Posts – Page 24 – The UncommonWealth

Kiwanis Kids Idea Studio: Where Innovation, Fun, and Books Meet

Folks popped into the James City County Library to grab materials, but they didn’t always stay long. All that changed in 2021 with a pioneering…

Guest ContributorAugust 8, 2022

Archives

Syphilis, Steamboats, and Scientific Evidence: A Lancaster County Divorce Suit

When you hear about a case that hinges on “medical evidence,” what is the first image that pops into your head? It’s probably something serious…

McKenzie LongAugust 3, 2022

Archives

Dear Jonnie: The Correspondence of a Gay Couple in Virginia in the Roaring 20s.

The archives of the Library of Virginia contain a noteworthy collection of letters offering a rare glimpse into the lives of LGBTQ people a century…

Kenneth ForestAugust 1, 2022

Archives

“Enticing, Advising, and Aiding…a Slave…to Abscond”

In October 1842, Cora Ann Elizabeth Carter and her husband William Watt Hubbard boarded the steamboat Patrick Henry en route for New York. Earlier that…

Lydia NeurothJuly 27, 2022

Virginia Authors

New Books: July 2022

The Library of Virginia's first-floor lobby and Exhibition Gallery are open Monday-Saturday, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The second-floor Reading Rooms are open Tuesday-Friday, 9:00…

Donna PletcherJuly 25, 2022

Archives

Guns, Ships, and Petitions for Payment

The partnership between the French and the Continental Army during the American Revolution has been long celebrated and venerated. A prime example is the Marquis…

Emeline AlexanderJuly 20, 2022

The Stacks

“They thought I hunted down library patrons to collect unpaid fines” : 7 Questions with Deanna Chavez

This blog entry is part of a series introducing LVA employees and exploring what they do day-to-day. If you are interested in reading more like…

Vince BrooksJuly 18, 2022

Archives

A Deed Undone

If only the dead could talk! This paradoxical statement proved sadly appropriate in the early 19th century. Enslaved people faced undue hardship from those who…

Sherri BagleyJuly 13, 2022

Public Libraries

Around the World with Libraries

As a teenager working in the library at Tabb High School in York County, Virginia, I came across a book in a career exploration series…

Guest ContributorJuly 11, 2022

Archives Digital Projects

“Charging Hell with a Bucket of Water”: The Virginians of the 370th Infantry

In 2018, we shared a blog post detailing the World War I experience of James P. Spencer, a Black soldier in the 370th Infantry of…

Jessi BennettJuly 6, 2022

Archives

Random Reference: Fraktur Fractions

While many archival items contain interesting content, the item itself may look rather boring. That is certainly not the case with an arithmetic book from…

Ginny DunnJuly 4, 2022

Archives Digital Projects

A Case Study of Freedom: John Hopes

Nearly a week and a half ago, the country celebrated Juneteenth, which commemorates emancipation from slavery in the United States. Juneteenth refers to the historic…

Lydia NeurothJune 29, 2022

Virginia Authors

New Books – June 2022

The Library of Virginia's first-floor lobby and Exhibition Gallery are open Monday-Saturday, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The second-floor Reading Rooms are open Tuesday-Friday, 9:00…

Donna PletcherJune 27, 2022

Education & Programming Virginia Authors

The Perennial Past

Suzanne Stryk views her assemblages as more than just art. In the preface to her book The Middle of Somewhere: An Artist Explores the Nature…

Library of VirginiaJune 24, 2022

Archives

Libertà, Uguaglianza, Fraternità!: Court Records Shed Light on Immigrant Beneficial Societies

Angelo J. Farnocchia came to the United States from Pedona, Italy, in December of 1909. By 1911, he was clerking for Richmond confectioner Achille Cipriani.…

Vince BrooksJune 22, 2022