Hollins Family Papers

John Hollins and Ann Halsey were married on January 19, 1811, in Richmond Baptist Church. They moved to Lynchburg, Virginia, in 1817, where Ann became deeply involved in the local Baptist Church. While John was not a member, he was devoted to his wife, and would donate money to the Church to please her. John Hollins owned a grist mill on Blackwater Creek, often called Hollins Mill. He also served as trustee in the Lynchburg Manufacturing Company, owned tracts of land around Lynchburg, and operated a grocery store on the corner of Main and Water Streets. Ann Hollins became interested in the Valley Union Educational Society outside of Roanoke that was being run by another devout and active Baptist, Charles L. Cocke. Religious connections brought John and Ann Hollins to the notice of the school, and in 1855, Ann Hollins donated $5,000 to the school. They also recommended that a self-perpetuating Board of Trustees be established, which John Hollins was named to soon thereafter. John Hollins died in 1859; after his death, and until her own in 1866, Ann Hollins donated a total of $17,500 to the school. Her wealth was impacted by the effects of the Civil War; although she was unable to bequeath money to Hollins Institute in her will, she did give two portraits of herself and her husband to the college. These portraits hung in Main Building for many years until they were transferred to the Archives in 2024.