E. Montel was a Frenchman who, in 1860, rolled into Harrisonburg, Va. and started talking to the locals about his new idea. He called it “a new method of painting.” But what Montel was actually talking about was photography, and his new method may have not been as new as he thought. 

As early as the 1840s there already were Rockingham County photographers developing their trade in the Valley, and it was their collective work that has since provided the wealth of visual history that is currently on display at the Harrisonburg-Rockingham Historical Society Heritage Center museum in Dayton, Va.

It was not the December and January snow storms that caused problems for Highland County maple syrup producer Glen Heatwole. Even in January there was hope for the thaw so that they could soon be back up on the mountain ridges to tap the maple trees. By the end of February, however, it was snow, snow and more snow.

 

But it is all finally starting to melt away and sugar camp producers are now scrambling to collect the sugar water they'll need to make this year's batches of maple syrup.

The 150th anniversary commemoration of the American Civil War kicked off last year in the Shenandoah Valley in Harpers Ferry, W.Va. That's where slavery abolitionist John Brown unsuccessfully raided a federal armory on Oct. 16, 1859, an act some say was the actual beginning of the war between the states.

 

Although the main portion of the war was fought over a period of about four years, the Sesquicentennial is covering a period of six years.

As people continue to dig themselves out of Winter's snowfalls, there's a good chance that they may not be quite ready to think about a trip to a Shenandoah Valley farmers market. But one farmers market here in the Shenandoah Valley will be ready for them when they are.

The Clarke County Farmers Market has been hanging in there with the rest of us during the winter season, carrying on with their monthly “winter market.”

Talk to Shenandoah Valley fishing expert Harry Murray, and it soon becomes very clear that fishing in the Shenandoah River watershed region is a year-round sport.

 

Right now it's the trout lurking in feeder streams in search of cress bugs and small, native shrimp, according to Murray, who provides monthly fishing tips in his newsletter.  If you know where they are hiding and how to approach them, the trout are there in good numbers, now.

 

Murray's office sits on a cliff overlooking Stoney Creek, just above its confluence with the north branch of the Shenandoah, in the Valley Pike town of Edinburg, Va.

Earl C. Hargrove, Jr. recalls when the opportunity to buy a cave in Virginia's Shenandoah Valley had presented itself, it took him all of about five seconds to go for it, even though he had not a clue about what it actually took to operate the spectacular caverns attraction that had first opened to the public in 1922.

He first saw Shenandoah Caverns in the 1950s, after some friends, whom at that time had purchased the cave property, asked him to come up and give them advice about how to make the caverns more attractive to the public.

When early American settlers followed the Great Valley Road through what was then a frontier to the West, many just stopped to settle in the Shenandoah Valley. They brought with them diverse European styles and skills that influenced whatever they built or handcrafted. The melting pot of cultural influences can be easily seen in Valley furniture designs. The latest Changing Exhibition Gallery exhibit at the Museum of the Shenandoah Valley is a collection of wooden chairs that represent the Valley's regional woodworking styles in the late 1700s and 1800s.

The Cedar Creek and Belle Grove National Historical Park is gearing up for expanded visitor services that include interpretive programs led by National Park Service rangers. Park Ranger Eric A. Campbell, one of three rangers tasked with developing new programs at the park, says that the new programs could begin as early as next June. The park has been in existence since 2002, when a partnership was formed to join a 3,700-acre district that includes the Belle Grove Plantation and the Cedar Creek Battlefield.

The Factory Antique Mall first opened its doors in 1996, starting out more as a flea market where antiques were only a part of a large variety of curios offered for sale.  General Manager Jason Brinkley says that it soon became apparent that specializing in antiques made good business sense.  Time has proved his thinking to be correct.

Since then, the Factory Antique Mall has grown into a huge mall-style operation that now covers 90,000 square feet of indoor space.  It now consists of a group of independent vendors who offer the largest selection of antiques and collectibles in the Shenandoah Valley and Brinkley says that it's one of the largest antique malls on the east coast.

The CrossRoads Heritage Center, also known as the Valley Brethren-Mennonite Heritage Center is a must-see for Valley visitors, particularly people who wish to learn more about how the Valley was settled.