Cave Post Offices in Virginia and West Virginia

Transcription

1 Cave Post Offices in Virginia and West Virginia by Thomas Lera American Spelean History Association Special Publication Number One Revised April 2018

2 The American Spelean History Association The American Spelean History Association (ASHA) is an internal organization of the National Speleological Society. It is devoted to the study, interpretation, and dissemination of information about spelean history, which includes folklore, legends, and historical facts about caves throughout the world and the people who are associated with them, their thoughts, philosophies, difficulties, tragedies, and triumphs. Membership: Membership in the Association is open to anyone who is interested in the history of man s use of caves. Membership in the National Speleological Society is not required. The Journal of Spelean History is the Association s primary publication and is mailed to all members. The Journal includes articles covering a wide variety of topics relating to man s use of caves, including historical cave exploration and use, saltpeter and other mineral extraction, show cave development and history, and other related topics. It is the primary medium for conveying information and ideas within the caving history community. A cumulative Journal of Spelean History index is available on the Association s Web site, and issues over five years old may be viewed and downloaded at no cost. Membership: ASHA membership (or subscription) cost $2.00 per Journal of Spelean History issue mailed to U.S. addresses. Checks should be made payable to ASHA and sent to the Treasurer (Robert Hoke, 6304 Kaybro St, Laurel MD 20707). Sorry, we cannot accept credit cards. Check the Association s Web site for information on foreign membership. This Special Publication of the American Spelean History Association is available on the Association s Web site at It can be downloaded at no cost. The original version was produced in January, 2018, and two revised versions were produced in April, 2018: Version 1 (January, 2018) Version 2 (April, 2018 Reformatted images and tables. Clarified dates of postmaster appoints in Rock Cave W. Va. Inserted new postmark from Natural Bridge. Version 3 April 2018 Added Guano Va postmark and revised text. Added new online citation for postmaster appointments. Modified Natural Bridge, Natural Bridge Station, Natural Tunnel and Rock Cave postmaster appointment dates. Cover Upper image: Lower image: 1859 Cave Spring, Virginia, Manuscript cover from Thomas Lera Collection 1888 Registered Letter from Cave, West Virginia, courtesy of Wayne Farley Collection

3 CAVE POST OFFICES IN VIRGINIA AND WEST VIRGINIA Thomas Lera When reorganizing my collection of United States cave postmarks, I was inspired to expand on my 2011 book Cave Post Offices, published by Cave Books, and research the history of the existing and discontinued Virginia and West Virginia Cave Post Offices. The major source of information regarding the postmasters and post offices can be found at: The digitized daily U.S. Postal Bulletin and U.S. Postal Laws and Regulations at Official Register of the United States, containing a List of Officers and Employees in the Civil, Military, and Naval Service. The Post Office and The Postal Service, Washington D.C. Government Printing Service, published every two years; Prior to 1971, the primary sources of information are National Archives Microfilm Publication M1131, Record of Appointment of Postmasters, October , and M841, Record of Appointment of Postmasters, 1832 September 30, Record Group 28: Records of the Post Office Department, Post Office Department. Bureau of the Fourth Assistant Postmaster. Division of Topography. ( ); Post Office Department. Bureau of Facilities. 8/20/1949-?; Post Office Department. Office of the Postmaster General /1/1971. Reports of Site Locations, , from Records Group 28, Virginia and West Virginia. Generally, a Post Office s establishment date is that of the appointment of its first postmaster. Historical maps were found at the University of Texas Libraries, Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection I would like to thank Sandy Fitzgerald who edited the article, Rick Calhoun for his comments and suggestions and Wayne Farley for his assistance in preparing this document for publication. Gene Lightfoot, Galen Harrison, and Lou Basten provided some of the illustrations, as did Richard Frajola s message board ( Robert Hoke, American Spelean History Association ( provided comment on the organization and layout, and Baasil Wilder, NPM Librarian for his research on Railroad Post Offices. I appreciate all their help. 1

4 Table of Contents Virginia Post Offices Cave Spring(s) --- page 3 Endless Caverns --- page 8 (The) Grottoes --- page 12 Guano --- page 18 Luray Caverns --- page 20 Natural Bridge and Natural Bridge Station --- page 21 Natural Tunnel or Tunnel--- page 34 Salt Petre Cave --- page 37 Shenandoah Caverns --- page 43 Weyers Cave --- page 48 West Virginia Post Offices Cave --- page 54 Grotto Dell --- page 57 Organ Cave --- page 63 Rock Cave --- page 67 End Notes --- page 71 2

5 Cave Spring(s), Virginia Post Office (09/16/ /31/1908) As the main roads improved in the late 18th century, travel increased which led to the establishment of businesses, providing food and lodging for travelers and their livestock, as well as new communities. Cave Spring in Roanoke County, was settled in the early 19th century southwest of Roanoke, on Franklin Pike, taking its name came from the large spring located there. This became a popular place for farmers from Bent Mountain and Franklin and Floyd Counties to bring their goods to trade and sell (fig. 1). Cave Spring post office opened in 1849 with Abram Greenwood as postmaster, joined in the 1850s by three stores and a blacksmith shop. Figure 1. Site Drawing by Postmaster Martha Epps Hartman, August 10, Red arrow points to the location of Cave Spring (#2), 2 ½ miles from the Star Key Station of the Norfolk & Western Railroad, on the west side of the railroad. 1 The emergence of the railroad in the late 19th century accelerated commercial growth in Roanoke County. Larger and more specialized commercial enterprises developed throughout the countryside, one being J. W. Berry General Merchandise Store, which carried clothing, shoes, hardware, dry goods, drugs, farm tools, blankets, and household needs. 3

6 Towns and communities located along the railroad, such as Cave Spring, grew rapidly, benefiting from the increased trade, which in turn encouraged the development of specialized commerce, such as the marketing of peach orchard products. 2 Below is a listing of postmasters taken from the Official Register of the United States and Postal Bulletins Since the Official Register was published every two years, exact dates could not be determined. The post office was discontinued August 31, Cave Spring Postmasters Roanoke County, Virginia Name Title Date Appointed Abram Greenwood Postmaster 09/16/1849 S. H. C. Greenwood Postmaster 01/07/1853 G. G. Hartman Postmaster 10/04/1854 H. C. Stevens Postmaster 04/05/1860 G.A. Cunningham Postmaster 03/26/1866 Mary F. Richardson Postmaster 10/17/1866 C. H. Whitescarver Acting Postmaster 1891 Martha Epps Hartman Postmaster 02/02/1892 Samuel B. Hancock Postmaster 06/10/1893 Nathan Chapman Postmaster 05/28/1897 Mail to Roanoke 08/31/1908 Figures 2 10 show various postmarks, cancellations, and Martha Epps Hartman, postmaster, from Cave Spring, Virginia. Figure 2. Postmaster G.G. Hartman manuscript postmark and date cancel

7 Figure 3. Postmaster Mary F. Richardson manuscript with light X cancel on the stamp 187(?). Figure 4. Later Mary F. Richardson manuscript postmark with target cancel Figure 5. Mary F. Richardson used these 26mm circle [hand written] date postmarks with a small offset on bottom of postmark. There is a target cancel over the stamp image on the postal card

8 Figure 6. Martha Epps Hartman, postmaster in (Source: History Museum of Western Virginia, image file 043/ a.jpg) Figure 7. Martha Epps Hartman used this 28mm circle date (without year) postmark and target cancel

9 Figure 8. Postmaster Nathan Chapman used this 27mm circle date postmark with target killer Figure 9. Nathan Chapman also used this Type 2 #2 Doane 4-bar postmark, with San Serif font (used 12/10/ /04/1908) 3 Cave Spring Post Office was discontinued August 31, 1908, with mail then going to Roanoke for processing. Today it is part of the Roanoke metropolitan area and a branch of the Roanoke Post Office. Figure 10. Double Circle 25/30mm cancel from Cave Spring Branch Roanoke Va

