Julia Ellen duVal papers
Content Description
This collection contains the papers of Julia duVal, dating from 1890 to 1930. Contents include a program to the Lynchburg High School 1910 graduation; an invitation to the Randolph-Macon Women's College 1914 graduation ceremony; a typescript copy of duVal's 1924 University of Virginia Master's thesis on Jane Austen titled “Jane Austen: the determining influences of her life on her works;” a handwritten eulogy for duVal; a photograph of duVal in her academic regalia; the 1912/1913 issue of the Randolph-Macon catalog; an issue of "The Campus Quill" from Bessie Tift College, in which duVal's death is announced; five photographs of Julia at Randolph-Macon; a Randolph-Macon postcard addressed to her father, R.A. duVal. This collection also contains three letters from duVal to her parents, dated 1916, describing Columbia University, St. John the Divine cathedral, sightseeing, and mentioning the infantile paralysis epidemic in New York City and her fears of carrying the contagion if she comes home. There are also two letters to her brother, Gabriel duVal, dated May 6 and May 8, 1916, and an undated letter to Julia from an aunt. Also included is a scripture book dated 1890 and several blank undated postcards.
Dates
- Creation: 1890-1930
Conditions Governing Access
This collection has been minimally processed and is open for research.
Conditions Governing Use
This collection contains some in-copyright material. Visit our Permissions and Publishing page for more information about use of Special Collections materials. The library can provide copyright information upon request, but users are responsible for making their own determination about lawful use of collections materials.
Biographical / Historical
Julia Ellen duVal was born in Roanoke, Virginia, on June 16, 1891. She graduated from Lynchburg High School in June 1910. She then attended Randolph-Macon Women's College, also in Lynchburg, graduating in 1914 and receiving a Master of Arts degree from the University of Virginia in 1924, when she submitted a thesis on May 15. She also attended the Berlitz School of Languages in Washington, D. C. She taught at Bessie Tift College (now Mercer University) in Forsyth, Georgia, from 1928 to 1929, where she was Assistant Professor of French. duVal died on January 1, 1929, in Lynchburg. She is buried at Spring Hill Cemetery.
Resources
“Julia Ellen duVal.” Find A Grave. Accessed 5 December 2025. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/97549345/julia-ellen-duval
Tift College. Tift College Catalog, 1928-1929. 1928.Mercer University Libraries. Accessed https://galileo-mum.alma.exlibrisgroup.com/permalink/01GALI_MUM/7csvfd/alma991005707448105956
Full Extent
0.12 Cubic Feet (4 letter-sized file folders)
Language of Materials
English
Metadata Rights Declarations
- License: This record is made available under an Universal 1.0 Public Domain Dedication Creative Commons license. The Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections Library of the University of Virginia makes its bibliographic records and the metadata contained therein available for public use under the CC0 1.0 Public Domain Designation.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
This collection was a gift from Louise Scott Steele to the Small Special Collections Library, University of Virginia on September 25, 2012 and November 1, 2022.
Condition Description
Good
Cultural context
Geographic
Topical
- Title
- Guide to the Julia Ellen duVal papers
- Author
- Eric Willersdorf, Accessioning Archivist Assistant
- Date
- 5 December 2025
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections Library Repository
Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections Library
P.O. Box 400110
University of Virginia
Charlottesville Virginia 22904-4110 United States