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Shenandoah Valley
Cultural Heritage Museum

Shenandoah Valley Cultural Heritage Museum

Shenandoah Valley
Cultural Heritage Museum

Welcome!

The 1848 Edinburg Mill recreates Shenandoah Valley hands-on history with memorabilia, antiques, old equipment and tools, as well as exhibits about Civil War history, the nation’s first Civilian Conservation Camp ...and much more!

Main museum displays on the second and third floors, ACCESSIBLE BY ELEVATOR. Admission donation to these floors is $3.

Could have spent all day here.  Really superb,  Thank you   (p. Invernes Scotland)


Thank you for saving history


Love your brooms


My second time to the Mill.  So interesting!


We truly believe the museum is historic and worthwhile to pursue


Good job!!!


Thanks for having us.  This place is COOL!


One of the best local history Museums I have ever visited.  Every display was a fun window into the past.  It also has the very best collection of American Red Cross artifacts of any single place I have ever visited.


I hope this place is around for a long time, as I want to bring other history lovers to this treasure.


This is one of the best museum of this kind we have visited in 30 years travel cross country – be proud. The movie was so unique.  (From:  a museum curator in New Hampshire)


One of the best!  We will be back


Friendly staff.  Beautiful museum


Spectacular preservation and use





An Old Friend Returns Home

By Dan Harshman

A couple months ago a lady named Denise contacted us about wanting to donate something that originally was used at the Edinburg Mill. She purchased it in the early 1980s 

from an antique shop in Millwood, and was told that it was a “Foreman’s Desk” from the Edinburg Mill. It had served as her checkout counter in her pottery shop until recently and she wanted to return it to its original home now that she no longer needed it.

Regrettably, no photographs were taken of the interior of the Mill when it ceased to operate at the end of 1978 before the restaurant conversion began. But the timing was certainly correct for when things from the Mill would have started showing up in nearby antique shops. And when I saw the actual desk, I have no doubt that it could be from our mill.

The simple slant top desk has no legs and probably sat on another work surface when in use. The top opens to reveal a large storage area that would keep items safe and protected from the dust of an operating mill. It currently is sitting on the floor in the front hall of the museum directly under a stand-up desk that also is original to the Mill. The stand up desk also features a slant top, although it doesn’t open. It does have drawers on the front and is considerably larger than the foreman’s desk sitting under it.

It’s interesting that “stand-up” desks have made a comeback in many modern day offices as a better alternative to spending the day sitting at a desk. Our stand up desk remained in the Mill after it ceased operating and was used as the hostess desk during the Mill’s years as a restaurant. We now are using it as a base for our large Land Survey Atlas showing Lord Fairfax Land Grants in Shenandoah County from 1739-1850s.

Another much larger desk that remained with the Mill is now a display piece in one of our gift shops. It is a large two sided “Partners” Desk. It measures 7 feet long by 4-1/2 feet wide and also has drawers across both long sides. It too is a stand-up desk with each side slanted toward the person using it. Both sides have a raised rail along the lower edge to keep ledgers and pencils in place. This desk spent the restaurant years in the front lobby where we now have the smaller stand-up desk.

Like Denise’s foreman’s desk, we have another desk that found its way back to us by way of an antique shop; this time from Old Town Alexandria. Some of you might remember that the second owner of the Edinburg Mill Restaurant also owned a restaurant in Old Town Alexandria. We don’t know for sure, but that might be how the Roll-top Desk from our mill ended up in a shop up there. The Foundation was able to purchase the desk and chair around the time that the “Save the Mill” Campaign was getting started and it is now on display in the Museum. 

Displayed right next to the Roll-top is another large and in charge item that never left the Mill. It is the large Safe that was used during the days when the Mill was in operation. We aren’t sure if the original restaurant continued using it or not, however it was still in the building when the Town purchased the Mill in February, 2000. 

The Safe was located in the front corner room of the Mill directly behind the outside loading dock when we purchased the Mill. It took the better part of a day for R. J. Lambert Moving and Storage to move it through the building to its new location in the Mill. We had to use heavy timber to create a path that protected the old floors from collapsing under the weight. We also had to add additional wood support above and below the spot where the Safe ended up. It is displayed with the doors open and allows visitors to see some of the internal workings of a safe door.

If you are interested in safes, we also have two smaller safes on exhibit. The larger of the two is from the Union Forge Ironworks and was made in 1852. It is locked by a large iron key. The smaller safe is from the Irvin Family and has a combination lock. We display it with the combination in case you ever wanted to try opening a safe. Even with the correct numbers and a set of directions, it can be trickier than you might think.

 While not as heavy duty as a safe, all of the desks that remain at the Mill have one thing in common. Like the building they are in, they are all well built and have stood the test of time. It’s hard to say how many times the top of the Foreman’s Desk was lifted to place something inside. Or how many important invoices or checks occupied the drawers of our Partners Desk over the years. And there is nothing like the patina of an older piece of wooden furniture. One can only imagine the stories they would tell if only they could.





