Tappahannock and Essex County, Virginia
in Early Photographs
Since moving to Little Egypt in Tappahannock in 2007, Wesley E. Pippenger has been collecting a wide range of photographs of Tappahannock and Essex County, Virginia. This volume reflects his desire to share these pictures and preserve the images of so many people and places that have been lost to all but memories.
Presented are 194 photographs of Tappahannock and Essex County, Virginia. Each has been selected by the compiler, whether it be unusual, interesting, or simply odd. These have been collected from a number of cited sources. Two collections that are in possession of the compiler that are strongly featured are photographs from the Rappahannock Times newspaper and many taken by the late Catherine Pendleton DeShazo.
Some of the photographs featured include scenes of Prince Street as early as 1916 (one with banks of snow), churches, the aftermath of the great fire in 1917, baseball teams from 1903 to 1907, banks, gas stations, musicians, store fronts, hotels, public buildings, restaurants and cafes, private residences, and more! Also included are some people who were business founders or other movers and shakers. Several aerial photographs help demonstrate how much Tappahannock has changed from the 1920s to the 1950s and since. Plus, included are many photos from out of town, including several churches and mills, and featuring businesses and residences from the top of the county at Elmwood to the lower portion with the store at Butylo, Virginia. Although some photographs once appeared in the local newspaper, a high number of other have not been published before.
The contributors include Stratton Beamer, Sarah Carreras, Billy and Carole Croxton, Jane Dawkins, Bill Dustin, Kenneth Eubank, Roberta Garnett, Elsie Minter Gischel, Betty Gregory, Mary Guess, Peyton Guest, Jean Duke Hammond, Quattro Hubbard, David Jett, Lillian H. McGuire, Richard Motley, Karen K. Parker, Johnny Rennolds, Carol Smith, Cacky Taylor, Ray Wallace, Betsy Ware, the Essex County Woman's Club, the Essex County Museum and Historical Society, the Library of Virginia, the Mariners' Museum of Newport News, the Richmond County Museum, and the Virginia Department of Historic Resources.
The general public as shared an overwhelming cheer for the book, with numerous testimonials in person, by telephone or in writing. The town manager remarked that it is "the best thing to hit the town in a very long time." Sarah Carreras wrote that her late aunt Catherine DeShazo would have been proud to see how many of her photographs are featured.
Order your copy today for immediate delivery! Send a check or money order (payable to Wesley E. Pippenger) for $49.95 plus $5.05 postage and handling to a non-VA address (add $1.05 for each additional book) to: Tappahannock Photograph Book, Wesley E. Pippenger, P.O. Box 309, Tappahannock, VA 22560. To a Virginia address please add 5.3% sales tax ($2.65 a copy). For example, for me to ship you one book outside of Virginia, send a check for $55.00 ($49.95 plus $5.05), and for two books it would be $106.00 ($49.95 plus $49.95 plus $5.05 plus $1.05), and to ship three books it would be $157.00. To ship a book to a Virginia address it would be $49.95 plus $2.65 tax plus $5.05 shipping = $57.65. You may pick up a copy at my residence or at any of the following local vendors: Barbour Printing, Crying Shame, the Essex County Museum and Historical Society, The Essex Inn, The Fat Finch, Relish, Rivahside Cafe, or T-Bonz and Tuna for $52.60 ($49.95 plus $2.65 VA sales tax). Institutions may send a purchase order. Book dealers or vendors may inquire about a quantity discount.
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