10 Endless Caverns, Virginia Post Office (04/29/ /30/1943) In 1988, Russell Gurnee, president of the Explorers Club of New York and the National Speleological Society, wrote in the Journal of Spelean History 4 On October 1 st, 1679, near New Market, Virginia, (so the story goes) two boys ran a rabbit to ground and discovered a cave on Reuben Zirkle s farm. Mr. Zirkle was very interested in this find as the popularity of nearby Luray Caverns and Fountain Cave (near the town of Grottoes), decided to capitalize on their popularity. The location of the Zirkle Cave, in Rockingham County only three miles south of New Market, was near the main railway line running down the Shenandoah Valley. The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Company had connecting trains with all the companies, like the Norfolk & Western Railway Company Shenandoah Division, supplying service both north and south. Mr. Zirkle proceeded to promote visitation to the cave by enlarging the entrance, smoothing the trails, adding steps where needed, and changing the name to the Endless Caverns. In 1882, when the railroad came to Luray, the traffic to New Market decreased and business for Endless Caverns began to fade. An attempt was made to develop the cave as Silver Hill Caverns, but by the financial crash of 1893 it was closed as a business venture. In 1919 the farm and cave were put up for sale and a Col. E. T. Brown and his son Major E. M. Brown of Atlanta purchased the property. Natural Wonders, Inc. was formed, and the name of the cave was changed back to Endless Caverns. The next year was spent in refurbishing the cave, adding electrical lights, providing new surface buildings and a visitor s center. On August 14th, 1920, the cave was opened to the public again. Times had changed. The automobile was making an impact on the travel habits of the public. The Brown s saw an opportunity to promote their cave, off the main north/south highway. In 1923, Edward M. Brown joined the Explorers Club in New York as a resident associate member and shared his interest in exploration with other members. Major Brown had an idea: find the end of Endless Caverns. He would provide transportation and expenses for Club members, notify the press and photographers, and arrange for newsreel coverage. The exploration was a huge success for the owners of Endless Caverns. National attention was focused on the cave and the visitor attendance soared. Chester Reeds published The Endless Caverns of the Shenandoah Valley, a popular report of the geology of the cave and the Shenandoah Valley limestone region with photos taken on the expedition, including sketches and geological maps of the region. In 1929, due to the large number of tourists visiting the caverns, a 4 th class post office was established on April 29 th with Robert J. Blackburn as postmaster. Figures show different postmarks and cancellations used by Postmaster Blackburn. Note a postmark indicates the place and date of mailing usually within a circle and is accompanied by a cancellation applied over the stamp so it cannot be used again. 8

11 Figure 11. Earliest known usage 33mm 4-bar, Type C/1 handstamp Figure 12. Universal Type cancellation 23mm circular postmark with 7-lines, 2 full waves cancellation. Figure 13. National Airmail Week Cachet, May 19, 1938, with Universal type cancellation. The cachet on the left shows an image of Endless Caverns. 9

12 Figure 14. Universal cancellation with missing time slug. Figure 15. Deformed Type F/1 4-bar postmark and cancellation, used only in Figure 16. Last day cover with postmaster signature with light purple, 32 mm 4-bar, Type F/1 handstamp. The post office was discontinued on April 30, 1943, with the mail sent to New Market, VA for processing. In the gift shop, there was an auxiliary mark Mailed at ENDLESS CAVERNS which anyone could add to their letter or postcard before putting it in the mail box (fig. 17). 10

13 Figure 17. After the post office closed, customers used auxiliary marking in blue and red ink. Endless Caverns sold souvenir folders with 18 colored pictures and a road map showing its location (fig. 18). Figure 18. Souvenir Folder mailed May 4, In 1996, Joseph Douglas published a study on the use of caves as fallout shelters. Regarding Endless Caverns he wrote, A different, yet equally self-serving, utilization of a cave as a fallout shelter can be seen in the activities of the Washington Group of the New York-based Explorers Club. This group of notable men had a history of exploration in Endless Caverns of New Market, Virginia, having conducted three expeditions to the cave between 1925 and

14 The Club s Washington Group set up a Survey Committee to make plans for using Endless Caverns as a fallout shelter. This Committee inspected the commercial sections of the cave with the goal of reaching a private agreement with the cave s owner to shelter up to 1000 persons. This was to be a private venture. The Virginia Civil Defense authorities approved this plan. The 1000 persons included in the proposal would consist of the Washington Group and their families, not the general public. The Explorers Club claimed this was to be a model for others, but it was basically a plan to save those who had means and connections. Douglas concluded the rest of the Washington D.C. population would have to fend for themselves. 5 Many changes have taken place in Virginia s Shenandoah Valley in the 94 years since the Explorers Club trip was completed. Endless Caverns has been sold several times, explored and mapped to its end. Explorers continue discovering and investigating caves all over the world, and may never find an end to the caverns. (The) Grottoes, Virginia Post Office (08/15/ /09/1890; 11/20/1893 open) Weyers Cave was discovered in 1804 by Bernard (Barnette) Weyer while trying to retrieve one of his traps. It opened for tours in 1806, making it the oldest continually operating commercial cave in the United States. The cave has gone through several owners and name changes since its discovery in For a short time after the discovery, the landowner tried to name the cave Amon s or Amen s Cave, after himself. The public quickly reverted to calling it Weyers Cave, in honor of its discoverer, which it was to bear for over 100 years (fig.19). In 1810, Matthias Amend deeded the property to his daughter Mary and her husband, Henry V. Bingham. Bingham sold the land to John Mohler in 1819 and the property remained in the Mohler family for many years. At that time, the town of Grottoes, as it exists today, had not yet been founded. Before the discovery of the cave, George Washington had visited and mapped other nearby caves, as had Thomas Jefferson, and both of their signatures can still be seen on the walls of adjacent Madison Cave. It name was changed in 1926 to Grand Caverns. 12

15 Figure 19. Location of Weyers Cave, later called Grand Caverns, and the town of Shendun in Rockingham County, shown on a portion of the 1888 Harrisonburg, Virginia Topographical Map (published by the United States Geological Survey). During the Civil War the battles of Cross Keys and Port Republic, which are often considered two of the greatest Confederate victories of the Shenandoah Valley, were fought nearby and the cave was visited by both Confederate and Union soldiers. There are over 200 verified civil war signatures in the cave. The most famous signature is Captain W. W. Miles, of the 14th Pennsylvania Calvary, signed on September 26, 1864 (fig. 20). Figure 20. W. W. Miles signature. From 1889 to 1893, the Grottoes Land Company owned Weyers Cave, which was sometimes referred to as the Grottoes of the Shenandoah (fig. 21). 13

16 Figure 21. Grottoes of the Shenandoah, Commercial Chrome #52891, postcard. Holly Stover bought the property in 1926 and changed the name from Weyers Cave to Grand Caverns, as it is known today. 6 The post office is in town and is still open. The table below lists the town name changes with corresponding postmasters. The town was called Liola in the early 1880s and its post office served about 22 families. In February 1890 the name was changed to Shendun by an Act of Assembly, incorporating the town with W.I. Harnsberger elected mayor, R.T. Miller, E.R. Armentrout, J.W. Rumple, J.G. Hall, J.M. Pirkey, and L.D. Patterson were councilmen. In 1893, the town name was changed to Grottoes. The post office was located 900 feet on the west side of the Grottoes Railroad Station. The town was once the major midway point of the Shenandoah Division Line of the Norfolk and Western Railroad. The railroad sold stop-over tickets allowing visits to Luray, Grottoes and Natural Bridge. The ticket holders were either firstclass through limited tickets or local excursion tickets, provided the destination could be reached within the limit of the tickets. 7 The post office moved in 1945 to Sixth Street which was 100 feet from the old post office. Mail was supplied to the post office by the Norfolk and Western Railway and by Rural Route exchange from Weyers Cave about 6 miles west. 14

17 Grottoes Postmasters Rockingham County, Virginia Name Title Date Appointed (Originally established as LIOLA) Moffett P. Beard Postmaster 04/07/1882 John D. Wisner Postmaster 02/05/1886 Name changed to THE GROTTOES on August 15, 1888 John D. Wisner Postmaster 08/15/1888 Florence Fulton Postmaster 06/20/1889 Name changed to SHENDUN on June 9, 1890 Florence Fulton Postmaster 06/09/1890 Robert T. Miller Postmaster 05/05/1893 Name changed to GROTTOES on November 20, 1893 Robert T. Miller Postmaster 11/20/1893 Florence B. Fulton Postmaster 04/26/1897 Bessie R. Fulton Postmaster 10/25/1906 James F. Littell Postmaster 03/12/1914 W. Ingles Harnsberger Postmaster 05/11/1922 Philip Ransom Cosby Postmaster 07/27/1935 James K. Sullivan Acting Postmaster 01/31/1958 James K. Sullivan Postmaster 06/30/1959 Jerry Simmons Officer-In-Charge 08/30/1985 Ramon A. Colonna Postmaster 03/15/1986 Leona Faye Lotts Officer-In-Charge 09/21/1992 Larry E. Martin Postmaster 06/12/1993 Deborah Fitzgerald Officer-In-Charge 04/30/2003 Mark S. Kelly Postmaster 06/14/2003 Kimberly Harris Officer-In-Charge 10/05/2012 Rebecca J. Bowman Postmaster 12/29/2012 Roy D. Smith Jr. Officer-In-Charge 03/07/2013 Kimberly C. Harris Postmaster 10/19/2013 Figures show various postmarks and cancellations from Grottoes, Virginia. 15