• Handicapped Accessible

• Elevator, Ramps & Chair-lift

• Ample Parking

• Handicapped Accessible   • Elevator, Ramps & Chair-lift   • Ample Parking

Could have spent all day here.  Really superb,  Thank you   (p. Invernes Scotland)


Thank you for saving history


Love your brooms


My second time to the Mill.  So interesting!


We truly believe the museum is historic and worthwhile to pursue


Good job!!!


Thanks for having us.  This place is COOL!


One of the best local history Museums I have ever visited.  Every display was a fun window into the past.  It also has the very best collection of American Red Cross artifacts of any single place I have ever visited.


I hope this place is around for a long time, as I want to bring other history lovers to this treasure.


This is one of the best museum of this kind we have visited in 30 years travel cross country – be proud. The movie was so unique.  (From:  a museum curator in New Hampshire)


One of the best!  We will be back


Friendly staff.  Beautiful museum


Spectacular preservation and use





An Old Friend Returns Home

By Dan Harshman

A couple months ago a lady named Denise contacted us about wanting to donate something that originally was used at the Edinburg Mill. She purchased it in the early 1980s 

from an antique shop in Millwood, and was told that it was a “Foreman’s Desk” from the Edinburg Mill. It had served as her checkout counter in her pottery shop until recently and she wanted to return it to its original home now that she no longer needed it.

Regrettably, no photographs were taken of the interior of the Mill when it ceased to operate at the end of 1978 before the restaurant conversion began. But the timing was certainly correct for when things from the Mill would have started showing up in nearby antique shops. And when I saw the actual desk, I have no doubt that it could be from our mill.

The simple slant top desk has no legs and probably sat on another work surface when in use. The top opens to reveal a large storage area that would keep items safe and protected from the dust of an operating mill. It currently is sitting on the floor in the front hall of the museum directly under a stand-up desk that also is original to the Mill. The stand up desk also features a slant top, although it doesn’t open. It does have drawers on the front and is considerably larger than the foreman’s desk sitting under it.

It’s interesting that “stand-up” desks have made a comeback in many modern day offices as a better alternative to spending the day sitting at a desk. Our stand up desk remained in the Mill after it ceased operating and was used as the hostess desk during the Mill’s years as a restaurant. We now are using it as a base for our large Land Survey Atlas showing Lord Fairfax Land Grants in Shenandoah County from 1739-1850s.

Another much larger desk that remained with the Mill is now a display piece in one of our gift shops. It is a large two sided “Partners” Desk. It measures 7 feet long by 4-1/2 feet wide and also has drawers across both long sides. It too is a stand-up desk with each side slanted toward the person using it. Both sides have a raised rail along the lower edge to keep ledgers and pencils in place. This desk spent the restaurant years in the front lobby where we now have the smaller stand-up desk.

Like Denise’s foreman’s desk, we have another desk that found its way back to us by way of an antique shop; this time from Old Town Alexandria. Some of you might remember that the second owner of the Edinburg Mill Restaurant also owned a restaurant in Old Town Alexandria. We don’t know for sure, but that might be how the Roll-top Desk from our mill ended up in a shop up there. The Foundation was able to purchase the desk and chair around the time that the “Save the Mill” Campaign was getting started and it is now on display in the Museum. 

Displayed right next to the Roll-top is another large and in charge item that never left the Mill. It is the large Safe that was used during the days when the Mill was in operation. We aren’t sure if the original restaurant continued using it or not, however it was still in the building when the Town purchased the Mill in February, 2000. 

The Safe was located in the front corner room of the Mill directly behind the outside loading dock when we purchased the Mill. It took the better part of a day for R. J. Lambert Moving and Storage to move it through the building to its new location in the Mill. We had to use heavy timber to create a path that protected the old floors from collapsing under the weight. We also had to add additional wood support above and below the spot where the Safe ended up. It is displayed with the doors open and allows visitors to see some of the internal workings of a safe door.

If you are interested in safes, we also have two smaller safes on exhibit. The larger of the two is from the Union Forge Ironworks and was made in 1852. It is locked by a large iron key. The smaller safe is from the Irvin Family and has a combination lock. We display it with the combination in case you ever wanted to try opening a safe. Even with the correct numbers and a set of directions, it can be trickier than you might think.

 While not as heavy duty as a safe, all of the desks that remain at the Mill have one thing in common. Like the building they are in, they are all well built and have stood the test of time. It’s hard to say how many times the top of the Foreman’s Desk was lifted to place something inside. Or how many important invoices or checks occupied the drawers of our Partners Desk over the years. And there is nothing like the patina of an older piece of wooden furniture. One can only imagine the stories they would tell if only they could.





• Handicapped Accessible   •   Elevator, Ramps & Chair-lift   •   Ample Parking





An Old Friend Returns Home

By Dan Harshman

A couple months ago a lady named Denise contacted us about wanting to donate something that originally was used at the Edinburg Mill. She purchased it in the early 1980s 

from an antique shop in Millwood, and was told that it was a “Foreman’s Desk” from the Edinburg Mill. It had served as her checkout counter in her pottery shop until recently and she wanted to return it to its original home now that she no longer needed it.

