The Civil War at the West Virginia State Museum

A few months ago, I had the opportunity to visit the West Virginia State Museum for one of my public history courses. In addition to being very interactive, the museum holds a plethora of Civil War connections and artifacts. I figured I’d share a few of my favorites with Emerging Civil War readers.

John Brown Table

One of the coolest artifacts at the museum (in my opinion) is a table allegedly made from the wood of John Brown’s hanging post. A month after his trial, and two months after his raid on Harpers Ferry, John Brown was hanged in Charles Town, Virginia (now West Virginia). While Brown’s body was returned to his wife in Harpers Ferry and eventually taken home to North Elba, New York for burial, a few opportunists allegedly cut down the hanging post and fashioned it into this table, which now resides in the West Virginia State Museum. Much like other John Brown artifacts, documentation proving the table’s significance is scarce, but the mystery is certainly fascinating to entertain.

John Brown’s Noose

In keeping with John Brown, the museum also holds the noose used in Brown’s execution. Much like the table, mystery surrounds this artifact as well. Museum interpretation of the artifact notes that soldiers who passed through Charles Town during the Civil War often sought artifacts related to John Brown, and enterprising townspeople often obliged–even if it meant stretching the truth a bit. While historian Boyd Stutler believed in the authenticity of the museum’s noose, he also acknowledged that other people claimed to own the same rope. Perhaps most telling is a document written by Louisa Williamson, the wife of an undertaker’s assistant in Brooklyn, where Brown’s body was prepared for travel to North Elba. On December 8, 1859, just six days after Brown was hanged, Williamson wrote to her brother describing the condition of the body. In that same letter, she described how the undertaker had cut the rope into one-inch sections and distributed them.

Key to John Brown’s jail cell

The key to Brown’s Charles Town jail cell is displayed right next to the rope. This artifact, however, has little to no backstory corroborating its authenticity.

Jim Lewis’s Bucket

The state museum naturally has a large collection dedicated to Stonewall Jackson, since he was born in Clarksburg. However, one artifact that stood out to me belonged to Jackson’s slave, Jim Lewis. Little documentation about Lewis’s life exists, but it is likely that Jackson rented him from another slaveholder, W.C. Lewis from Lexington, Virginia. Lewis served the general throughout the war and was present for Jackson’s death at Guinea Station in May 1863. The museum holds a bucket used by Jim Lewis during the war, likely during his duties as Jackson’s personal domestic servant.

Preston County Blacksmith Bellows

Located in a special display is a large blacksmith bellows from Preston County, West Virginia. Made in circa 1840, the bellows belonged to Guy Harvey and resided on his farm in the town of Eglon. During the Civil War, both Union and Confederates passed by the farm to shod their horses. Harvey’s daughters wrote extensively of their treatment by the soldiers and how Confederate troops felled trees on the property to slow down their pursuit by the Union army.

Gettysburg Address Flag

Located just behind the bellows is an American flag, allegedly flown over the Soldiers’ National Cemetery during Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address. The banner was hand-stitched shortly after West Virginia became a state in June 1863, and notes West Virginia’s statehood by including 35 stars. Much like John Brown’s noose, several individuals and institutions claim to have the Gettysburg Address flag. However, the New York Times noted that “numerous flags and banners, suitably draped, were exhibited” during the dedication ceremony, so it is perhaps likely that this flag flew over the cemetery on November 19, 1863 as Lincoln uttered his immortal words.

James Lovejoy Headstone

One of the museum’s most recent acquisitions is a headstone belonging to Pvt. James Lovejoy of the 7th West Virginia Cavalry. Lovejoy served with the regiment for nearly a year and a half (January 1864 to August 1865) and accompanied Maj. Gen. David Hunter’s raid on Lynchburg, Virginia from May 26 to July 1, 1864, and fought in the battle of Lynchburg on June 17 and 18. Lovejoy returned home to Lincoln County after the war and died on April 11, 1918. His federal-style tombstone was placed in the Lovejoy family cemetery after his death to commemorate his service in the Union army. Private Loveyjoy hailed from one of West Virginia’s most illustrious military families. His descendent, Vernon Lovejoy, served in the Vietnam War, and his kit bag is also displayed in the museum.