The Library of Virginia maintains the most comprehensive collection of information about Virginia’s history, culture, and government. We hold more than 200 million manuscript items,…
Trenton HizerSeptember 6, 2024
The Library of Virginia maintains the most comprehensive collection of information about Virginia’s history, culture, and government. We hold more than 200 million manuscript items,…
Trenton HizerMarch 13, 2024
On February 9, 1864, Colonel Thomas E. Rose (1830-1907) led 108 other imprisoned Union officers in a daring escape from Libby Prison. Rose, colonel of…
Trenton HizerFebruary 9, 2024
About 25 years ago, Michael Cook was hiking in rural Mecklenburg County near the North Carolina border, some eight to ten miles southwest of South…
Trenton HizerNovember 3, 2021
Editor's Note: A version of this article first appeared in Broadside, the magazine of the Library of Virginia, Issue No. 1, 2020. Known as a famed…
Trenton HizerJune 23, 2021
Recently Susan Chiarello brought in a very unusual item to be scanned for the Virginia World War I/World War II Commission—her grandfather’s short snorter. Measuring…
Trenton HizerFebruary 28, 2018
This is the latest entry in a series of blog posts spotlighting stories and records of Virginia’s involvement in World War I. The M.A. Dunning…
Trenton HizerAugust 2, 2017
Editor’s note: Tomorrow is Election Day! Get out and vote! This blog post was written by Senior Manuscripts Archivist Trenton Hizer, adapted from a talk…
Trenton HizerNovember 7, 2016
“I send you two patients to the mad stone. They are natives of this place and had their children bitten today.” -J. Reuben Richerson to R.…
Trenton HizerAugust 20, 2014
The smell of deep-fried pickles and cotton candy. The sounds of music and laughter. The sights of the midway. For well over a century and…
Trenton HizerOctober 3, 2013
Not long ago, I caught ”The Omega Glory” episode of Star Trek on television. Kirk, Spock, and McCoy are trapped on a planet very similar to…
Trenton HizerMay 29, 2013
With 2011 marking the 70th anniversary of the United States’ entry into World War II, the Library of Virginia undertook a concerted effort to collect the…
Trenton HizerJanuary 23, 2013
The Civil War experiences of Virginians from all walks of life and all corners of the state can be found at the Library of Virginia.…
Trenton HizerDecember 14, 2012
Another presidential election year is upon us, and we are already bombarded with television ads touting the two candidates and proclaiming their positions on every…
Trenton HizerJune 13, 2012
