Jessi Bennett – Page 2 – The UncommonWealth

“Easy to observe, difficult to explain and next to impossible to do”: The Locker Writing Method

On December 25, 1955, the Richmond Times-Dispatch ran an article titled “Decline of Penmanship.” An Associated Press piece by Arthur Edson, the article bemoaned “this…

Jessi BennettDecember 18, 2023

Archives Manuscripts & Special Collections

The End is Nigh

As another year winds down many of us may be thinking not only of endings, but also of new beginnings. New Year’s imagery usually includes…

Jessi BennettDecember 4, 2023

Newspapers

Vox Poppers: The Twitter Wars of the 1930s

It was November 1932 and Richmond resident John O’Flaherty had a complaint. It was not an earth-shattering complaint, nor an urgent one, not big enough…

Jessi BennettJuly 17, 2023

Digital Projects Manuscripts & Special Collections Public Libraries

After-School Hangouts

Each fall, high school students search for a “room of their own.” They seek out places away from teachers and parents where they can process…

Jessi BennettOctober 17, 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 Digital Projects

Virginia Senior Portraits: A Fashion Show

We cover a lot of serious and heavy topics on the UncommonWealth blog but every once in a while we like to present something just…

Jessi BennettJune 1, 2022

Archives Digital Projects Manuscripts & Special Collections

Hazing on the High Seas

In 1823, Jacques Arago’s Voyage autour du Monde was published. After describing a line-crossing ceremony he had witnessed, he waxed philosophical, noting, “I have no…

Jessi BennettSeptember 1, 2021

Digital Projects Manuscripts & Special Collections

The Way We Were: Virginia High School Yearbooks

Last Friday we took a look at some of the ways that Virginia high school yearbooks have celebrated their graduates in the past, but there…

Jessi BennettJune 4, 2021

Digital Projects Manuscripts & Special Collections

Please Hold Your Applause Till the End: A Virginia Digital Yearbook Collection Update

The high school classes of 2020 and 2021 will always stand out for their unique senior year experience. We’ve had to invent new ways to…

Jessi BennettMay 28, 2021

Digital Projects

“She was, before her marriage, an accomplished teacher.”

Sometimes after a long day of looking at archival documents on my computer screen, I go home and relax by looking at archival documents on…

Jessi BennettMarch 24, 2021

Colley’s Calling: Reconstruction-Era Richmonders in Africa

On 13 September 1886, an ill W. W. Colley returned to Richmond, Virginia, from Liberia, trying once again to outrun scandal. However, the month-long boat…

Jessi BennettFebruary 17, 2021

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

Archives Education & Programming

“On Account of Race”: Disenfranchisement of Black Voters in Virginia

The history of African American disenfranchisement and exclusion in Virginia is a lengthy one. This blog post is meant to serve as an introduction and…

Jessi BennettSeptember 9, 2020

Newspapers

Why Juneteenth?

In mid-October of 1899, Richmond's Black Community prepared to have a three day celebration of the Emancipation Proclamation complete with a large downtown parade. The Richmond…

Jessi BennettJune 19, 2020

Public Libraries

“Physically distant but still connected”: Public Library Programming During Quarantine

Recent global circumstances have forced us all to change and adapt quickly. It is hard to adapt to a new situation without information, but libraries…

Jessi BennettJune 8, 2020