Posts – Page 38 – The UncommonWealth

Unfinished Business: Disenfranchisement of People Currently or Formerly Incarcerated in Virginia

CONTENT WARNING: Materials in the Library of Virginia’s collections contain historical terms, phrases, and images that are offensive to modern readers. These include demeaning and…

Emma ItoOctober 30, 2020

What’s Your Excuse? : 1793 Mecklenburg County Election Excuses

With election season upon us, a recent find in Local Records seems particularly timely. While exploring a box of unprocessed Mecklenburg County records, archivists noticed…

Tracy HarterOctober 29, 2020

Manuscripts & Special Collections

Unfinished Business: The Fate of the Equal Rights Amendment

Although woman suffrage became part of the Constitution with the passage of the 19th Amendment, thousands of men and women in the United States were…

Claire RadcliffeOctober 28, 2020

Virginia Authors

New Books – October 2020

The Library of Virginia is now open by appointment only. During this initial reopening phase, researchers will be able to use the collections by appointment…

Donna PletcherOctober 26, 2020

Education & Programming

Happy Archives Month, Virginia!

Though Virginia Archives Month arrives every autumn, there is truly no season of the year where you cannot find an archival item or collection to…

Sonya ColemanOctober 9, 2020

Manuscripts & Special Collections

An Unusual Tool in Wartime

Like many collections in the Library of Virginia’s holdings, the Yount Family Papers (Acc. 52191) include wartime correspondence between family members at home in Virginia…

Samantha WayOctober 7, 2020

Manuscripts & Special Collections

Random Reference: Monkeying Around at the Library of Virginia

Who doesn’t like a great photo of a queen and a giant peanut, with a couple of monkeys thrown in for good measure? I know…

Amanda MorrellOctober 5, 2020

Digital Projects

Happy Birthday To Us!

On September 25, 2019 the UncommonWealth Blog (the combination of our previously two separate blogs, Fit-to-Print and Out of the Box) was born! We couldn't…

Library of VirginiaOctober 2, 2020

Education & Programming Manuscripts & Special Collections

“On the list of those who will vote for Woman Suffrage”: Virginia Women Lobby the General Assembly

Visitors to the Library of Virginia's exhibition, We Demand: Women's Suffrage in Virginia, have been drawn to a large display of index cards filled with…

Brent TarterSeptember 30, 2020

Virginia Authors

New Books – September 2020

The Library of Virginia is now open by appointment only. During this initial reopening phase, researchers will be able to use the collections by appointment…

Donna PletcherSeptember 28, 2020

Education & Programming

Are You Ready to Vote? How to Cast Your 2020 Ballot in Virginia

Citizens in the United States have many democratic principles and practices to be thankful for and among these, voting in our elections remains an important…

Annie HattonSeptember 23, 2020

The Stacks

Slinging Fenway Franks and Missing Tomato Soup: 7 Questions with Amy Winegardner

This is an entry in a series introducing LVA employees and exploring what they do day-to-day. If you are interested in what goes on behind…

Vince BrooksSeptember 21, 2020

Archives Education & Programming

“Really and truly a citizen”: Virginia Women Register to Vote in 1920

After Tennessee ratified the Nineteenth Amendment in August 1920, Virginia women began registering to vote. As a result of the "Machinery Bill" passed by the…

Mari JulienneSeptember 16, 2020

Public Libraries

Public Service in the New Normal: Newport News Public Library and COVID-19

Editor’s Note: The Commonwealth of Virginia’s library systems differ dramatically both in the size of their facilities and the amount of people they serve. The…

Guest ContributorSeptember 14, 2020

Education & Programming

We Demand Complete Realization: The Slow Legal Fight for Enfranchisement

CONTENT WARNING: Materials in the Library of Virginia's collections contain historical terms, phrases, and images that are offensive to modern readers. These include demeaning and…

Jessi BennettSeptember 11, 2020