Library of Virginia’s Fall Schedule of Virtual Events: Engage with Literature, History, Maps, and Genealogy

Read and discuss the best of today’s Virginia literature—books by Library of Virginia Literary Award winners and finalists in fiction and nonfiction—on the second Wednesday evening of the month.

The Library’s genealogy workshop series explores our vast collection of materials documenting the lives of Virginians to help you organize your family history research. Cost: $15 ($10 for members)

Addressing Hunger in the Midst of Plenty: The Political History of Food Stamps
Tuesday, September 22, 2020 | 12:00–1:00 pm
Tracy Roof, Associate Professor of Political Science, University of Richmond

In the wealthiest country in the world, people still go hungry. The food stamp program was created in the 1960s to ease abundant agricultural surpluses and help feed struggling families who fell through a limited social safety net. Join Virginia Humanities Research Fellow Tracy Roof, PhD, an associate professor of political science at the University of Richmond, as she explores the often contentious politics of the food stamps program.

Explorations of the Albemarle Sound region and the first English settlements of the Roanoke Islands in the 1580s are the topic of the 17th Annual Alan M. and Nathalie P. Voorhees Lecture on the History of Cartography—this year presented as a series of virtual events. These free online talks are hosted by the Fry-Jefferson Map Society. 

Volunteer to help uncover history with us! What did Virginia newspapers report about Nazi persecution during the 1930s and 1940s? In partnership with the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and the Virginia Holocaust Museum, the Library offers virtual “research sprints” into our newspaper collection. Identify Holocaust-related articles in Virginia newspapers to help us understand what the average Virginian could have known during WWII.

Unfinished Business: What the 19th Amendment Didn’t Do | Thursday, October 8, 2020 | 5:00–6:00 pm

Moderated by Virginia State Senator Jennifer McClellan, this virtual panel discussion with historians Lauranett Lee (a visiting lecturer in the University of Richmond’s Jepson School of Leadership Studies) and Megan Taylor-Shockley (an author and former professor of history at Clemson University) explores the struggle for the vote that remained for many citizens after the passage of the 19th Amendment. This event complements the Library’s exhibitions We Demand: Women’s Suffrage in Virginia and Unfinished Business.

Celebrate the Library of Virginia Literary Awards virtually this year with a week of author conversations and special events, which will be accessible to the public. This annual event, sponsored by Dominion Energy, attracts library supporters, authors, publishers, and those who enjoy the written word. Award-winning Virginia author Adriana Trigiani will again serve as host on Saturday, October 17 for the awards celebration. Details on how to support and participate in the events are coming soon. The 2020 virtual Literary Awards are sponsored by Dominion Energy. For more information, visit https://www.lva.virginia.gov/public/litawards.

Please visit our website at www.lva.virginia.gov and follow us on social media to find online resources, virtual events, and other ways to engage with the Library.