photo above: Scottsville Camping Party - 1911
A Photo Archive of Scottsville
Scottsville possesses a rich history, one frequently photographed by a local photographer named Willie Burgess. His images captured the grace and ambience of town life between 1890 and 1935. Many of Willie’s photographs and those of twentieth-century Brownie camera enthusiasts exist in private collections today. These pictures constitute an invaluable historical record of Scottsville — a cherished treasure.
In 1999, Scottsville Museum initiated a long-term preservation program, Capturing Our Heritage, to digitize and preserve old photos, historical documents, and oral histories of Scottsville life. Today, community members from across the United States collaborate with us to capture and document this material. Electronic versions are displayed on this web site for immediate and convenient access to all.
Please enjoy our photo archive of Scottsville and return many times to see new additions. If you, too, would like to share old photos, documents, or memories of our town, please contact us at the museum or via e-mail at info@scottsvillemuseum.org. Together we will retell the story of Scottsville, an historic Virginia town on the James River…
Gwynne Berkey Daye and Connie Jo Geary
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Program Acknowledgements
Shortly after William Burgess died in 1935, A. Raymon Thacker, a Burgess family friend and future Scottsville mayor, purchased an extensive collection of Scottsville photos and postcards from the estate. Mayor Thacker, pictured above, recently allowed Scottsville Museum to rephotograph this collection of photos dating from 1890 to 1935, and has spent many hours helping us identify each photo. Mayor Thacker supported this program whenever we called with questions, and we are most grateful for his help.
A Scottsville citizen since 1911, Mayor Thacker greatly valued our town’s extensive history and the many accomplishments of its citizens. As a little boy, he sat at the feet of old Confederate soldiers on Scottsville porches and listened to these men talk about their war and life experiences. “I learned a lot from those men and thought a lot of them,” the Mayor says.
Later, Mayor Thacker served as Scottsville’s mayor for three decades and actively worked to preserve our town’s historic buildings, artifacts, and oral history. “Scottsville represents a rich heritage for everyone, not just for the people who live here,” remarked Mayor Thacker. “It’s something we ought to preserve for future generations.” We asked him the following question: “Of all the small towns in America, what makes Scottsville unique?” His eloquent response is worth hearing:
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Significant Contributors
| Paul Arneson, Ft. Washington, MD | Kathleen McNamara, Scottsville, VA |
| Bruce Boynton, Fairfax Station, VA | John McQuarrie, Baltimore, VA |
| Rita and William Burgess, Palmyra, VA | Robert Manoso, Newport News, VA |
| Doug Burgess, Charlottesville,VA | Ranny Moulton, Macon, GA |
| Gretchen Calgagni, Charlottesville, VA | Angela Nemecek, Charlottesville, VA |
| Mary Dillard Delucchi, Stockton, CA | Richard Nicholas, Charlottesville, VA |
| Anne Shirley Dorrier, Scottsville, VA | Edward Pat Pitts, Scottsville, VA |
| Katherine Ellis, Scottsville, VA | Anne Riley, Charlottesville, VA |
| Meta Hill Erb, Roanoke, VA | Paul Roberts, Keswick, VA |
| Eleanor Starke Evans, Suffolk, VA | Adam Robinson, Charlottesville, VA |
| Dr. Charles Fry, Scottsville, VA | Monica Shenouda, Florence, Italy |
| Rachel Gottlieb, Woodbridge, VA | Adam Robinson, Charlottesville, VA |
| Jack Hamner, Scottsville, VA | David Schumaker, Mechanicsville, VA |
| Ann Holden, Charlottesville, VA | Frank Shumaker, Scottsville, VA |
| Anna Rakes Isley, Crozet, VA | Robert Spencer, Scottsville, VA |
| Maxwell Johnson, Midlothian, VA | Raymon Thacker, Scottsville, VA |
| Emily Kane, Athens, GA | Marjorie Elliott Williams, Abilene, TX |
| Steven Knepper, Charlottesville, VA | Dorothy Woody, Scottsville, VA |
| Jessica Koepfler, Philadelphia, PA | Library of Virginia, Richmond, VA |
Technical Team
| Fedona, Inc., Manitou Springs, CO | Steven Knepper, Charlottesville, VA |
| Charlotte Geary, Reston, VA | Jessica Koepfler, Philadelphia, PA |
| Molly Geary, Arlington, VA | John McGraw, Plano, TX |
| Paul Geary, Arlington, VA | Michael Pritchard, Reston, VA |
Program Sponsors:
Scottsville Museum’s Board of Trustees, Scottsville, VA
Institute of Public History, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA
Monticello Avenue, Charlottesville, VA
Virginia Foundation for the Humanities, Charlottesville, VA