Richmond is an Archives Road to Travel: MARAC in the River City

The rumbling came from the north. A dull, repetitive thudding. Was it noise from the treads of a stolen armored military vehicle on a joy ride? No. Construction noise from another high-density apartment complex? No. It was the sound of hundreds of archival professionals, in cardigans and comfortable shoes, making their way to the River City from all over the Mid-Atlantic states for the Spring 2026 meeting of the Mid-Atlantic Regional Archives Conference (MARAC) from April 30-May 2.

MARAC last held a meeting in Richmond in 2012, so it’s been a minute since a big group of archivists convened here. What would that be called, anyway, a big group of archivists? A consortium of archivists? No, that’s crabs. A passel of archivists? No, that’s possums. A clutter of archivists? Absolutely not, that’s bobcats! Whatever we’re called, we gathered in Richmond along the banks of the mighty James under the theme of “Flowing Together: Community and Resilience in Archives.”

The majority of the conference was held at the Omni Richmond Hotel. On Thursday, several workshops were held covering emergency preparedness, donor relations, and archives reference. On Friday and Saturday, conference-goers participated in meetings, heard session presentations, visited vendor displays, and networked with colleagues. Sessions covered a range of topics including working with unusual formats in the archives, connecting people to archives through public libraries, and how to handle custodial gaps in archival collections.

Meeting participants were also treated to not one, but two excellent plenary presentations. First, Christina Vida, the Elise H. Wright Curator of General Collections at The Valentine Museum, discussed how that institution has leaned into connecting and collecting at the community level, especially in recent periods of upheaval and unrest. She also shared how The Valentine has engaged with various communities as it has revisited the interpretation of its collections.

In the second plenary, Dr. Clint Whitten, the Associate Director for the Center for Rural Education at Virginia Tech, shared the story of the Summer Enrichment Experience at Virginia Tech (SEE VT), a residential camp for rural youth established in 2022. Archives and place-narratives play a critical role in both the humanities and STEAM courses during SEE VT camp.

Attendees also had the opportunity to tour a number of Richmond institutions including The American Civil War Museum at Historic Tredegar, The Valentine Museum, University of Richmond’s Boatwright Memorial Library, Library of Virginia, Virginia Museum of History and Culture, Agecroft Hall, the State Capitol, The Poe Museum, and the John Marshall House.

Not everything was serious scholarship and professional development though. The bids were flying in the MARAC Silent Auction, which was stocked with the incredible handiwork of numerous MARAC members and friends. All of the proceeds from the auction went to fund the Danna Bell Graduate Student Scholarship. In addition, conference attendees supported a service project by donating needed items or funds to assist HomeAgain Richmond with its efforts to aid families transitioning from homelessness into permanent housing.

The Friday evening reception, held in the Library of Virginia lobby, was not only an opportunity to mingle, network, and enjoy food and drink, but also to partake in some fun hands-on activities, enjoy board and card games, or snap a selfie in the photo booth backdrop made from old microfiche. There was also a display of obsolete A/V hardware like 16-mm and 8-mm projectors, and a video of digitized home movies from the 1950s and 1960s featuring the Eastern Shore, Richmond, and Williamsburg.

All in all, nearly 370 archival professionals enjoyed a robust three days of engagement, collegiality, and exploration in RVA. If nothing else, attendees gained a greater appreciation for Richmond’s unofficial mascot, Didelphis Virginiana, the Virginia opossum. Our beloved tick-eating night goblin was on full display in swag, promotions, and decorations at the conference and reception. In the end, a good time was had by all, and no alley gremlins were harmed in the process.