18 Figure 22. Circle Date Postmark, 28mm August 27, Figure 23. RDF Postmark by Benjamin F. Miller, Rural Delivery Carrier Manuscript Rural Free Delivery postmarks, which do not include the town name, are identified by the address. These postmarks were required to be applied by RFD carriers in route on mail sent from neighbor to neighbor along the same route. It was applied in indelible pencil and delivered on the same trip during which it was acquired (figs. 23 & 24). If the mail was for any other destination, it would be taken to the post office for cancelling and processing. While carriers were supposed to write out the postmark, including the town, state, route and date, many of them opted to abbreviate the process in every variety of way: date and route only; date only; route only; scribble only; etc. Because it was such an inconvenience to apply these handwritten postmarks, carriers were not happy about having to do it, and almost never made the effort to cancel any mail they were not required to cancel. While postmasters clearly turned a blind eye to or maybe were unaware of the abbreviated postmarks applied to along the route deliveries, such abbreviations would not have been tolerated on mail leaving that town and entering the general mail stream. 16

19 Also, because these mailings went from neighbor to neighbor, they almost never contained a dateline showing the point of origin in the message. It is for these reasons the abbreviated RFD cancels are identified by the town of destination. Figure 24. Rockingham County, Va. Grottoes 1907 Rural Delivery Route. 8 Since the post office is still open, there have been many different postmarks and cancellations over the years. Figure 25. Grottoes Barred Ovate Grid Duplex 29.5mm handstamp and Double Circle Money Order Postmark

20 These are very common and not listed. Below is a barrel duplex handstamp with the number 1. The significance of the number in the cancel portion of the barrel duplex is believed to refer merely to a clerk number, cancelling postion number within the post office, or a method of keeping track of the various handstamps of this type within the post office (fig. 26). Figure 26. Barrel Duplex handstamp, 30mm Guano, Virginia Post Office (09/16/ /31/1911) Guano, Amherst County, Virginia Post Office (fig. 27) was established September 16, 1902, on route , 3 miles SE of Lynchburg and 9 miles NW of Concord and served about 100 residents. Lamar Gray Patterson was a chemist for the Virginia State Fertilizing Company which merged with the Virginia Carolina Chemical Company. His office in Guano, where he was appointed as postmaster, was located 300 feet from the Norfolk & Western Railway depot on the east side of the tracks. He earned $ in 1903 and $73.07 in On April 16, 1907, D. Moxley Low, Jr. was appointed postmaster and earned $153 that year. 18

21 On December 7, 1908, the Post Office was discontinued effective December 31 st with mail to James River. On December 29 th, the discontinue order was extended to January 31, The order was again modified January 27 th, extending the discontinue order to February 27, However, on February 17, 1909, the discontinue order was rescinded, and on October 28 th, Frank G. Low was appointed postmaster. Almost two years later, on January 31, 1911, Guano Post Office was finally, officially discontinued with mail permanently sent to James River for processing and delivery. Figure 27A. Post route map of the states of Virginia and West Virginia: showing post offices with the intermediate distances on mail routes in operation on the 1st of March United States Post Office Department, George B Cortelyou, and Raleigh T Daniel. [Washington, D.C.: Postmaster General, 1906] Map. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, (Accessed 10/01/2017). Figure 27B. Guano 4-Bar Cancellations with 33mm circle date, Type B dated November 29, The upper left corner return address is Lamar Gray Patterson s, first Guano postmaster, company address. (courtesy of Lou Basten Collection) 19

22 Luray Caverns Discovered in 1878, and named a United States Natural Landmark, Luray Caverns is one of America s largest and most popular cavern systems. The Smithsonian Institution report of July 13 &14, 1880 comments...it is safe to say that there is probably no other cave in the world more completely and profusely decorated with stalactite and stalagmite ornamentation than that of Luray. 9 The one-hour cave tour includes the haunting sounds of the Great Stalacpipe Organ, the world s largest musical instrument. This most unique oneof-a-kind instrument uses stalactites covering 3 1/2 acres of the surrounding caverns to produce tones of symphonic quality when electronically tapped by rubber-tipped mallets. I have included this listing because on the back of the envelope is an all-over picture entitled The Sentinel and Spectre (fig. 28). This is the only one I have ever seen. The caverns itself was never a post office, and since 1803, the mail was processed by the Luray post office in Page County (fig. 29). Figure 28. Reverse and front of At the Caverns envelope. Figure 29. Luray barred ovate handstamp. 20

23 Natural Bridge and Natural Bridge Station, Virginia Post Offices Natural Bridge (1800 open) Thomas Jefferson was the first owner of the Bridge and his enthusiasm for the site increased its fame at home and abroad. Jefferson probably viewed the bridge for the first time in August 1767, as noted in his Memorandum Book 10 which became the basis for his description in Notes on Virginia. 11 He obtained 157 acres that contained Natural Bridge in a grant from King George III dated July 5, 1774, then signed by Virginia Governor Dunmore. 12 Jefferson made at least three more recorded visits to the site, and, according to Chester Reed, in his book Natural Bridge and its Environs, surveyed the site himself in After financial difficulties in 1809, Jefferson tried to sell the land. For a time, he leased Saltpeter Cave, on the trail to the Bridge, for saltpeter mining. Jefferson s views on the Bridge express one of the first attempts in America to establish a conservation easement. His 1814 lease specified protection for the Bridge and the next year he wrote, I view it in some degree as a public trust and would on no consideration permit the bridge to be injured, defaced or masked from public view. 13 In a Memorandum of an Agreement entered on the 2 nd Day of December 1814, between Thomas Jefferson of Monticello in Albemarle county on one part, and Philip Thornton of Richmond in Henrico county on the other part, Jefferson wrote, The said Philip covenants on his part that he... will make no erection nor do any other thing which shall disfigure the said bridge as a natural curiosity; that he will commit no waste or destruction on the said bridge or lands... but that he will to the best of his power preserve the said bridge in its perfect natural and uninjured form. 14 This seems to be the first conservation easement in the United States. Figure 30 shows the location of Natural Bridge and Natural Bridge Station, in Rockbridge County, on a portion of the 1888 Natural Bridge, Virginia Topographical Map published by the United States Geological Survey. The Richmond and Allegheny Railroad (now Chesapeake & Ohio Railway) is on the east side of the James River, with the Norfolk & Western Shenandoah Division Railway on the west. The towns of Sherwood and Natural Bridge Station are located on the east side of the James River. Sherwood Post Office was open from Natural Bridge Station Post Office, opened in 1911, is still in operation. Matthew Houston, Natural Bridge s first postmaster was born in 1762 in Rockbridge County. He ran a sawmill, gristmill, and a dry goods store, which housed the post office. His Manor House, built in 1806, served not only as a home to the Houston family but also as a store, tavern, and the home base for the plantation. In 1812, Houston expanded the house and incorporated a two-story center hall with a full-arched ceiling reminiscent of the nearby Natural Bridge. 21

24 Figure 30. Location of Natural Bridge and Natural Bridge Station on a portion of the 1888 Natural Bridge, Virginia Topographical Map published by the United States Geological Survey. Figures show various maps, important postcards, and postmarks and cancellations used from Natural Bridge and Natural Bridge Station. The following is a list of Natural Bridge Postmasters. 15 Natural Bridge Postmasters Rockbridge County, Virginia Name Title Date Appointed Matthew Houston Postmaster 06/01/1800 David G. Houston Postmaster 05/10/1842 Joel Lackland Postmaster 04/01/1843 John Luster Postmaster 06/19/1845 John L. Eubank Postmaster 02/11/1847 Charles P. Lee Postmaster 08/11/1852 John B. Luster Postmaster 01/22/1853 James D. Walkup Postmaster 10/27/1853 James W. Luster Postmaster 05/27/1857 John F. Wootton Postmaster 02/08/1858 John H. L. Sheffield Postmaster 10/14/1858 John B. Luster Postmaster 10/06/1859 Mrs. Mary E. Fry Postmaster 10/11/1865 James M. Smith Postmaster 09/30/1867 Matthew Fry Postmaster 08/31/1868 John Waskey Postmaster 09/28/1868 James A. Wilson Postmaster 01/05/1869 John T. Campbell Postmaster 03/28/

