Dear Douglas,
The Valentine Richmond History Center (founded in 1898) is both a city
museum and a historic house museum. Our mission it is to collect, preserve,
and interpret the history of the city of Richmond. We are located in the
heart of Court End, one block west of the White House of the
Confederacy/Museum of the Confederacy/MCV complex and one block east of the
Library of Virginia and the John Marshall House. We hold in excess of 1.7
million objects, most of which are photographic images of Richmond's life
and history. Our largest holding is the 1812 Wickham House, which John
Wickham built and we interpret in its early federal context. This is where
your email gets interesting. Dr. James McClurg's daughter, Elizabeth,
married John Wickham, and the Valentine has, among other objects, portraits
of both Dr. James McClurg and his daughter Elizabeth. Was the McCaw -
McClurg connection maternal or paternal?
I am interested in this story for two reasons. First, I am curating an
exhibit for next year on Richmond during the World Wars and will be pulling
materials related to Walter Drew McCaw in his capacity as Chief Surgeon of
American Expeditionary Force. Secondly, the Valentine is planning a new,
long-term exhibition on Richmond history. As I look at new and different
ways to interpret the Civil War in Richmond, I am interested in James Brown
McCaw and his administrative ingenuity in making Chimborazo Hospital such a
success.
It is also worth noting that, like the elder McCaw, John Wickham was a Tory.
Wickham was from Long Island and was imprisoned during the American
Revolution for his Loyalist sympathies. After the Revolution, Wickham made
his way to Richmond, where he quickly became one of the city's top
attorneys.
If you like, we can continue this conversation off list, and as Alyson
suggested in her post, do stop by the museum on your next visit to Richmond.
Cheers,
Ed
--
Edward DuBois Ragan
Staff Historian
Valentine Richmond History Center
1015 East Clay Street
Richmond, Virginia 23219-1527
804.649.0711 ext. 344
804.643.3510 fax
804.787.0144 cell
[log in to unmask]
www.richmondhistorycenter.com
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