John Deal – The UncommonWealth

April 1st is No Joke for the United States Census

April 1 is not only April Fool's Day, but every decade for more than 100 years it has also been Census Day, the official day…

John DealApril 1, 2026

Manuscripts & Special Collections

WRVA: The Voice of Virginia

Editor’s Note: This blog post contains information from a previous Library of Virginia exhibition (2003–2004), Radio in Virginia, developed by Gerald "Jay" Gaidmore. For generations of…

John DealOctober 29, 2025

Education & Programming

Virginia Roots Music: Creating and Conserving Tradition

Editor's Note: This blog post contains information from a previous Library of Virginia exhibition (2002–2003), Virginia Roots Music Creating and Conserving Tradition, developed by Barbara…

John DealMarch 5, 2025

Archives Education & Programming Manuscripts & Special Collections

The Odd Couple Mapping the Commonwealth

The two cartographers responsible for the first official state map of Virginia were very different individuals. One was an older itinerant scholar who undertook many…

John DealNovember 18, 2024

Newspapers

“Buckroe Fish Packer Now Devil’s Nemesis”

In September 1935, the Richmond Times-Dispatch grabbed readers' attention with the dramatic headline, "Buckroe Fish Packer Now Devil's Nemesis." The feature provided an early glimpse…

John DealJuly 24, 2023

Newspapers

“More Americans Killed By Flu Than By Bullets”: Riding the Roller Coaster of the 1918–1919 Influenza Pandemic

As the world enters 2021, we continue to ride a roller coaster of news (and emotions) regarding the COVID-19 virus. Our smart phones provide almost…

John DealJanuary 13, 2021

Archives Education & Programming Manuscripts & Special Collections

“Woman Suffrage — The Vanguard of Socialism”

"DANGER! WOMAN'S SUFFRAGE THE VANGUARD OF SOCIALISM" blared a broadside published around 1913 by the Virginia Association Opposed to Woman's Suffrage. It warned women that…

John DealJune 17, 2020

“Irrespective of Race or Color”: African Americans and the Making of a New Virginia Constitution

On 17 April 1868, exactly seven years after a Virginia convention had voted to secede from the United States, another Virginia convention voted to approve…

John DealApril 17, 2019

Education & Programming

History in Your Hands: The Smartest Way to Explore 400 Years of History

Love history? Love to travel? The Virginia History Trails app is for you! Developed by the 2019 Commemoration, American Evolution, in collaboration with the Library…

John DealFebruary 27, 2019

Archives Manuscripts & Special Collections

"Muzzled Doctors vs. Unmuzzled Guns": Lieutenant William Armistead Gills, M.D., versus the United States Navy

"Muzzled Doctors vs. Unmuzzled Guns" was a provocative phrase used by retired naval officer William Armistead Gills, M.D., to describe the poor condition of medical…

John DealAugust 8, 2018

Newspapers

"Of Liquid Death, To Which Men Flee:" Temperance Reform Efforts in Antebellum Norfolk

Restricting the use of alcohol was not a novel idea in the Roaring Twenties when Prohibition banned illicit spirits nationwide. Inspired by the reforming impulses…

John DealSeptember 27, 2017

Education & Programming

Juneteenth: A Celebration of Freedom

With its roots in 19th-century Texas, Juneteenth has grown into a popular event across the country to commemorate emancipation from slavery and celebrate African American…

John DealJune 19, 2014