1820 - 1840); and the Victorian Era (1840 - 1900). The We Are Marshall exhibit displays items produced as props for the movie production and actually used in the film of the same name, including a cheerleader’s megaphone and uniform; license plates from West Virginia and North Carolina and a Boone’s Restaurant menu, among others. Dehue . . . A Special Place examines aspects of coal camp life including business and social life; The Ron Moxley Collection: Native American Artifacts which includes a nutting stone found in Chief Logan State Park; and Black Diamonds, which takes a look at coal mining throughout West Virginia, with an emphasis on the southern part of the state, and showcases artifacts of tools, photographs and historical dialogue.
Other displays include two quilts made by the late Katie Barnette of Logan and award winners from the 2007 West Virginia Juried Exhibition are also on exhibit.
For more information about the Civil War Genealogy program, contact Elizabeth Williams, site manager at the Museum in the Park, at (304) 792-7229.
The Museum in the Park is a regional cultural center showcasing the best in West Virginia history and the arts. It features changing exhibits and displays of artwork and historical items from the collections of the West Virginia State Museum and the State Archives. One area of the museum is dedicated to local and regional history. It is operated and maintained by the West Virginia Division of Culture and History and is located four miles north of Logan on West Virginia Route 10 at Chief Logan State Park. The museum is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. and Sunday from 1 - 6 p.m.
The West Virginia Division of Culture and History, an agency of the West Virginia Department of Education and the Arts, brings together the state’s past, present and future through programs and services in the areas of archives and history, the arts, historic preservation and museums. Its administrative offices are located at the Cultural Center in the State Capitol Complex in Charleston, which also houses the state archives and state museum. The Cultural Center is West Virginia’s official showcase for the arts. The agency also operates a network of museums and historic sites across the state. For more information about the Division’s programs, visit the web site at www.wvculture.org. The Division of Culture and History is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer.
-30-
