Van Winkle family. Films, ca. 1934-1935, 1947-1952 

Collection held by the Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky 

Creator: Van Winkle family 

Title: Films, ca. 1934-1935, 1947-1952 

Rights: For information regarding literary and copyright interest for this collection, contact the Collections Department at gro.l1773387396aciro1773387396tsihn1773387396oslif1773387396@hcra1773387396eser1773387396.  

Size of Collection:  2 MP4s (2.12 GB, 1 hour, 7 minutes, 14 seconds) 

Location Number: Mss. A V285 

Date finding aid last updated: 12/11/2025 

 

Scope and Content Note  

The collection contains digitized, silent, 8mm films of the Van Winkle family of Louisville, Kentucky. The films depict the circa 1934-1935 construction and grounds of Stitzel-Weller Distillery in Shively, Kentucky; family at Julian Van Winkle Jr.’s home on Indian Hills Trail; outdoor recreation activities at the Louisville Country Club or River Valley Club; and vacations at Delray Beach, Florida. Footage of the family in Louisville focuses on children playing and posed shots of family members. Vacation and outdoor recreation footage captures the family golfing, playing tennis, biking, boating, and swimming. 

The films were digitized by the donor and burned to DVDs in circa 2014. The donor retained the original 8mm films. 

See also:

Van Winkle family file
Van Winkle, Julian Jr. World War II manuscript collection [025×62]
Residence for Mr. & Mrs. Julian Van Winkle Jr., Louisville, Ky., 1953, in Nevin & Morgan Architects Collection, 1921-1970, 2003 [Mss. AR N526a Roll 25]
Photograph of the Van Winkle family [PC22.0003]
Edwin S. Foote Photograph Collection [PC6.0088]
Taylor-Hay Family Papers, 1783-1991 [Mss. A T238d]

 

Biographical or Historical Note 

Julian Proctor “Pappy” Van Winkle Sr. (1874-1965) was one of the founders of Stitzel-Weller Distillery, along with Alex T. Farnsley (1869-1941) and Arthur Phillip Stitzel (1875-1947). The three organized the merger of A. Ph. Stitzel and W.L. Weller distilleries. After the death of his partners, Van Winkle and his son Julian Proctor Van Winkle Jr. (1914-1981) continued operations.  

Julian Van Winkle Sr. was born in Danville, Kentucky. He married Katie Smith (1879-1968) of Lexington in 1905 and the couple moved to Louisville by 1910. The couple had two children, Mary Chenault Van Winkle McClure (1911-2006) and Julian Van Winkle Jr. (1914-1981). They lived at 37 Hill Avenue in Louisville. 

Julian Jr. followed his father’s footsteps in working in distilling, joining the company in 1937. Julian Jr. married Kate Hardy (1915-1997) in August 1940. They lived on Indian Hills Trail in the Indian Hills neighborhood of Louisville. The couple had three children, Sarah Van Winkle Campbell, Katherine Van Winkle Terry, and Julian Van Winkle III. Among other involvements, Julian Jr. was president of Louisville Country Club and River Valley Club. 

Mary VanWinkle and Charles King McClure Jr. (1910-1977) married in 1939. Charles also worked for Stitzel-Weller Distillery. They had two children, Chenault McClure Conway and Charles King McClure III. 

Sources: 

https://www.buffalotracedistillery.com/our-distillery/legendary-people/pappy-van-winkle/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stitzel%E2%80%93Weller_Distillery
https://www.whiskeyuniv.com/julian-p-van-winkle
https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-courier-journal-julian-vanwinkle-jr/136158321/
https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/louisville/name/mary-mcclure-obituary?id=26236407  

 

Conditions of Access and Use 

Born-digital materials can be viewed using Filson library computers. Remote access may be granted on a case-by-case basis. Please speak to Collections staff about how to access digital files. 

 

Item List 

Video File 1: Family, circa 1947-1952 (40 minutes, 45 seconds). To view the video, click here.

Video File 2: Family, circa 1947-1952; Stitzel-Weller Distillery, Shively, Kentucky, circa 1934-1935; and W. T. Smith Lumber Co. Inc., Chapman, Alabama (17 minutes, 55 seconds). To view the video, click here.

 

Subject Headings 

For more details on how the below subjects appear in this collection, search the subject in the manuscript database at https://filsonhistorical.org/collections/manuscript-database/ . 

McClure, Charles King, 1910-1977 

McClure, Mary Van Winkle, 1911-2006 

Van Winkle, Julian Proctor, 1874-1965 

Van Winkle, Julian P., Jr., 1914-1981 

Van Winkle, Katherine Smith, 1879-1968 

Construction projects – Kentucky. 

Distilleries – Kentucky. 

Kentucky – Louisville – Indian Hills. 

Stitzel-Weller Distillery (Shively, Ky.) 

Whiskey industry – Kentucky.