Seventy-five years ago today, Allied forces landed on the Normandy beaches of France, launching the invasion that would push the Nazis out of France and…
Claire RadcliffeJune 6, 2019
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
With those words, President Franklin D. Roosevelt asked Congress to declare war on Japan. Millions of Americans learned about the attack and heard the president’s…
Roger ChristmanDecember 7, 2016
The Virginia Newspaper Project is always eager to spread the word about historical crowd-sourcing projects that focus on newspapers as a source for information. Recently,…
Kelley EwingAugust 25, 2016
In observance of Veteran’s Day, Out of the Box would like to spotlight the Virginia World War II Separation Notices (accession 23573). Part of the records of…
Roger ChristmanNovember 11, 2015
In keeping with Out of the Box’s recent anniversary theme, today’s post spotlights Lynchburg native Desmond T. Doss (1919-2006), the first conscientious objector to receive…
Roger ChristmanMay 21, 2015
Today is the 70th anniversary of the V-E Day (Victory in Europe Day), marking the end of World War II in Europe. To mark the…
Roger ChristmanMay 8, 2015
In cataloging the papers of Grayson B. Boyer (1915-1970) of Grayson County, Virginia, one cannot help but notice the dramatically-titled and cheekily-illustrated “Certificate of Survival”…
Jessica Tyree BurgessJanuary 28, 2015
On 6 June 1944, soldiers of the Allied Expeditionary Force stormed the beaches of Normandy as part of Operation Overlord, the largest seaborne invasion in history. …
Roger ChristmanJune 6, 2014
When John Hager Randolph Jr. wrote to his parents in Richmond near the end of his Virginia Military Institute career in the spring of 1942,…
Jessica Tyree BurgessApril 2, 2014
Seventy years ago in Greene County, Virginia, civilian volunteers began to look toward the skies and record their observations in a log book, a simple…
Callie FreedNovember 6, 2013
Having trouble stretching that dime in tough economic times? Need some inspiration figuring out how to feed hungry mouths on a budget? For advice you…
Jessica Tyree BurgessJuly 10, 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
It is rare for anyone to be directly involved in an event that can be labeled, without exaggeration, a turning point in world history. The…
Jessica Tyree BurgessJune 6, 2012
