Preston Family Resources: Enslaved and African-American History
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Introduction
Information on the history of named and unnamed African-American enslaved individuals in connection to the Preston families, Smithfield, Solitude, Greenfield, Horseshoe, and other family lands and homes can be found several of the Preston related resources at Virginia Tech. This section includes a list of resources from other sections of this guide that address this topic in some way, but it does not mean these are the only collections or publications that do so. This history is often harder to discover and not all of the Preston materials in Special Collections and University Archives (SCUA) have been surveyed for this kind of information. Please note that other resources in SCUA not directly related to the Prestons may also have information about African-Americans, enslaved or free, in Montgomery County, Virginia, and surrounding areas.
Manuscript Collections
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Preston Family (Charles Peale Didier Collection) Papers, 1747-1897 (Ms1985-020)The Didier Collection of Preston Family Papers includes papers of James Patton, Patton's grandson William Preston, and Preston's eldest son, John Preston, all of Montgomery County, Virginia. The Preston family was important in the surveying, settlement, military affairs, and government of Southwest Virginia in the 18th and 19th centuries. Their papers consist of business and legal documents, surveys, and correspondence. Much of the collection relates to John Preston (1764-1827), treasurer of the Commonwealth of Virginia from 1810 to 1819. For further information on the Preston family, see John F. Dorman, The Prestons of Smithfield and Greenfield in Virginia (1982).
Reserach Collections
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Elizabeth Fine PapersThe Elizabeth Fine Papers include papers and materials collected by Fine during her tenure as a professor at Virginia Tech. Fine taught in the Department of Religion and Culture from 1979 until her retirement in 2015. The collection includes research and subject files on aspects of Appalachian culture and history; papers from her instruction, departmental, and administrative activities; and files on historic buildings on campus, particularly the history, renovation, and reopening of "Solitude.
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Dorothy McCombs CollectionAppalachian history bibliographer and reference librarian at Virginia Tech. Collection includes notes on the Preston family and Smithfield Plantation, photographs, and miscellaneous articles. Collection also includes notes on her research into Appalachian textile production, and a copy of her unpublished manuscript, "Virginia Cloth: Early Textiles in Montgomery County, 1776-1830."
Vertical Files
Vertical files are usually subject or topic based files that we create here in Special Collections and University Archives. The contents of a file could include newspaper clippings, pamphlets/flyers, or other ephemeral materials on a topic. We have several series of vertical files which contain items about the Prestons. Each has a finding aid with a list of subjects/topics available.
- Blacksburg Vertical Files (VerticalFile.001)
- Christiansburg/Montgomery County Vertical Files (VerticalFile.002)
- Southwest Virginia Vertical Files (VerticalFile.003)
- Biographical Vertical Files (VerticalFile.004)
- Record Group Vertical Files (VerticalFile.005)