25 Alfred McClelland Postmaster 06/22/1881 Ernest N. Bagg Postmaster 05/07/1883 W. Camper Postmaster 01/14/1885 Peter N. Burger Postmaster 01/20/1885 Julius J. Moore Postmaster 08/03/1892 James J. Moore Postmaster 08/16/1892 Walter E. L. Starke Postmaster 01/18/1894 Isaac A. Miller Postmaster 11/22/1897 Samuel J. McDaniel Postmaster 12/31/1904 James J. Moore Postmaster 02/13/1907 Julia V. Jenkins Postmaster 02/02/1912 John W. Burger Postmaster 04/13/1914 Benjamin C. Foster Acting Postmaster 12/09/1921 Kent E. Peery Postmaster 05/15/1922 Miss Gladys Mitchell Postmaster 10/10/1929 John W. Burger Acting Postmaster 11/30/1933 John W. Burger Postmaster 02/10/1934 Miss Lois Price Acting Postmaster 02/28/1941 Miss Lois Price Postmaster 11/07/1941 Miss Price s name was changed to Mrs. Lois P. Fainter by marriage on Nov. 26, 1950 Allie O. Tuck Acting Postmaster 03/31/1965 Allie O. Tuck Postmaster 03/14/1966 Kenneth W. Hudson Officer-In-Charge 05/18/1979 Wayne E. Conner Postmaster 08/11/1979 Gregory M. Campbell Officer-In-Charge 05/14/1981 Franklin R. Wade Postmaster 09/05/1981 Tracy P. Hite Officer-In-Charge 03/02/2012 Karen Horsley Officer-In-Charge 10/25/2012 David Fleming Officer-In-Charge 01/16/2013 Converted to a Remotely Managed Post Office under the direction of the postmaster of the Glasgow Post Office May 18, Figure 32. A section of the Plat of Natural Bridge Co. Property, Oct 1925, shows the Post Office was located directly across from the hotel. (Courtesy of the Natural Bridge archives). 23

26 Figure 31. J. W. Berger s store and post office, Natural Bridge Va. Photographed and published by W. E. Burgess, Scottsville, Va. Figure 33. Postcard view of Natural Bridge and real photo postcard of Salt Petre Cave at Natural Bridge. 24

27 Figure 34. Top. Matthew Houston Postmaster Straight Line [43 x 2 mm] postmark with manuscript cancel dated Jan 31, [1840]. Bottom, May 11, 1850 John E. Eubank, Postmaster, Manuscript Cancel and

28 Figure 35. Blue cancel Feb 7, 1852, with blue paid cancel. (Courtesy of Gene Lightfoot Collection) Figure 36. Blue cancel Nov 29, 1852, blue paid-cancel and manuscript Paid 3. (Courtesy of Gene Lightfoot Collection) 26

29 Figure 37. Blue Postmark (35mm) dated August 10, 1852, and Blue 5 unpaid. Figure 38. Black manuscript postmark with pen cancel Sept 5, 185(?). (Courtesy of Gene Lightfoot Collection) 27

30 Figure 39. Stamp cancelled by signature of James W. Luster, son of the postmaster at Natural Bridge, later he served as Postmaster from May 27, 1857 until Feb 2, 1858, (Courtesy of Gene Lightfoot Collection) Figure 40. John B. Luster postmaster. Handmade black-dotted mourning cover with an inspirational poem written by sender. Interesting military address to Valley of Va. which must be the Shenandoah. Vertical pair of CSA 6, the De La Rue printing. (From Siegel Auction 1128, May 2016, lot 982 and later the Bearer collection of mourning covers, 28

31 Figure 41. Circle Date postmark, 28mm, Oct 1, Figure 42. Horizontial bar cancel with five bar killer, Type A/1, and 31mm circle postmark. Figure 43. Type 2 #4 Doane used to The doane on the right is a malformed circle Doane postmark, which occurred from overuse. 29

32 Figure 44. Top, Natural Bridge, VA Precancel, PSS Type 705, issued 06/ Bottom, Barrel duplex handstamp with a 30mm circle date postmark. Figure 45. Ovate Bar Grid Duplex handstamp. Figure 46. Left, Universal postmark/cancellation with inverted year slug. Right, Natural Bridge Pictorial Cancellation July 17,

33 Figure 47. Universal postmark / cancellation May 23, 1938 with Natural Bridge Hotel left top corner. Natural Bridge Station (03/24/1911 open) Figure 48. White Border era ( ) postcard. Published by W. E. Burgess, Scottsville VA showing the N & W Railway Bridge on the James River at Natural Bridge Station, at the C & O Railway Station. 31

34 Figure 49. Natural Bridge Station 4-Bar Cancellations with 33mm circle date, Type F/1 on left, Type F/2a on right, Bottom image is Type B April 22, Figure 50. Norfolk and Western Historical Photograph Collection, Glass Negatives Inventory #1179, showing Natural Bridge Station The railroad played a significant role in the development of Natural Bridge, during the latter half of the 19th century. The newly formed Richmond and Alleghany Railroad came to Natural Bridge Station in 1881, followed by the Shenandoah Valley Railroad in

35 Constructed on the abandoned James River and Kanawha Canal towpath, the Richmond and Alleghany tracks ran for 220 miles along the James River, from Richmond through Natural Bridge to Clifton Forge. The company merged with the Chesapeake and Ohio (C & O) in 1890 and served as its James River Division. The Shenandoah Valley Railroad, which ran from Hagerstown, Maryland, to Roanoke, Virginia, later merged with the Norfolk and Western (N&W). Between these two railroads, there were 12 daily stops at the Natural Bridge Station, from which stagecoaches transported visitors to Natural Bridge (fig. 50). Trains provided a continuous influx of tourists during the spring and summer with numerous railroad excursion routes through the Shenandoah Valley, Natural Bridge being one of its main attractions. An 1890 Shenandoah Valley Railroad schedule and brochure highlighted three stops: Luray Caverns (Page County), Natural Bridge, and the Grottoes of the Shenandoah (Grand Caverns in Augusta County). Natural Bridge Station Postmasters 18 Rockbridge County Virginia Name Title Date (Appointed) Sherwood Post Office John H. Holmes Postmaster 12/08/1882 Isaac M Miller Postmaster 06/28/1886 John A. Holmes Postmaster 12/04/1889 John H. Shafer Postmaster 12/13/1894 Susie R. Clark Postmaster 11/03/1898 Glenwood opened in 1858 and discontinued in 1901 with mail to Sherwood Sherwood opened in 1882 and discontinued 03/24/1911 with mail to Natural Bridge Station Natural Bridge Station Post Office Susie R. Clark Postmaster 03/24/1911 Edward P. Barger Postmaster 04/07/1914 Gilmores Mills (1857) discontinued 06/30/1930 with mail to Natural Bridge Station Miss Ellene Barger Postmaster 02/28/1942 Natural Bridge Station discontinued 01/31/1961. Greenlee Post Office opened in 1901 and changed name to Natural Bridge Station 02/01/1961. Natural Bridge Station Post Office is 2¾ miles from the Natural Bridge Post Office. Both are still open. 33

