SWOOPE, Va. (WHSV) – Gordon Barlow’s new book, “Virginia in the Revolutionary War,” explains his decades-old artifact collection and the stories each item has.
Barlow, an author from Swoope, has been collecting 18th century American artifacts for over 50 years. His collection didn’t start off as Revolutionary War weapons and trinkets, though — it was other odds and ends he found interesting, he said. It wasn’t until he started getting more and more Revolutionary War artifacts when he realized he had a passion for America’s beginnings.
“I came out of high school in 1956. I collected just simple things like double-barrel shotguns and things like that,” Barlow said. “As I matured and realized how great America is and got older, the [Revolutionary] War stood out. The 18th century French and Indian War and Rev War are my passion now; and I do that because I just love America.”
Items in his collection include swords, knives, tomahawks and muskets used by soldiers fighting for American independence. However, his collection is not defined by the weapons in his arsenal. He also has original documents authored by founding fathers, as well as the ink set used by Sally Hemings, an enslaved woman who historians say had six children with Thomas Jefferson.
Barlow said he enjoys showing his collection to people and thinks people can actually learn more about history when they are up close and personal with it. However, he understood that his collection couldn’t reach everybody in the U.S., which is why he chose to write a book about his collection.
“I put on the display at the John Marshall Hotel for that centennial, 200th anniversary of the country,” Barlow said. “Since that time, I’ve just evolved into wanting to put down on paper and share the artifacts that go along with my collecting and share those with other people and being able to put that book together. The book that I wrote has been evolved over at least 10 years. I didn’t just sit down and I write it one day. I wrote a chapter at a time, and as artifacts appeared and as my study became important, [it] evolved into the book.”
Barlow said he never sought out any of the items in his collection. Rather, people would bring the artifact to him and donate it or sell it to him because they knew he had a vast collection. He didn’t seek out any relics because he felt it would ruin the luster of having a backstory to each and every item.
His collection on the outside can seem like a random assortment of items connected to the American Revolution. However, he emphasized how important the backstory to each relic was in his collection. Not only do the items tell the broad history of the Revolutionary War and the 18th century, they also tell the stories of Virginians who helped establish the Commonwealth.
“Primarily, my collection centers around things, artifacts that people actually use that I know who used them,” Barlow said. “I like the association with a person. Artifacts are wonderful, but artifacts known to have been carried or used by someone in particular — specifically, a Virginian, for me, is very, very important. That’s so, so much a part of seeing and feeling how America really evolved.”
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