Library of Virginia – Page 4 – The UncommonWealth

Ramping Up Local Food Consumption

A lot has changed in our food culture since Barbara Kingsolver first wrote her memoir about eating locally sourced food. The cultural movement to eat…

Library of VirginiaDecember 17, 2021

Education & Programming

Infrastructure Week: 1870s Edition.

In 1989, Samuel K. Skinner, Secretary of Transportation under George H. W. Bush, proclaimed in a committee hearing that, “infrastructure is not sexy - it…

Library of VirginiaNovember 22, 2021

Education & Programming The Stacks Virginia Authors

Placing Pupils on Common Ground

Charlene Butts Ligon’s book Fearless: How a Poor Virginia seamstress took on Jim Crow, beat the poll tax and changed her city forever focuses on…

Library of VirginiaOctober 22, 2021

Education & Programming Manuscripts & Special Collections Newspapers

Chronic Pains: Virginia’s History of Painkiller Legislation

A public argument breaks out between several men on the topic of opiates. One, a physician, calls for greater restrictions on prescriptions to curb their…

Library of VirginiaSeptember 24, 2021

Digital Projects The Stacks

1971 Constitution Project

Over the summer of 2021, student interns conducted a self-directed research project using Library of Virginia collections and other resources to explore the effects of…

Library of VirginiaSeptember 17, 2021

Education & Programming Virginia Authors

The Historical Background for [No] Common Ground

Next month, LVA's Common Ground Virginia History Book Group meets virtually to discuss the September Weinstein Author Series title, No Common Ground: Confederate Monuments and…

Library of VirginiaAugust 27, 2021

Digital Projects The Stacks

More Than a Fresh Coat of Paint: Improving the Online Experience with LibGuides

The Library of Virginia has long maintained an excellent series of introductory guides to the Library’s resources and subject areas. At first, these were mostly…

Library of VirginiaJuly 12, 2021

Newspapers Public Libraries

Celebrating Juneteenth in 1890 and 2021

IIn 2020, Governor Ralph Northam issued an executive order proclaiming Juneteenth as a Virginia state holiday. Later that year, the General Assembly unanimously voted in…

Library of VirginiaJune 14, 2021

Education & Programming

Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month 2021

Please join us for our observance of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month throughout May! We will be sharing blog posts throughout the month…

Library of VirginiaApril 30, 2021

“Endeavor to Restore Them” : Accessing the Records of Virginia’s State Hospitals

When we began our careers at the Library of Virginia, in 1995 and 1999 respectively, there existed a stigma around certain types of records, especially…

Library of VirginiaApril 28, 2021

The Stacks

Home for the Holidays

This year “Home for the Holidays” has a slightly different ring to it, and as the days get darker and colder it might seem daunting…

Library of VirginiaDecember 9, 2020

The Stacks

Happy Thanksgiving

The UncommonWealth will return next week. Please enjoy these Thanksgiving napkins from the Charlotte LaRoy Paper Napkin Collection from our Visual Studies Collection. You can…

Library of VirginiaNovember 25, 2020

Education & Programming

Virginia in Jeopardy!

In memory of Alex Trebek we would like to start your weekend off with some actual questions (ahem...answers) about Virginia from Jeopardy! Just hover your…

Library of VirginiaNovember 13, 2020

Digital Projects

Happy Birthday To Us!

On September 25, 2019 the UncommonWealth Blog (the combination of our previously two separate blogs, Fit-to-Print and Out of the Box) was born! We couldn't…

Library of VirginiaOctober 2, 2020

Education & Programming

Library of Virginia’s Fall Schedule of Virtual Events: Engage with Literature, History, Maps, and Genealogy

Fans of cultural events looking for virtual offerings will find plenty of ways to engage with the Library of Virginia this fall. Our book club…

Library of VirginiaSeptember 4, 2020