Regrettably, no photographs were taken of the interior of the Mill when it ceased to operate at the end of 1978 before the restaurant conversion began. But the timing was certainly correct for when things from the Mill would have started showing up in nearby antique shops. And when I saw the actual desk, I have no doubt that it could be from our mill.

The simple slant top desk has no legs and probably sat on another work surface when in use. The top opens to reveal a large storage area that would keep items safe and protected from the dust of an operating mill. It currently is sitting on the floor in the front hall of the museum directly under a stand-up desk that also is original to the Mill. The stand up desk also features a slant top, although it doesn’t open. It does have drawers on the front and is considerably larger than the foreman’s desk sitting under it.

It’s interesting that “stand-up” desks have made a comeback in many modern day offices as a better alternative to spending the day sitting at a desk. Our stand up desk remained in the Mill after it ceased operating and was used as the hostess desk during the Mill’s years as a restaurant. We now are using it as a base for our large Land Survey Atlas showing Lord Fairfax Land Grants in Shenandoah County from 1739-1850s.

Another much larger desk that remained with the Mill is now a display piece in one of our gift shops. It is a large two sided “Partners” Desk. It measures 7 feet long by 4-1/2 feet wide and also has drawers across both long sides. It too is a stand-up desk with each side slanted toward the person using it. Both sides have a raised rail along the lower edge to keep ledgers and pencils in place. This desk spent the restaurant years in the front lobby where we now have the smaller stand-up desk.

Like Denise’s foreman’s desk, we have another desk that found its way back to us by way of an antique shop; this time from Old Town Alexandria. Some of you might remember that the second owner of the Edinburg Mill Restaurant also owned a restaurant in Old Town Alexandria. We don’t know for sure, but that might be how the Roll-top Desk from our mill ended up in a shop up there. The Foundation was able to purchase the desk and chair around the time that the “Save the Mill” Campaign was getting started and it is now on display in the Museum. 

Displayed right next to the Roll-top is another large and in charge item that never left the Mill. It is the large Safe that was used during the days when the Mill was in operation. We aren’t sure if the original restaurant continued using it or not, however it was still in the building when the Town purchased the Mill in February, 2000. 

The Safe was located in the front corner room of the Mill directly behind the outside loading dock when we purchased the Mill. It took the better part of a day for R. J. Lambert Moving and Storage to move it through the building to its new location in the Mill. We had to use heavy timber to create a path that protected the old floors from collapsing under the weight. We also had to add additional wood support above and below the spot where the Safe ended up. It is displayed with the doors open and allows visitors to see some of the internal workings of a safe door.

If you are interested in safes, we also have two smaller safes on exhibit. The larger of the two is from the Union Forge Ironworks and was made in 1852. It is locked by a large iron key. The smaller safe is from the Irvin Family and has a combination lock. We display it with the combination in case you ever wanted to try opening a safe. Even with the correct numbers and a set of directions, it can be trickier than you might think.

 While not as heavy duty as a safe, all of the desks that remain at the Mill have one thing in common. Like the building they are in, they are all well built and have stood the test of time. It’s hard to say how many times the top of the Foreman’s Desk was lifted to place something inside. Or how many important invoices or checks occupied the drawers of our Partners Desk over the years. And there is nothing like the patina of an older piece of wooden furniture. One can only imagine the stories they would tell if only they could.




...more


Open year-round, but closed Christmas Day: Mon. - Sat., 9:30 am.to 5:30 pm; Sunday, Noon to 5 pm. Bad weather: Call & Check: 540-984-8400

The Shenandoah Valley Cultural Heritage Museum is located along U.S. Route 11 in Edinburg, Virginia.
The museum is open year-round and is owned and operated by the Edinburg Heritage Foundation and the Town of Edinburg.
The mill is also home to Heritage Mill Wines 1848 and the Edinburg Mill Restaurant. The Edinburg Mill is a Virginia Historic Landmark.

Shenandoah Valley Productions LLC

Open year-round, but closed Christmas Day: Mon.
Sat., 9:30 am.to 5:30 pm; Sunday, Noon to 5 pm.
Bad weather: Call & Check: 540-984-8400.

The Shenandoah Valley Cultural Heritage Museum is located along U.S. Route 11 in Edinburg, Virginia. The museum is open year-round and is owned and operated by the Edinburg Heritage Foundation and the Town of Edinburg.

The mill is also home to Heritage Mill Wines 1848 and the Edinburg Mill Restaurant.

The Edinburg Mill is a Virginia Historic Landmark.

Shenandoah Valley Productions LLC

Open year-round, but closed Christmas Day: Mon. - Sat., 9:30 am.to 5:30 pm; Sunday, Noon to 5 pm. Bad weather: Call & Check: 540-984-8400

The Shenandoah Valley Cultural Heritage Museum is located along U.S. Route 11 in Edinburg, Virginia.

The museum is owned and operated by the Edinburg Heritage Foundation and the Town of Edinburg.

The mill is also home to Heritage Mill Wines 1848 and the Edinburg Mill Restaurant.

The Edinburg Mill is a Virginia Historic Landmark.


Shenandoah Valley Productions LLC