Posts – Page 58 – The UncommonWealth

Photograph of Clarence A. Bryce, Jr. (1889-1918), Bryce Questionnaire.

Archives

Virginians in the Great War: Clarence A. Bryce, Jr. (1889-1918)

This is the first entry in a series of blog posts spotlighting stories and records of Virginia’s involvement in World War I. United States Marine…

Roger ChristmanApril 11, 2017

Archives

Over There and Over Here: Virginia, World War I, and the Records of the War History Commission

Editor’s note: This post was adapted from a talk given by Roger Christman, state records archivist. A hundred years ago, on 6 April 1917, the…

Claire RadcliffeApril 5, 2017

Archives

Ibby Jane Smith: U.S. Pensioner

Ibby Jane Smith was born in January 1864 in Northampton County, Virginia, the daughter of Leah Smith, also called Leah Jacob, and Seth Smith, also…

Louise JonesMarch 29, 2017

Newspapers The Stacks

Recent Gifts to the Library of Virginia

It provides great satisfaction to the Virginia Newspaper Project staff when rare, historical newspapers surface thanks to thoughtful Library patrons–recently some twentieth century newspapers were…

Kelley EwingMarch 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

Archives

A Few of Our Favorite Things: Even More Letterhead in the Archive

Editor's note: As promised in a previous post, here’s another look at some of the plethora of letterheads and stationery found in our archives. The…

Vince BrooksMarch 15, 2017

Archives

"To the land of their fathers": Emancipation and the Virginia Colonization Board

The American Colonization Society was founded in 1817 to promote the voluntary return of free African Americans in the United States to Africa. In 1822,…

Paige NealMarch 8, 2017

Archives Conservation The Stacks

Virginia’s CCRP Program Provides Preservation Grants

The Circuit Court Records Preservation Program (CCRP) Grant Review Board met on 18 January 2017 at the Library of Virginia to consider records preservation grant requests…

Greg CrawfordMarch 1, 2017

Newspapers

Wendell Scott: Racing’s Minority of One

"I was a race driver before I ever hit the track,” said Wendell Scott, the first African American to race NASCAR’s Grand National circuit, in a…

Kelley EwingFebruary 28, 2017

Newspapers

Researching African American Newspapers

The Virginia Newspaper Project loves promoting the Virginia Chronicle newspaper database, but if you need to expand your research from Virginia to other U.S. states,…

Errol SomayFebruary 22, 2017

Archives

“Down in the shadow of the penitentiary:” the Closing of the Virginia Penitentiary

On Friday, 24 February, a new historical highway marker will be unveiled at the site of the former Virginia Penitentiary at the intersection of Belvidere…

Roger ChristmanFebruary 22, 2017

Archives

Virginia Untold: Petitions to Remain

As told in an earlier blog, James Dunlop of Petersburg emancipated his slave, John Brown, in April 1822 through a deed of manumission. One would…

Greg CrawfordFebruary 15, 2017

Newspapers

A Valentine’s Day Search Uncovers a West Virginia Love Grump: The Wheeling Daily Intelligencer, February 1856-1859

The Newspaper Project observes Valentine’s Day with a reminder of the search capacity within Virginia Chronicle and the felicities of discovery (spend a morning reading mid…

Henry MorseFebruary 14, 2017

Archives

It’s A Virginia Thing: Helping One Native Colleague at a Time

Back in 2010 when I was processing the Nelson County chancery suits, I found a remarkable genealogical chart of the prominent Carter family. From that…

Callie FreedFebruary 8, 2017

Archives

Mug Shot Monday: Michael Bertone, No. 18654 and No. 21579

This is the latest entry in a series of posts highlighting inmate photographs in the records of the Virginia Penitentiary. Michael Bertone, the subject of this…

Roger ChristmanFebruary 6, 2017