The annual Deyerle Program Series on Local History returns to MRL’s Central Library with five in-person events during the month of October. This popular annual lecture series features local historians, scholars and area experts who explore a broad range of subjects surrounding the history of the Shenandoah Valley. This year’s series celebrates VA250, the 250th anniversary of our country and state, with a focus on the Shenandoah Valley and will take place weekly on Thursday evenings at 7PM from October 1- 29, 2026. Advance registration is requested through MRL’s website.
Topics and speakers for the 2026 Deyerle Program Series are as follows:
October 1 @ 7PM: “Old Houses in Rockingham County” In the first lecture of the series, Ann Terrell Baker will share how architecture evolved in the early years of Rockingham County. Her presentation will be illustrated with images from her father Isaac Long Terrell’s book, Old Houses in Rockingham County 1750-1850, her book, Old Houses in Rockingham County Revisited, 1750-1850, and the accompanying digital collection she collaborated on with MRL. Click here to register.
October 8 @ 7PM: “Revolutionary Records” In the second lecture of the series, Eric Johnson, Coordinator of the Library of Virginia’s VA250 “Ideas in Action” Project, will share stories of the Shenandoah Valley during the Revolutionary War using Revolutionary era records and documents from the LVA collections. Click here to register.
October 15 @ 7PM: “Virginia’s Presidents” In the third lecture of the series, writer, editor, publisher, and archivist and public historian Heather Cole will illuminate the lives and localities of the country’s eight Virginia-born presidents. Click here to register.
October 22 @ 7PM: “Revolution on the Frontier: Perspectives on Independence” In the fourth lecture of the series, Misti Furr and Dale Cook of the Frontier Culture Museum of Virginia will consider what independence meant for Virginians in the backcountry and for the myriad Indigenous nations in the Eastern Woodlands. This talk will provide unique windows into the stories of backcountry peoples during the Revolution, the impact to their daily lives, and the formation of new identities. Click here to register.
October 29 @ 7PM: “Revolutionary Valley” In the fifth and final lecture of the series, Nick Powers, Curator of Collections at the Museum of the Shenandoah Valley, will address the Valley as a place of revolutionary thought, action, and consequence from the period of the Revolutionary War up through today. In addition to the Revolutionary period itself, he will also examine how Americans left out of the nation’s founding promises have strived to achieve economic, political, and civil rights for themselves. Click here to register.
Now in its 22nd year at MRL, the Deyerle Program Series on Local History is made possible through the generosity of the Deyerle family, in honor of their parents, Dr. Henry P. and Mary Elizabeth Deyerle. In addition to being respected medical professionals in the local community, the Deyerles were widely known for their passion for collecting American antiques. Their interest in 18th and 19th century domestic artifacts made in the eastern United States was instrumental in raising awareness for the work of the Shenandoah Valley artisans who were active during these centuries. The Deyerles’ collection preserved and highlighted the cultural traditions and artistic achievements from the Shenandoah Valley’s past, and it is this insight into local history that the annual Deyerle Program Series seeks to foster and encourage.
“This year’s Deyerle series is special to me because we get a chance to both celebrate and connect with our area’s Revolutionary history,” Library Director Zach Elder said. “Celebrating America’s 250th through local homes of that period, examining local records, Virginia’s Presidential history, and other topics that help us see the links between the Shenandoah Valley then, up to the present.”
All events hosted by Massanutten Regional Library, including the Deyerle Program Series on Local History, are free and open to the public, and you do not need a library card to participate. Find details and a registration link for each session at MRL’s website: www.mrlib.org.
