Selina Lloyd Powell
1807 - 1871
Selina was the daughter of Rebecca Janney and John Lloyd. Her mother died when she was young, and her father married Anne Harriett Lee who helped to raise her. Selina grew up in Alexandria and moved to Loudoun County, VA after she married Charles Levin Powell in 1830. After living a few years in Henry, IL she and Charles opened a boarding school for girls in Winchester, VA in early 1856.
Image courtesy of the R. Jackson Rogers Sr. collection of Powell Family photographs, Swem Library, William & Mary
Charles Levin Powell
1804 - 1896
Charles Levin Powell was the son of Catharine Simms and Cuthbert Powell. After marrying Selina Lloyd he lived mostly in Loudoun County, VA with a few years spent in Henry, IL. Early in 1856 he and Selina opened a boarding school for girls in Winchester, VA.
Image courtesy of The Powell Family Papers, Special Collections Research Center, Swem Library, the College of William & Mary
Rebecca Catherine Powell
1831 - 1921
Rebecca was a teacher in her parents' school in Winchester, VA. During the war she taught children in homes in several counties. She later founded and operated a boarding school called "The Arlington Institute for Girls" that operated for 47 years. She was bright, independent, a strong leader, and the longest surviving member of the family.
Image courtesy of the private collection of Jack Rogers.
Harriet Lee Powell (Hattie)
1833 - 1870
Hattie was a teacher in her parents' school in Winchester, VA and was responsible for teaching the younger girls. During the war she taught children in two rural counties while living with the families that employed her. She was adventurous, witty, a social butterfly, and was a delightful story teller. Her letters are the most delightful among the family. After the war she lived in Alexandria and married James Rector Smoot.
Image courtesy of the private collection of Jack Rogers.
Lloyd Powell
1834 - 1861
Lloyd worked as a land agent in the west. He operated out of Henry, IL and St Louis, MO. He traveled extensively across the country, and his letters are rich with descriptions of his adventures. He had a strong work ethic and was exceedingly kind. His letters rival his sister Hattie's in their humor, prose, and adventure. He was among the first killed in the war - on July 21st, 1861 at the First Battle of Bull Run.
Image courtesy of the R. Jackson Rogers Sr. collection of Powell Family photographs, Swem Library, William & Mary
Mary Emily Powell (Minna)
1835 - 1854
Minna was often ill during her short life and died in 1854 at the age of 19 when the family was in Henry, IL. Her health was a constant concern of her parents and siblings, and they often took her to Alexandria to doctors or sent her to family members in different parts of the state to see if a change in climate would help. She was a very descriptive writer, adored by her siblings, and her death weighed heavily on them all.
Image courtesy of Alison Herring. No known image of Minna has yet been found.
Charles Leven Powell, Jr. (Charlie)
1839 - 1862
Charlie was just beginning to determine what he wanted to do with his life at the outset of the war. He was studying bookkeeping as he worked in a mercantile store in Henry, IL with his uncles. Charlie was mischievous, attended school in Massachusetts, and admired his older brother. He returned to Virginia after the death of his brother and died in a skirmish at Warrenton Springs a few days before the 2nd Battle of Bull Run.
Image courtesy of the R. Jackson Rogers Sr. collection of Powell Family photographs, Swem Library, William & Mary
Selina Lloyd Powell (Nina)
1842 - 1918
Nina Powell was the baby of the family, and many of the letters from the 1840s have circles drawn on them that contain Nina's kisses. It was a charming way to involve a little girl in the letters. During the war she taught school in homes in various counties across the state. She was adored and doted on by her older siblings. After the war she married the Reverend Sewell S. Hepburn.
Image courtesy of the private collection of Jack Rogers.
About The Powells
The Powells operated a boarding school for young women in Winchester, VA. They had a robust curriculum for their scholars and strove, "to teach them to think, by directing their minds to the logical process by which scientific results are reached."
The Powells closed the school and fled in the spring of 1862 when Winchester became a dangerous place. With no income, and nowhere to go, they separated and endured that catastrophe independently. The three daughters hired themselves out as teachers in homes across Virginia. Their letters record a complete account of life at the various homes where they lived and the events they witnessed.
The image here is the Powells' school on Braddock Street at the corner of Amherst Street in Winchester, VA.