Women’s History – Page 2 – The UncommonWealth

Newspapers

Reading Obituaries as Historical Texts

On February 19, 1887, the Afro-American Churchman published an obituary for Reverend Samuel V. Berry. From this entry, we learn how Rev. Berry received his…

Kim BowmanSeptember 5, 2018

Newspapers

WWI Centennial Anniversary – “Queens of the Spy World”

In recognition of the centennial anniversary of the Allies' victory in World War I, the Newspaper Project remembers the "Queens of the Spy World Whose…

Kyle RogersAugust 1, 2018

Newspapers

Virginia Suffrage News

Virginia Suffrage News was a monthly newspaper published by the Equal Suffrage League of Virginia. Beginning with its first issue in October 1914, the paper aimed…

Olin JohnsonJuly 12, 2017

Newspapers

Mary Johnston: A Suffragist of, and Ahead of, Her Time

Mary Johnston, born 1870 in Buchanan, Virginia, was a prolific author of 23 books, outspoken suffragist, and founding member of the Equal Suffrage League of…

Olin JohnsonJune 28, 2017

Newspapers

A Much Obliged and Humble Servant: Clementina Rind’s Virginia Gazette

It was out of necessity that Clementina Rind became Virginia’s first woman newspaper publisher. After the death of her husband, William, in 1773, she had…

Kelley EwingMarch 15, 2017

Newspapers

more dreadful than the most gruesome of tales: Newspaper Coverage of The East Orange Bathtub Mystery

I n 1909, a mystery unfolded that was so shocking, it’s nearly too strange to believe today.Shows like Dateline and Forensic Files continuously reveal the…

Kelley EwingJune 3, 2016

Newspapers

A Bicycle Search For You

As the UCI World Bike Championships unfold and professional road bikers from all over the map pedal by LVA down Richmond’s Broad Street, the Virginia Newspaper Project thought…

Kelley EwingSeptember 23, 2015

Newspapers

Reading between the lines: the Comstock Act and ads for the treatment of “female complaints” from the Fairfax Herald.

If you read a newspaper from the late 19th century, you’re liable to be bombarded by various medical advertisements—treatments for catarrh, scrofula, and “watery-blood;” cure-alls like…

Anne McCreryJuly 29, 2015

Newspapers

Elizabeth Van Lew: Portrait of a Union Spy, From Print to Video

In recent years, Greg McQuade, morning anchor of WTVR in Richmond, Virginia, has produced award winning news segments on local Richmond history. Some of the stories have…

Kelley EwingJune 12, 2013