36 Natural Tunnel or Tunnel, Virginia Post Office (04/02/ /22/1866; 02/08/ /06/1877; 04/14/ /16/1891; 01/01/ /28/1955) In geology, a natural tunnel is defined as a nearly horizontal cave, open at both ends some containing streams. Natural Tunnel, in Scott County, Va. is notable in that, besides a stream, a working railroad parallels the stream and a road passes over it. Natural Tunnel was operated as a tourist attraction from 1928 to 1967 before becoming a state park. Tony Scales wrote in Natural Tunnel: Nature's Marvel in Stone: Daniel Boone and party, blazing the Wilderness Road to Kentucky in 1775, were likely the first people of European descent to see Natural Tunnel. It is possible Boone may have seen the area even sooner, having passed through as early as In 1863, saltpeter was mined in Natural Tunnel and other nearby caves by members of the 25th Virginia Regiment for the Confederate war effort. Postal records show a post office was in operation from 1861 to However, Confederate POD Appointment Bureau Records show the post office was discontinued January 20, In 1886, The Railroad Gazette on page 618 printed the new railroad making practical use of the tunnel, will run from Bristol, Tenn., to Big Stone Gap, Va., on the Kentucky State Line, for eighty miles. 21 The South Atlantic & Ohio Railroad Company completed the construction and the first regularly scheduled passenger train from Bristol passed through Natural Tunnel on its way to Big Stone Gap on May 15, On July 1, 1890, this route became an official railroad post office (RPO) from Bristol, Tenn. to Big Stone Gap, Va. traveling through Clinchport, Natural Tunnel, and Flat Lick (fig. 53). Natural Tunnel Post Office was reestablished either on February 8, 1876, 4 miles east of Rye Cove and 7 miles west of Pattonsville and served over 300 residents. 22 It was discontinued on 07/06/1877. On April 14, 1884, it was reestablished as Tunnel Post Office with Robert F. Lyon postmaster. On July 7, 1890 mail-messenger service was established to deliver and pick up the mail from the train depot, the messenger walking or riding 0.30 miles each way. Tunnel Post Office was discontinued on February 16, 1891, with mail going to Horton s Summit By 1894, the tunnel was an important scenic feature of that route. In 1906 Southern Railway acquired the tracks and created a passenger line, the Natural Tunnel Line, which went through the tunnel. On May 6, 1939 the last passenger train passed through the Tunnel. Large coal deposits were discovered in the area, and although they no longer carry passengers, Norfolk Southern and CSX trains continue to this day to carry coal through Natural Tunnel. Glenita Post Office was established on September 25, 1923, about 1600 feet from the Southern Railroad train depot with Elbert R. Walker as postmaster. On January 1, 1940 its name was changed to Natural Tunnel, and operated until February 28, 1955, with mail then going to Clinchport for processing. Natural Tunnel post office moved several times both north and south of the Tunnel as the mail was delivered and received at various train depots (see arrows fig. 51). 34

37 Figure 51. Combined Estillville, Ky. and Wise, Va. Topographic Sheets Natural Tunnel Postmasters 23 Scott County, Virginia Name Title Dates (Appointed) Natural Tunnel Post Office Tunnel Andrew J. Cross Postmaster 04/02/1860 (USPOD) Robert Bailie Postmaster 11/13/1860 (USPOD) Robert Bailie Postmaster (Confederate) Robert Bailie Postmaster 1866 (USPOD) Discontinued 08/22/1866 Reestablished Natural Tunnel Post Office 02/08/1876 Hiram E. McKinsey Postmaster 02/08/1876 R. Bowen Postmaster 03/06/1877 Discontinued 07/06/1877 Reestablished as Tunnel 04/14/1884 Robert F. Lyon Postmaster 04/14/1884 Clabourn L. Neeley Postmaster 02/15/1886 Martha V. Lyon Postmaster 06/01/1888 Isaac C. Welch Postmaster 08/03/1889 Discontinued 02/16/1891 with mail going to Horton s Summit Glenita Post Name changed to Natural Tunnel 01/01/1940 Natural Tunnel Post Office Earnest D. Qualls Postmaster 01/10/1940 Edith Lucille Taylor Postmaster 01/01/1940 Discontinued 02/28/1955 with mail to Clinchport 35

38 Figures show various postmarks and cancellations from Natural Tunnel, Virginia. Figure 52. Type F/1 Natural Tunnel Last Day 4-Bar Cancel (34mm). Figure 53. Bristol & Big Stone Gap RPO cancellation, Types 512-A-1 and 512-B A-1 is 29.5mm. black. No date line, no year date used , B-1 is 28mm, black with train number used

39 Salt Petre Cave, Virginia Post Office (06/02/ /29/1866; 11/16/ /29/1923) Saltpetre (Salt Petre) Cave Post Office in Botetourt County, Virginia, is situated along the James River midway between the towns of Buchanan and Eagle Rock along Route 43 where it intersects with Route 688 (fig. 54). Figure 54. Location of Saltpetre Cave on a portion of the 1888 Natural Bridge, Virginia Topographical Map published by the United States Geological Survey. Note Natural Bridge and Natural Bridge Station is on the upper right side of the topographic sheet. The cave itself is over 1300 feet in length with a 60-foot maximum depth. It is located seven miles NW of Buchanan on the north side of Hickory Hollow, along the east side of the James River on the Buchanan and Clifton Forge Railway. The beautifully arched entrance opens to a passage which leads to the right, slopes down at an angle of approximately 30 degrees for 100 to 150 feet, then becomes almost level. The floor is cut by a series of shallow canyons which cross the passage at nearly right angles. Three pole-supported bridges span the canyons and bear earmarks of mid-1800 design and workmanship. They are the first evidence encountered to indicate the saltpetre miners worked this cave. 25 During the Civil War, the Confederacy s manufacturing of gunpowder depended on caves for at least half of its source of saltpetre. The niter in saltpeter was leached out of the guano-laden dirt and processed into KNO3, the principal ingredient of gunpowder. 26 The ingredients and composition of gunpowder in the 1860s were the same as in a formula devised six centuries earlier by Roger Bacon: 75% saltpetre combined with sulfur and charcoal, in equal or slightly varying proportions of 12 to 13 percent each. 37

40 Saltpetre sites were developed where there was a dependable water supply and enough nitrates in the subsoil for mining. The surrounding trees supplied the timber for manufacturing tools and the fire used to heat the evaporation kettles and in the production of the charcoal used in the chemical conversion of saltpeter to gunpowder. 27 The Confederate Nitrate and Mining Bureau considered Saltpetre Cave important due to its strategic location near the center of mining and other mineral products, like lead and iron. Fincastle became headquarters for District No.3, which included western Virginia. Captain R. C. Morton was detailed as the officer in charge. 28 Below is a listing of postmasters from the opening of the Salt Petre Cave post office in 1858 to its closure in 1923, when mail was sent to Eagle Rock for processing and delivery. 29 Salt Petre Cave Postmasters Botetourt County, Virginia Name Title Date Appointed John A. Boggs Postmaster 06/02/1858 Adam C. Buhrman Postmaster 05/26/1860 Adam C. Buhrman Confederate Postmaster 08/01/1861 John Goodwin Confederate Postmaster 08/29/1861 Post Office discontinued September 29, 1866 Post Office reestablished November 16, 1866 James W. Sorrell Postmaster 11/16/1866 Mrs. Eleanor H. Goodwin Postmaster 08/02/1871 Wilbur F. Goodwin Postmaster 02/24/1873 Thomas L. Mayo Postmaster 10/20/1874 Francis W. Hunter Postmaster 01/10/1876 Miss Mary S. Mays Postmaster 03/25/1878 Hezekiah Allen Postmaster 04/27/1880 George P. Persinger Postmaster 08/05/1886 Hezekiah Allen Postmaster 09/21/1896 Wilbur F. Goodwin Postmaster 08/20/1900 Joseph S. Persinger Postmaster 09/08/1902 Figures show various Salt Petre Cave postmarks and cancellations used by postmasters. 38

41 Figure 55. Earliest Known Postmark, probably by first postmaster John A. Boggs Oct. 5, (Courtesy of the Gene Lightfoot Collection) Figure 56. The cover above shows John A. Boggs manuscript postmark dated Nov 23, 1858, with pen-cancelled 3-cent stamp (Scott #26) on a letter from Harvey J. Wilson to Captain Jay Hugh Wills of Pattonsburg, near Buchanan, VA. Captain Wills piloted a packet boat which delivered mail between Richmond and Buchanan. He was born in 1828, died May 12, 1899, and is buried in Stonewall Jackson Memorial Cemetery, Lexington, Virginia

42 Figure 57. Another Boggs manuscript postmark, dated May 6, 1859, with a pen-cancelled 3-cent stamp (Scott #26) on letter to Francis T. Anderson, Greenlees Ferry near Natural Bridge, Rockbridge County Va. Francis was born in 1808 at Walnut Hill, the family homestead in Botetourt County. He was an attorney and, at his death in 1887, a member of the State Supreme Court of Appeals. During the Civil War, John Goodwin and Adam C. Buhrman, who were enlisted in the 60 th Virginia Infantry in 1861 and were appointed postmasters by the Confederate Post Office Department. 31 This is the only known cover to and from Saltpetre Cave, and is a turned cover, meaning the envelope was turned inside out and reused. The manuscript cancel tracing used on page 392 of Robert L. Lisbeth s [editor], 1982 book entitled, Catalog of Virginia Postal Markings and Postmasters Provisionals, Colonial 1865 was taken from the cover in Galen Harrison s collection seen below (fig. 58). Figure 58. Tracing was taken from the cover in Galen Harrison s collection

