Library of Virginia – Page 2 – The UncommonWealth

Digital Projects Education & Programming Newspapers

Making Connections with the Past

Tamika Y. Nunley’s new book The Demands of Justice: Enslaved Women, Capital Crime, and Clemency in Early Virginia explores the impact of Virginia’s judicial system…

Library of VirginiaJune 19, 2023

Digital Projects Education & Programming Virginia Authors

Harboring Memories of Home

Earl Swift’s book Chesapeake Requiem is the Common Ground Virginia History Book Group pick for June 2023. Chesapeake Requiem explores the close-knit community of Tangier…

Library of VirginiaMay 15, 2023

Archives Conservation

Records Room Road Trips

In February 2023, we began our seventh season of travel as the first Library of Virginia Circuit Court Records Preservation Program (CCRP) consulting archivists. Although…

Library of VirginiaMay 10, 2023

Archives Virginia Authors

Migration of Paperwork

For many entering the United States, bureaucratic paperwork is one of their first encounters with the United States government. Deepak Singh, author of How May…

Library of VirginiaApril 19, 2023

Digital Projects

War, Remembrance, and the Power of Records: Digitization and Community Outreach Project to Provide Access to WWII Separation Notices

Editor’s Note: A version of this article first appeared in Broadside (2023 No. 1), the magazine of the Library of Virginia. The Library of Virginia…

Library of VirginiaMarch 22, 2023

Education & Programming Virginia Authors

Prisoners of America

Robert K. Sutton’s Nazis on the Potomac details the intelligence operations that took place in Virginia’s Fort Hunt during World War II, including the interrogation of…

Library of VirginiaMarch 20, 2023

Education & Programming Public Libraries

Coming soon to a library near you: LVA On the Go!

The Library of Virginia (LVA) is known for its remarkable collections and its outstanding support for anyone interested in exploring those collections. Many Virginians, though,…

Library of VirginiaMarch 13, 2023

Archives The Stacks

200 Years, 122 Localities

Shortly after the end of the Civil War, which had a devastating impact on the commonwealth’s records, the Virginia State Library (now Library of Virginia)…

Library of VirginiaMarch 3, 2023

Archives Education & Programming Manuscripts & Special Collections

The First Civil Rights: Black Political Activism After Claiming Freedom

It is often assumed that after Congressional Reconstruction in Virginia ended in 1870, no Black men won election to political office in the state until…

Library of VirginiaFebruary 22, 2023

Education & Programming Manuscripts & Special Collections Newspapers Virginia Authors

Snakey Noodles

For March 2023, the Common Ground Virginia History Book Group is exploring the history of Southern baking with Rebecca Sharpless’s Grain and Fire. Sharpless explores…

Library of VirginiaFebruary 20, 2023

Education & Programming Virginia Authors

“Pioneers in American librarianship who happen to be Black”

Brenda Mitchell-Powell’s book Public in Name Only explores the history of racial segregation in Virginia public libraries through the example of the Alexandria library system and…

Library of VirginiaJanuary 23, 2023

Virginia Authors

Snapshots of Violence

The Common Ground Virginia History Book Club focuses on approachable books focused on Virginia-centered nonfiction. Most of these books are historical narratives and biographies such…

Library of VirginiaDecember 21, 2022

Conservation Manuscripts & Special Collections

A Map of Madison County

In February 1816, the Virginia state legislature passed “An Act to provide an accurate chart of each county and a general map of the territory…

Library of VirginiaDecember 5, 2022

Education & Programming Virginia Authors

The Astonishing Age of Information Technology

In 1987, the Richmond Times-Dispatch contemplated the future of local libraries thirty-eight years ahead, in the far-flung year of 2025. “There will still be books…

Library of VirginiaNovember 18, 2022

Archives Conservation The Stacks

What Do CCRP Archivists Do?

When Circuit Court Records Preservation Program (CCRP) archivists from the Library of Virginia travel to circuit court clerks’ offices to examine items as potential candidates…

Library of VirginiaNovember 2, 2022