Privacy Policy
Effective Date: January 17, 2026
Last Updated: January 17, 2026
Introduction
The Historical Society of Washington County, Virginia ("HSWCV," "we," "us," or "our") is committed to protecting the privacy of our website visitors, members, donors, and customers. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your personal information when you visit our website at hswcv.org and use our online services.
By using our website and services, you consent to the data practices described in this policy. If you do not agree with this policy, please discontinue use of our website.
1. Information We Collect
Personal Information You Provide
We collect personal information that you voluntarily provide when using our website services, including:
Donations & Memberships
- Name, email address, phone number
- Mailing address
- Membership level and payment type preferences
- Newsletter delivery preference (email or postal mail)
Research Requests
- Name, email address, phone number, postal address
- Research subject details and questions
- Genealogical information (names of ancestors, family members)
Bulletin & Image Purchases
- Name, email address, phone number
- Shipping address (for printed materials)
- Order details and purchase history
Payment Information
We use PayPal to process all online payments. HSWCV does not directly collect, store, or process credit card information. When you make a payment, you are redirected to PayPal's secure payment platform. Please review PayPal's Privacy Policy for information about how they handle your payment data.
We receive confirmation of completed transactions from PayPal, including transaction IDs and payment amounts, but we do not receive your full credit card numbers or sensitive payment details.
Automatically Collected Information
When you visit our website, we may automatically collect certain technical information, including:
- Your IP address and general location information
- Browser type and version
- Device information (computer, tablet, mobile phone)
- Pages visited and time spent on our website
- Referring website or source
- Session cookies necessary for form functionality
2. How We Use Your Information
We use the information we collect for the following purposes:
Process Transactions
Complete donations, memberships, research requests, and product purchases
Communicate With You
Send order confirmations, research results, membership information, and respond to inquiries
Deliver Services
Fulfill research requests, ship purchased items, and send newsletters
Maintain Records
Keep transaction records for accounting, tax, and historical purposes
Improve Our Services
Analyze website usage to enhance user experience and functionality
Send Newsletters (If Opted In)
Deliver quarterly newsletters to members who have selected newsletter delivery
Prevent Fraud
Detect and prevent fraudulent transactions and spam submissions
3. How We Share Your Information
HSWCV does not sell, rent, or trade your personal information to third parties. We may share your information only in the following limited circumstances:
Service Providers
We work with trusted third-party service providers who assist us in operating our website and delivering services:
- PayPal: Payment processing for donations, memberships, and purchases
- MailerSend: Email delivery service for transaction confirmations and notifications
- Turbify: Web hosting services
These providers are contractually obligated to protect your information and may only use it to perform services on our behalf.
Legal Requirements
We may disclose your information if required by law, court order, or government regulation, or if we believe disclosure is necessary to protect our rights, your safety, or the safety of others.
Business Transfers
In the unlikely event of a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets, your information may be transferred to the acquiring organization, subject to the same privacy protections.
4. Data Security
We take reasonable measures to protect your personal information from unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, or destruction. Our security measures include:
- HTTPS Encryption: All data transmitted between your browser and our website is encrypted using SSL/TLS
- Secure Payment Processing: All payment transactions are processed through PayPal's secure platform
- Access Controls: Limited access to personal information by authorized staff and volunteers only
- Form Protection: CSRF tokens, honeypot fields, and rate limiting to prevent spam and unauthorized submissions
- Secure Storage: Transaction records stored in protected directories outside the web root
However, no method of transmission over the internet or electronic storage is 100% secure. While we strive to protect your information, we cannot guarantee absolute security.
5. Data Retention
We retain your personal information for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes outlined in this Privacy Policy, unless a longer retention period is required by law or for legitimate organizational purposes:
- Transaction Records: Maintained indefinitely for historical, accounting, and tax purposes
- Membership Information: Retained for the duration of your membership and for historical records
- Research Requests: Stored as part of our research archives
- Email Communications: Retained according to our record-keeping policies
- Website Analytics: Aggregated data retained for analysis and improvement purposes
6. Your Privacy Rights
You have certain rights regarding your personal information:
Access and Correction
You may request access to the personal information we hold about you and request corrections if it is inaccurate or incomplete.
Opt-Out of Communications
You may opt out of receiving newsletters or promotional emails by contacting us by mail, email or phone. Note that you may still receive transactional emails related to your orders or membership.
Data Deletion
You may request deletion of your personal information, subject to our legal obligations to retain certain records for tax, accounting, and historical purposes.
Data Portability
You may request a copy of your personal information in a structured, commonly used format.
To exercise any of these rights, please contact us using the information provided in the "Contact Us" section below.
7. Cookies and Tracking Technologies
Our website uses cookies and similar technologies to enhance your experience:
Essential Cookies
We use session cookies that are necessary for website functionality, including form submissions and maintaining your session while you navigate our site. These cookies are deleted when you close your browser.
Analytics (If Applicable)
We may use analytics services to understand how visitors use our website. These services may use cookies to collect information about your browsing behavior.
Most web browsers allow you to control cookies through their settings. However, disabling cookies may limit your ability to use certain features of our website.
8. Third-Party Links
Our website may contain links to third-party websites, including PayPal, Facebook, YouTube, and TripAdvisor. We are not responsible for the privacy practices or content of these external sites. We encourage you to review the privacy policies of any third-party sites you visit.
9. Children's Privacy
Our website is not directed to children under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If we become aware that we have inadvertently collected information from a child under 13, we will take steps to delete such information promptly.
10. Changes to This Privacy Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, technology, legal requirements, or other factors. When we make changes, we will update the "Last Updated" date at the top of this policy.
We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy periodically. Your continued use of our website after changes have been posted constitutes your acceptance of the updated policy.
11. Contact Us
If you have questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us:
Historical Society of Washington County, Virginia
Mailing Address:
341 West Main Street
P.O. Box 484
Abingdon, VA 24212-0484
Phone: 276-623-8337
Email: office@hswcv.org
Office Hours:
Tuesday–Friday: 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM
Saturday: 10:00 AM – 3:00 PM
Closed Sunday & Monday
Acknowledgment: By using the HSWCV website and services, you acknowledge that you have read and understood this Privacy Policy and agree to its terms.