43 Figure 59. Postmaster John Goodwin s manuscript postmark was dated May 2, 1863 with a pen cancelled 10-cent stamp (CSA Scott #11) on a letter to William Crawford. Junction Store, near Eagle Rock, Botetourt [County] Va. (Courtesy of the Galen Harrison Collection) Figure 59A. Reverse of turned cover with a pen cancelled 10-cent stamp (CSA Scott #11) to Dr. or Mrs. A. Taylor, Saltpetre Cave, Botetourt Co. Va. George P. Persinger was appointed postmaster on August 5, 1886, and with his brother Daniel, operated a general store and post office located near the mouth of Saltpetre Cave. In 1880, the railway became the Richmond and Alleghany Railroad Company, and in 1890 became part of the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad. 33 In 1881, the post office was 70 feet from Saltpeter Cave Station of the Richmond & Alleghany Railroad. 41

44 Figure 60. George P. Persinger manuscript cancel dated September 27, Figure 61. Later Persinger used the 27mm circle date handstamp with target killer on a 2-cent Scott #220 dated Aug 6, His son, Joseph Sam Persinger became postmaster on September 9, Joseph Sam in turn was assisted by his son, D. Irving Peck, who later became Eagle Rock s acting postmaster in August 1934, was appointed its postmaster in January 1935, and served there for the next 26 years. Figure 62. This letter was posted at Lylevue, in Botetourt County, and sent to Saltpetre Cave where Joseph Sam Persinger applied the 26mm circle date handstamp and target killer before he transferred it to a closed-pouch mailbag for delivery on the Richmond and Clifton Forge Railroad line of the Chesapeake & Ohio. The letter was later sorted and delivered to Brooklyn, New York. (Saltpetre Cave was located on the Rivanna & James River District Line of the Richmond and Clifton Forge Railroad). 42

45 Figure 63. In 1908, Persinger used a new 29mm circle date stamp with a duplex killer postmark on the 1-cent stamp used on a postcard. Different sizes of the circle date stamp were probably used until the post office was discontinued 14 years later on September 29, 1923, with mail going to Eagle Rock for processing. The Virginia Region Limited Access Caves List includes Perry s Saltpeter Cave. It is classified as "CE" meaning the cave is closed during all or part of the year, and closure strictly enforced by the landowner, particularly in the winter when it is a bat hibernaculum. Shenandoah Caverns, Virginia Post Office (03/13/1926 1/31/1949) Shenandoah Caverns located in the foothills of Virginia s Blue Ridge mountains, in the Shenandoah valley. The name Shenandoah, given to the valley, is of Indian origin, and means daughter of the stars. During the construction of the Harrisonburg (Valley) Division of the Southern Railway, a crevice caused by a blast aroused the curiosity of several young men who decided to explore the opening. In 1888, Alfred M. Neff and Isaac Golladay descended with candles through the fissure to a depth of 150 feet and saw large decorated caverns. They hurried back to the surface to share the news of their discovery. 43

46 Figure 64. Location of Shenandoah Caverns, in Shenandoah County, on a portion of the 1947 Mt. Jackson, Virginia. Topographical Map published by the United States Geological Survey.. While one of the greatest wonders of the natural world had been discovered that day, development of the Shenandoah Caverns finally began in 1921 and in 1922, they opened to the public (fig. 64). The Shenandoah Caverns Inn opened near the caverns entrance and attracted travelers by who arrived by automobile, bus, and train. The hotel used the naturally cool caverns air for its airconditioning. (fig. 65) 34 Figure 65. Shenandoah Caverns Inn. 44

47 Figures show important postcards, postmarks, and cancellations used and a picture of Shenandoah Caverns Post Office. Like Endless Caverns, Shenandoah Caverns established a post office in the gift shop. Figure 66. Shenandoah Caverns - one of the smallest posts in the United States. Shenandoah Caverns post office was open from 1926 until 1949, when it became a contract post office (rural station) and is still in operation. Mail is delivered to Quicksburg for processing. On March 13, 1926, Shenandoah Caverns, in Shenandoah County, was established as a Fourth- Class Post Office on Rural Route No. 1, Quicksburg. Quicksburg was 2 miles southwest, and Mt. Jackson was 2 1/2 miles northeast. George B. Chapman was appointed postmaster. Mail- Messenger and lock-pouch service was available, as well as a money-order business. However, these features were short lived. On January 31, 1949, Shenandoah Caverns post office was discontinued as a fourth-class post office and mail was delivered to Quicksburg for processing. On November 5, 1966, it was formally established as a rural branch of the Quicksburg Post Office. 45

48 Figure 67. A light red, Type C/1, 4-bar killer circle date postmark (31.5mm) 6/26/1929. Figure 68. Universal postmark / cancellation 8/25/1931. Figure 69. Shenandoah Caverns Corporation envelope with 4-bar killer, Type C/1, and 34mm circle date postmark Jun 4,

49 Figure 70. Shenandoah Caverns contract postmark, 4-bar killer, Type F/2a, with 32mm circle date Dec 31, Figure 71. Shenandoah Caverns Rural Branch, Quicksburg double circle postmark. Figure 72. Community Post Office (contract) postmark, 5-bar killer, Type G/1, 36mm circle date stamp. Note the spelling of CVNS and CAVERNS

50 Weyers Cave, Virginia Post Office (08/10/1874 open) Weyers Cave, in Augusta County, became a town on March 3, 1874, when the first passenger train stopped at the not-yet-finished depot. I.B. Kagey, the town s first railroad agent, opened a general store and post office where J. H. Kagey became the first postmaster. The railroad chose this as a stop because of its proximity to market cities and the Valley Pike (Route 11 Lee Highway next to Interstate 81). Farmers could bring goods to the depot to ship out, merchants had goods shipped in, and passengers could easily travel to other cities (fig. 73). This new stop on the railroad was named Cave Station (fig. 74) because it was the closest railroad stop for tourists who wanted to visit the nearby attraction of Weyers Cave discovered in 1804 by Bernard (Barnette) Weyer while trying to retrieve one of his animal traps. Weyers Cave, still in operation, opened for tours in 1806, making it the oldest continually operating commercial cave in the United States. The cave has had several owners and name changes since its discovery in For a short time after the discovery, the landowner tried to name the cave Amon s or Amen s Cave, after himself. In honor of its discoverer, the public quickly reverted to calling it Weyers Cave, which it was to bear for over 100 years. The caverns were also called the Grottoes of the Shenandoah until named Grand Caverns in Figure 73. Location of Weyers Cave Station on a portion of the 1888 Harrisonburg Virginia Topographical Map published by the United States Geological Survey. Note Weyers Cave later named Grand Caverns is southeast. The post office at Cave Station was named Weyers Cave, which presented some confusion at times as the caves was not there, but about 10 minutes east on US 256 in the town of Grottoes, which also opened a post office in (See Grottoes Post Office) As business boomed, the town grew around the railroad. Within a few years there were several general stores, two blacksmiths, a school, an undertaker, a telephone switchboard office, and a chicken-coop factory. 48

51 Weyers Cave Postmasters Augusta County, Virginia Name Title Date Appointed J. H. Kagey Postmaster 08/10/1874 Isaac Benjamin Kagey Postmaster 01/01/1877 William D. Meyers Postmaster 04/02/1883 Martin Glick Postmaster 12/19/1889 Isaac Benjamin Kagey Postmaster 06/23/1893 Samuel I. Cline Postmaster 06/02/1897 John W. Byers Postmaster 12/19/1910 Maude E.L. Kagey Postmaster 04/22/1914 Bruce E. Showalter Postmaster 04/15/1922 John S. Hinegardner Postmaster 06/18/1934 Mrs. Bessie C. Reubush Acting Postmaster 08/01/1949 Moffett E. Bibb, Jr. Postmaster 12/21/1950 Paul M. Toms Officer-In-Charge 12/28/1984 John E. Johnson Officer-In-Charge 05/17/1985 Geneva H. Ritchie Officer-In-Charge 09/13/1985 Gerald W. Painter Postmaster 09/27/1985 Janice H. Lindsay Officer-In-Charge 10/23/1987 Cornelius Thomas Callender Postmaster 03/26/1988 Sally K. Haag Officer-In-Charge 12/09/1988 Thomas L. Martin Jr. Postmaster 04/08/1989 Robert Ritchie Officer-In-Charge 05/16/1995 Linda M. Clements Postmaster 10/28/1995 Michael Chittum Officer-In-Charge 04/02/2004 Willis A. Lyle Jr. Postmaster 07/10/2004 Susma K. Pandey Officer-In-Charge 10/05/2005 Jean T. Alford Postmaster 01/21/2006 John Egnor Officer-In-Charge 05/01/2012 Jodie K. Lowder Postmaster 07/13/2013 Mike Rankin Officer-In-Charge 01/21/2016 Pamela S. VanBrunt Postmaster 04/16/2016 In researching the Official Register, the following information was discovered: 1899 Park Teter was the Clerk earning $40, 1907 and 1909 Samuel I. Cline was Postmaster making $393 and $469; Walter B. Wampler was Assistant Postmaster making $40 and $40; Alfred R. Glover was a Rural Delivery Clerk making $810 and $810 and John M. Tutwiler was a Rural Delivery Clerk making $720 and $ J. W. Byers was Acting Postmaster making $300; A. R. Glover and J. M. Tutwiler were Rural Delivery Clerks making $900 each. 49

