Important Announcement: Bowman Library Renovations

Bowman Library will be installing new carpeting from January 12–23. During this time, some services will be limited:

  • Printing will be limited
  • Only laptop computers will be available
  • Study rooms will be unavailable
  • Access to many adult materials will be limited
  • Faxing and scanning will be unavailable

These services will still be available at both Handley Library and Clarke County branches.
Thank you for your patience as we make improvements to your library.

All branches will be closed January 19th for Martin Luther King Jr. Day

Click here to honor the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. with insightful audiobooks, impactful comics, educational civil rights movies, and inspiring music that celebrate his life and the fight for equality on Hoopla.

Sign Up Here!

Get Curated Reading Suggestions on Selected Topics Sent Right to Your Inbox.
Sign Up

Brother James Sommers Collection

Stewart Bell Jr. Archives
Handley Regional Library
Winchester-Frederick County Historical Society
P.O. Box 58, Winchester, VA 22604
(540) 662-9041 ext. 17
archives@handleyregional.org
www.handleyregional.org

360 THL

Inventory created by Archives Staff 03/1988. Revised by staff 01/2021.

ACCESS RESTRICTIONS: Collection is open to all researchers.

USE RESTRICTIONS: Restrictions may apply concerning the use, photoduplication, or publication of items in this collection. Consult a member of the archives staff for information concerning these restrictions. The user assumes all responsibility for identifying and satisfying any claimants of copyright.

EXTENT: 0.21 linear feet

DATE:  1861-1977

SCOPE AND CONTENT:  The Brother James Sommers Collection contains papers and articles written by Brother James Sommers.  The articles are biographies and histories of the Civil War with a particular emphasis on Battle of Cool Springs, which took place on July 17-18, 1864.

BIOGRPAHICAL/HISTORICAL: Brother James Sommers (1922-2011) lived at the Holy Cross Abbey near Berryville, Virginia, which is the site of the Battle of Cool Springs. He delivered these addresses between 1973 and 1977. Brother Sommers moved to Washington, D. C. after his retirement. He died on December 4, 2011 and is buried at the Holy Cross Abbey Cemetery in Clarke County, VA.

RELATED MATERIAL: The Peter Meaney Collection, 666 THL, contains additional articles by Brother Sommers.

BIBLIOGRAPHY: Obituary of James Sommers, Winchester Star, December 11, 2011, A2.

CITE AS: Brother James Sommers Collection, 360 THL, Stewart Bell Jr. Archives, Handley Regional Library, Winchester, VA

ACQUISITION INFORMATION: Acquired as a gift.

ORGANIZATION:

BOX 1 

Civil War - Battle of Cool Spring, July 18, 1864 (folder contains the following):
     "The Battle at Cool Spring," 1975, 2 items, 32 leaves, typescript; 5 leaves, typescript (photocopy)
     "The Engagement at Cool Spring Farm," 1973, 5 leaves, typescript (photocopy)
     "New Light on the Battle at Cool Spring," 1975, 5 leaves, typescript (photocopy)

Civil War – “Brother James and his Hotchkiss Shells: Battle of Cool Spring Exhumed at Holy Cross Abbey” in Virginia Country’s Civil War, Vol. 1, n.d., 6 leaves, original and photocopy

Civil War – Sommers, Brother James, “Civil War Ferry Boat at Castleman’s Ferry,” article by Brother James Sommers published in The Clarke Courier, April 21, 1977, p. 22.

Civil War - "Heroines of the Civil War," written by Brother James Sommers, July 4, 1976, 5 leaves, typescript (mimeograph)

Civil War - "A Tribute to General Robert E. Lee," written by Brother James Sommers, Sept. 23, 1975, 4 leaves, typescript, 2 copies

Civil War - "A Tribute to General Stonewall Jackson," written by Brother James Sommers, April 27, 1976,   8 leaves, typescript (photocopy), 2 copies