About Us

Estroz.Net began many years ago when Marvin and Leslie Broyhill tried to instill in their two young sons a sense of curiosity about the world in which they live. They felt that learning should be fun, a combination of education and entertainment. Various Family Expeditions resulted in the accumulation of many natural artifacts, such as fossils, minerals, seashells, etc. and a large collection of related books. The family library became a Natural History Museum. It was "Show-and-Tell" headquarters for the neighborhood. Plus there were telescopes, microscopes, chemistry sets and a host of science projects. Many of these things were virtually impossible to find in central Virginia.  Parents of other children constantly asked them how they could get them. This revealed the need for a means to support home education activities.      In 1991, Mr. Broyhill renovated the Appomattox Iron Works into a living history museum. It had the largest collection of early machine tools in the U.S. Many were belt driven and powered by steam engines. He wrote research bulletins on its many resources, the educational field trip program and lesson plans for teachers.  The museum gift shop was conceived and developed in accordance with the edutainment concept.  Then, on August 6, 1993, the worst tornado in Virginia history devastated it and the rest of Petersburg's Old Towne Historic District.  For all practical purposes, the AIW was destroyed.         Convinced of the need for science and nature resources, Mr. Broyhill began developing a web site to offer such products.  Preparation of web pages began in the Fall of 1996.  Due to a slew of technical problems the site did not become fully functional until September, but was an instant success.  Some departments proved so popular and had grown so large they were used to create a website dedicated to a specialized subject.  The multi-site operations led to reorganizing the business under the name of Estorz.net. It is now owned by Feenixx Publishing