52 Figure 74. Shenandoah Valley Railroad station at Weyer s Cave, Virginia. United States Office for Emergency Management, Vachon, John, photographer. Rockingham County, Virginia, Weyer s Cave, May. Photograph. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, (Accessed October 01, 2017.) The following are postmarks, cancellations, and rural delivery map from Weyers Cave between (figs ). Figure 75. Burke Mills Va. manuscript Nov 4, 1874 and pen cancel carried to Weyers Cave where J.H. Kagey added the Weyers Cave Station B & O Railroad date cancel and placed it on train. The B & O operated the 125-mile railroad from Harpers Ferry to Staunton. Now, the Chespeake Western Railway runs from Harrisburg to Staunton, 13 miles south of Weyers Cave. 50

53 Figure 76. J. H. Kagey railroad postmark - 3/16/1876. Figure 77 (left). Star cancel with mm postmark dated May 24,1895. Figure 78 (right). I. B. Kagey used this 28mm circle date postmark (Mar 15, 1897) with target killer. Figure 79. I. B. Kagey 27mm circle date (Apr 24, 1889) postmark with target killer. 51

54 Figure 80. Double circle Money Order Apr 3, (photocopy) Figure 81. R.F.D. cancel Type 2F used on Route 2 dated Jan 3, Originally there were two rural delivery service routes from Weyers Cave. On November 3, 1933, rural delivery service on Route 2 was combined with Route 1, and Lock Pouch service began Jan. 1, Figure 82. Augusta County, Va. Weyers Cave 1907 Rural Delivery Routes 36 Figure 83. Cline cancelled this postcard using a 32mm 4-bar, Type A/2, on Jan 1,

55 Figure 84. Samuel I. Cline used this 28mm Circle date postmark and target canceller on Sep 3, Figures 85 (left). Samuel I. Cline used a new 30mm, Type B, 4-bar killer in Figure 86 (right). Maude E. Kagey used a 32mm, Type B, 4-bar killer on Jul 5, Since the post office is still open, there are many different postmarks and cancellations. These are very common and are not listed. The below is a Universal cancellation from Figure 87. Top, Weyers Cave, VA Precancel, PSS Type 734, issued 12/ Universal canceller was used by John S. Hinegarden, the time slug is missing. Where there is a gap in the listing of postmasters and postmarks, the author would like to know if other names or types are known. 53

56 Cave, West Virginia Post Office (02/02/ /28/1954) Cave, a small post village near Simmons Mountain and the south branch of the Potomac River, is in the Franklin District of Pendleton County, West Virginia. It opened February 2, 1886, initially located in the house of Samuel Simmons, postmaster (figs ). Cave took its name from Simmons Cave, which was basically a large room with three entrances. The history of the cave is closely associated with the descendants of Leonard Simmons who settled in the area in The cave was popular for dances, weddings, music, and water tours on the small stream in the cave. 38 Like all small village post offices, Cave moved to different locations as the village developed into a small town. In 1912, it moved one mile south to Moyers store. On February 28, 1954 it was discontinued with mail going to Blue Grass, Virginia for processing. Figure 88. Postmaster Samuel Simmons 1886 Post Office Site Map. Cave Postmasters Pendleton County, West Virginia 39 Postmaster Date (Appointed) Samuel Simmons 02/02/1886 Amanda J. Simmons 01/18/1897 Peter J. Moyers 03/06/1899 James E. Mullinax Ethel M. Taylor 090/9/1913 Lula M. Hedrick 04/20/1912, PO moved 1-mile South 01/01/1940 Acting, 04/10/1940 Permanent 54

57 Figure 89. From the 1911 Rand McNally Map of West Virginia. 40 Figures show various postmarks and cancellations from Cave, West Virginia. Figure 90. January 20, 1888 registered letter with Postmaster Samuel Simmons manuscript cancel. (courtesy of Wayne Farley Collection) 55

58 Figure 91. June 2, 1908 Type 2/a 4-bar postmark. (courtesy of Wayne Farley Collection) Figure 92. May 30, 1914 Subtype of A/2 with narrower 4-bars postmark. (courtesy of Wayne Farley Collection) Figure 93. Subtype of A/2 with smaller font and narrower 4-bars postmark. 56

59 Figure 94. May 30, 1920, Type B 4-bar postmark. (courtesy of Wayne Farley Collection) Figure 95. Last day February 28, 1954, Type F/1 4-bar postmark. Grotto Dell, West Virginia Post Office (02/16/ /09/1866) Grotto Dell information is at best limited. The first record is found in The Executive Documents of the Senate of the United States James Lewis of Kanawha county (from which Roane county was formed) wrote in his Cultivation of the Mesquit Grass in Western Virginia: In the fall of 1855, I procured sufficient mesquit[e] grass from Texas to sow an acre of hill-land on my farm at Grotto Dell. Edward Lewis lived on Long Ridge, north of Charleston in Roane County. I suspect like the postmaster of Flat Rock, whose post office was in his home, the Grotto Dell Post Office was either in Lewis home or his place of business. In 1860, his postmaster compensation for three quarters was $ According to the 1860 census, there were 27 households served by Grotto Dell Post Office (fig. 96). 57

60 Figure Grotto Dell Post Office Head of Households from the first census of Roane County. Grotto Dell Postmaster Roane County, West Virginia Postmaster Dates (Appointed) Edward Lewis Opened February 16, 1860, Discontinued July 9, 1866 Grotto Dell does not show up on Hardesty's 1883 map of Roane Co., Harper and Walton Districts. Five post offices are shown on the map: Spring Garden, Walton, Shambling Mill, Gundeeville, and Buffalo Lick in Walton District, and Flat Fork and Mattie post offices in the Harper District. In Mylott's "A Measure of Prosperity", it mentions Harper District had a Grotto Dell Post Office, although its exact location is unknown (fig. 97) 43 58

61 Figure 97. Red outline shows the 1883 location of the Harper District of Roane County. A biography of Edward Lewis in Roane County, West Virginia Families, says he Settled in this county, then Kanawha, in the year From this date he was a settler in what is now Roane County, two years before his first marriage. Here at the place of his first settlement, near 59

62 Southern line next Kanawha County, he owned seven hundred and fifty acres of land, made a large farm, and cattle and horse buyers visited his place, though for many years deep in the forest, six or seven miles from Walton. 44 Figure 98. The index of the 1888 Rand McNally map listed the town Grotodel with mail from Springgarden. (Source: Rand, McNally & Co New Map Of West Virginia. Rand, McNally & Co., Map Publishers and Engravers, Chicago, Copyright, 1888). I have no idea why the above listing occurred, as neither Grotodel, nor Grotto Dell, are shown on the map (fig. 98). One place name reference also stated the post office was open from I have tried to estimate where Grotto Dell might have been located using the site drawing prepared by Robert Smith, postmaster of Kettle in 1888, and the biographies of James Lewis and Edward Lewis. The area is outlined in red (fig. 99). The dates of the post offices around the Roane / Kanawha county border are shown below. All, however, are after when Grotto Dell ( ) was in operation. Post Office Dates of Operation County Mattie Roane Kettle Roane Spring Garden Roane Cicerone Roane Left Hand 1874-open Roane Forks of Little Sandy Kanawha Junction Palace Kanawha 60

63 Figure 99. Site Drawing by Kettle Postmaster Robert Smith (June 3, 1888). Red circle indicates author s approximation of Grotto Dell location (Source Site Map, Roane County, WV M ). 61

