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Chronicling America
National Endowment for the Humanities

Newspaper The Abingdon Virginian (Abingdon [Va.]) 1849-1883 Virginian

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About The Abingdon Virginian (Abingdon [Va.]) 1849-1883

Located in Washington County in the Blue Ridge Highlands region of Southwestern Virginia and named after the ancestral home of Martha Washington, the town of Abingdon lays claim to a rich publishing history. In November 1839, John W. Lampkin and Charles B. Coale formed a partnership and began publishing the South-Western Virginian, previously called the People’s Friend under John N. Humes. On September 4, 1841, Coale formed a new joint venture with George R. Barr, and they continued to operate the four-page weekly, renaming it the Abingdon Virginian in 1849. During the 1850s the Virginian employed one of its more notable writers, James Dabney McCabe, Jr. Author of the popular Confederate drama, The Guerillas, McCabe briefly wrote for the paper when he was only 14 while his father was rector of Holston Parish.

As editor and publisher of the Abingdon Virginian, Coale, a native of Bel Air, Maryland, supported the Whig party and various community endeavors, including the construction of the Virginia and Tennessee Railroad (V&T), which was to pass through Abingdon and run from Lynchburg, Virginia, to Bristol, Tennessee.The completion of this line transformed the economy of Southwestern Virginia. Rather than raising crops primarily for local consumption, farmers in the region began selling their products to the cities in Virginia’s Tidewater region. During the Civil War, the V&T became an essential transportation link for Confederacy, hauling troops, weapons, and supplies, including most of the salt and lead used by the Confederate army mined from nearby Smyth and Wythe Counties.

As the Civil War approached, Coale, who owned no slaves, was opposed to secession until Virginia officially joined the Confederacy in April 1861. Once Virginia made its allegiance clear, his newspaper wholly supported the Confederate cause. Its proximity to the rich natural resources in the area and the fact that the V & T ran through it made Abingdon one of several Southwestern Virginia towns coveted by the Union army, but it was not until December 1864 that Union general Stephen Burbridge was able to occupy it successfully. After the occupation, a Union soldier under Burbridge’s command, Captain James Wyatt, set much of Abingdon’s Main Street ablaze, resulting in a suspension of the Virginian from December 15, 1864 until December 1865.

In 1873, Coale and Barr sold the paper to Major G. R. Dunn. “With this issue of the Virginian closes the editorial career of the undersigned,” their farewell column explained. “A little over thirty-three years ago, without one dollar of capital and with a debt of $2,500 hanging over us for printing material, we took charge of the Virginian.” Coale and Barr went on to graciously thank their readers saying, “When we look back over the long road we have plodded, with its ascents and descents, its rugged gorges and its windings, we forget all in reflecting upon the liberal support and kind indulgence of our subscribers.” Coale’s absence from publishing was not permanent though, and three years after his retirement from the Virginian, he began publishing the Abingdon Standard. In addition to his newspaper career, Coale authored The Life and Adventures of Wilburn Waters: The Famous Hunter and Trapper of White Top Mountain published in 1878. The Abingdon Virginian continued to be published in various incarnations until the 1970s.

Provided By: Library of Virginia; Richmond, VA

About this Newspaper

Title

  • The Abingdon Virginian (Abingdon [Va.]) 1849-1883

Other Title

  • Virginian

Dates of Publication

  • 1849-1883

Created / Published

  • Abingdon [Va.] : Coale & Barr

Headings

  • -  Abingdon (Va.)--Newspapers
  • -  Virginia--Abingdon
  • -  United States--Virginia--Washington--Abingdon

Genre

  • Newspapers

Notes

  • -  Weekly
  • -  Began in 1849; ceased in 1883.
  • -  Editors: Jan. 1873-May 1874, G.R. Dunn; 1874- 1883, G.W. Ward, Jr.
  • -  Publisher: Geo. R. Dunn, <1873>; G.W. Ward, <1876>.
  • -  Issues for May 13 and June 3, 1864 are printed as "half sheet" issues.
  • -  Nov. 7, 1862 issue is a quarter sheet extra entitled: Virginian extra.
  • -  Suspended Dec. 15, 1864-Dec. 1865. Cf. Cappon, L.J. Va. newspapers, 1821-1935.
  • -  Also issued on microfilm from the University of Virginia.
  • -  Archived issues are available in digital format as part of the Library of Congress Chronicling America online collection.
  • -  Description based on: Vol. 10, no. 14 (Mar. 31, 1849).
  • -  Abingdon weekly Virginian (DLC)sn 94059301 (OCoLC)30057027

Medium

  • volumes

Call Number/Physical Location

  • Newspaper

Digital Id

Library of Congress Control Number

  • sn84025980

OCLC Number

  • 10873381

ISSN Number

  • 2163-7245

Preceding Titles

Additional Metadata Formats

Availability

Rights & Access

The Library of Congress believes that the newspapers in Chronicling America are in the public domain or have no known copyright restrictions. Newspapers published in the United States more than 95 years ago are in the public domain in their entirety. Any newspapers in Chronicling America that were published less than 95 years ago are also believed to be in the public domain, but may contain some copyrighted third party materials. Researchers using newspapers published less than 95 years ago should be alert for modern content (for example, registered and renewed for copyright and published with notice) that may be copyrighted. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item and securing any necessary permissions ultimately rests with persons desiring to use the item.

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Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

The Abingdon Virginian Abingdon Va. -1883. (Abingdon, VA), Jan. 1 1849. https://www.loc.gov/item/sn84025980/.

APA citation style:

(1849, January 1) The Abingdon Virginian Abingdon Va. -1883. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/sn84025980/.

MLA citation style:

The Abingdon Virginian Abingdon Va. -1883. (Abingdon, VA) 1 Jan. 1849. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, www.loc.gov/item/sn84025980/.