After months of searching and with appreciation to help provided by Lee Shepard of VHS, I have now placed this school (at Miller's Tavern on the Richmond Road 13 miles from Tappahannock in Essex County) on a property owned, at one time, by John Jones who was the father in law of Dr Jefferson Minor. I would be delighted to hear from anyone who knows much about Dr Minor and his family. 


Dr. Jefferson Minor owned the school that enrolled his six daughters and some other girls from local families. Mrs Minor was the Matron. St Paul's Episcopal Church Miller's Tavern is on part of the Jones property and the school house, in which Dr Minor and family and school coexisted, must have been nearby. Any suggestions or pictures etc would be welcome. Photography was then growing in importance and perhaps someone knows of pix of the Minor family or the school or, and this would indeed be a miracle, the teachers. 


The Principal was Miss Lydia Mary Fay, who left in 1850 to become an Episcopal missionary in Shanghai, China. She was assisted by Miss Anna W (or V) Howard (also recorded as Virginia Howard) who taught mathematics and came, originally, from Maryland. She may have been a cousin of Mary Fay whose sister married an Amasa Howard and lived in New York State somewhere near or in Albany. A Miss Sally ...bins (possibly Robbins) taught music. Miss Lucy Fisher, from Connecticut, also had some connection with the school. 


The school operated from at least 1848-1855. If there is anyone with ready access to files of the Richmond Enquirer and is willing to help, I would be very grateful. There was some mention of the school in a January 1847 issue, and others would have appeared around July-September, usually under Education, in the advertisements. 


Ian


(Dr) Ian Welch
Canberra, Australia.

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