64 In Hardesty's West Virginia Counties, Vol. 5. Mason, Pleasants, Lewis and Roane Edward Lewis short biography states he was born in Charleston, Kanawha county, West Virginia, August 24, 1838, settled in this county, then Kanawha, in Edward Lewis was school commissioner over one year, school trustee three years. road surveyor ten years. He enlisted in the Confederate army October 1864, at Richmond, Virginia, was in Company I, 4th Virginia Infantry, in Stonewall Jackson s Brigade. Edward Lewis was a farmer in Walton district, and any mail for him may be directed to Walton, Roane county, West Virginia. 46 It appears this biography was prepared before he was the Grotto Dell postmaster. The location of Grotto Dell Post Office is still unknown as both the district and county boundaries changed before and after the Civil War. And, although I ve searched the records of other possible counties where it could have been located I have found nothing. There are no known covers or postmarks from this post office. If you find any additional information, please let me know. 62

65 Organ Cave, West Virginia Post Office (03/19/ /15/1940) Organ Cave is named for a calcite drapery called Rock Organ, which resembles a church organ (fig. 100). 47 The cave, mined for saltpeter to manufacture gunpowder during both the War of 1812 and Civil War was also known as General Robert E. Lee s Underground Powder Works. Figure 100. Real photo postcard issued between 1908 and (Courtesy of Wayne Farley Collection) Blanche Humphreys, in her book The History of Organ Cave Community 48 wrote: Organ Cave has not always been the name of the post office serving this community. Before the Civil War, all the people residing in this locality received their mail at Lewisburg. Shortly after the Civil War, a post office was established at John Mason Price's store, a mercantile business in the Irish Corner District, with Mr. Price as the postmaster. The local name given this post office was Price's Shop. The post office continued at the same location for some years but was changed in name to Monroe Draft (fig. 101) with J. M. Miller postmaster. Mr. Miller had a general merchandise store and served as postmaster until the location was moved after the road was changed. The new post office was called Organ Cave. Mr. R. A. Level and Mr. Oliver B. Humphreys bought the store from Mr. Miller, and Humphreys was appointed postmaster on 9/12/1891. In 1902, Mr. Humphreys sold his interest in the store to a Mr. William. H. Level who held the office for about a year or till he resigned it to Amos W. McDowell in 1910 (dates added from research in the U.S. Postal Bulletin and Official Register). 49,50 63

66 Organ Cave Postmasters Greenbrier County, West Virginia Postmaster Date (Appointed) Monroe Draft Post Office J. T. S. McLaughlin 1870, compensation was $12.00 James M. Miller 01/01/1886 Organ Cave Post Office James M. Miller 03/19/1887 Oliver B. Humphreys 09/12/1891 William H. Level 03/17/1902 Amos W. McDowell 05/23/1910 Mrs. Myrtle M. Miller 12/30/1939 (acting); 04/27/1940 (permanent) Organ Cave Post Office was discontinued effective September 15, 1950, with mail sent to Ronceverte for processing. Figures show various postmarks and cancellations used at the post office. Figure 101. Hardesty 1883 Map of Greenbrier County, WVA. (Monroe Draft Post Office enlarged)

67 Figure 102. Monroe Draft manuscript cancel from the 1870s. (Courtesy of the Wayne Farley Collection) Figure 103. Monroe Draft blue circle date postmark May 10, 1877 with fancy star cancellation, also seen in black ink. (Courtesy of the Wayne Farley Collection) 65

68 Figure mm circle date postmark with 13mm target killer dated April 17, Figure 105. Organ Cave Type 2b/2 Doane cancels used 01/17/ /27/ Figure mm Type F/1 4-bar postmark on Last Day Cover. 66

69 Rock Cave, West Virginia Post Office (09/26/1859 open) Rock Cave was a small village west of the Little Kanawha river in Lewis County, was renamed Upshur County in W. B. Cutright, in The History of Upshur County, West Virginia, repeats the rumor the town was first called Bob Town, and later Centerville (also known as Centreville). 53 Centerville had a post office between 1849 and 1859, known as Rude s Mills. In September 1859, its name was changed to Rock Cave. 54 William Hendren Curry made his home in Centerville in 1857, when the entire town consisted of his own house, his store, and a log school house. From that date on he was constantly in business running a general mercantile establishment, superintending his farm, practicing medicine, and filling the office of the first postmaster, to which he was appointed in June Curry recommended the name of the post office be Rock Lava, after stones found on Straight Fork Run, but the Post Office misread the L as a C and named the post office Rock Cave. 55 In 1859, his post office compensation was $ Rock Cave Postmasters 56 Upshur County, West Virginia Postmaster Dates (Appointed) Rude s Mills Post Office Edwin Rude 08/16/1848 Louisa R. Young 10/28/1856 Morgan A. Darnall 12/31/1857 William C. Curry 06/15/1858 Named changed to Rock Cave Post Office on 09/26/1859 William C. Curry 09/26/1859 Anson Young 08/13/1862 William H. Curry 09/18/1862 J. T. Huff 02/11/1884 Martin M. Rice 02/18/1886 Theodore M. Cheuvront 05/20/1890 Robert C. Boggs 02/03/1894 Edward H. Knabenshue 07/06/1897 Alva O. Harper 05/09/1899 H. Bruce McDowell 05/14/1900 William A. Kincaid 10/09/1906 William W. Harper 03/07/1921 Acting Lela E. McAvoy 04/19/1921 Acting, 08/20/1921 Permanent Mrs. Martha Mearns 06/01/1922 Howard A. Withers 09/06/1922 Mrs. Lula B. Rexroad 02/23/1929 Acting, 06/14/1929 Permanent Robert C. Marple 06/24/1951 Acting, 01/11/1952 Permanent 67

70 On 11/01/1959, Arlington was established as a Rural Station of Rock Cave, Upshur County. It was discontinued on 05/31/1962 and began operations as a Community Post Office (CPO). The red arrows in Figure 107 show the locations of Rock Cave and Arlington Post Offices. Figure 107. Hardesty 1883 Map of Upshur Co. W.VA. 57 Figures show various postmarks and cancellations used by Rock Cave postmasters. 68

71 Figure 108. Left, Rude s Mill manuscript cancel. 58 Right, manuscript cancel by W.H. Curry, dated April 18, Figure 109. Manuscript Cancel by W.H. Curry, dated Feb. 3, (Top cancel is courtesy of the Wayne Farley Collection) Figure 110. Circle date cancel 5/27/1880(?) with target killer. (Courtesy of the Wayne Farley Collection) 69

72 Figure 111. Circle date cancel 5/20/1884 and different 28mm circle date cancel 10/21/1894, both with target killers. (Left cancel is courtesy of the Wayne Farley Collection) Figure 112. Circle date cancels 1/17/1891 and bottom 2/11/1898 both with target killers. The left upper corner of each envelope shows the general store owner in Rock Cave. (Both courtesy of Wayne Farley Collection) 70

73 Figure 113. Left, Type 3-4, 4-bar Doane (Courtesy of Thomas Lera Collection), used 04/18/ /02/1912. The number four in the bars refers to Postmaster compensation in the previous fiscal year. 59 Right, August 2, 1912, Type 3-4, 4-bar Doane (Courtesy of Wayne Farley Collection). Figure 114. Left, Rock Cave. W.VA., Arlington Rural Station, 33mm 4-bar killer. Right, April 19, 1982, Rock Cave cancellation, 33mm 4-bar killer. 1 Post Office Department. Bureau of the Fourth Assistant Postmaster. Division of Topography. ( ); Post Office Department. Bureau of Facilities. 8/20/1949-?; Post Office Department. Office of the Postmaster General /1/1971. Reports of Site Locations, , from Records Group 28, Virginia, Roanoke County, Image 69, accessed December 13, Deedie Dent Kagey, When Past is Prologue: A History of Roanoke County. Marceline, Mo: Walsworth Press, Inc., accessed December 26, Gurnee, Russell, 1988, Endless Caverns, Virginia, and the Explorers Club, Journal of Spelean History, Vol. 22(4): 1-6.; Nomad Publishing [Editor], Exploring the Endless Caverns of New Market, Virginia in the Heart of the Shenandoah Valley. 47p. 5 Douglas, Joseph C., 1996, Shelter from the Atomic Storm: The National Speleological Society and the Use of Caves as Fallout Shelters, , Journal of Spelean History, Vol. 30(4): (page 95 71