Military – The UncommonWealth

Newspapers

Breaking [Old] News!

With nearly fifty titles recently added to Virginia Chronicle, there is a wealth of new historical newspaper content to explore. Community weeklies and dailies; military,…

Kelley EwingDecember 10, 2025

Archives Digital Projects

“It’s Gonna Be A Gosh Darn Good Affair”: The Lackey USO Club

During World War II, various USOs were established across Virginia. The United Service Organizations is a nonprofit organization that provides military service members and their…

Lauren CaravatiMay 7, 2025

Archives Digital Projects

Denied Benefits, Forgotten Heroes: The Hidden Cost of WWII Blue Discharges

In previous blog posts and during events discussing the Virginia WWII Separation Notices collection, I've provided some background on the history of this collection and…

Lauren CaravatiFebruary 19, 2025

Archives Digital Projects

World War II Military Athletics

Whether serving abroad or on the home front, sports were a large part of everyday life in the military during World War II.Many different sports…

Lauren CaravatiMay 8, 2024

Archives

50 Years of Welcome

On March 23, 2023, I received an email reference request from Elaina Schramm, Executive Assistant to the Secretary of Veterans and Defense Affairs. Could the…

Roger ChristmanSeptember 15, 2023

Public Libraries

Public Libraries Supporting Military Families

In an increasingly digital world, it can sometimes be a challenge to find a place in a new community to connect with people and find…

Barry TrottSeptember 11, 2023

Archives

How Not to Be a Confederate Soldier: Civil War Writs of Habeas Corpus from Richmond City and Petersburg

Why didn’t men fight in the Civil War? It’s not the most popular question that gets brought up during discussions of America’s bloodiest war, but…

McKenzie LongJune 7, 2023

Archives Digital Projects Education & Programming Virginia Authors

Finding Family

Editor’s Note: A version of this article first appeared in Broadside, the magazine of the Library of Virginia, Issue No. 1, 2022 Writer Barbara Diggs discovered…

Guest ContributorMay 4, 2022

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

Archives

Over The Top and at "em": 100 Years at Fort Lee

This is the latest entry in a series of blog posts spotlighting stories and records of Virginia’s involvement in World War I. Soon after the United States…

Claire RadcliffeJuly 7, 2017

The Stacks

Season’s Greetings, We Will Be Back in January 2015!

These are some examples of how soldiers at Camp Lee, Virginia, celebrated Christmas in 1918. The records of the Virginia War History Commission have been processed and…

Roger ChristmanDecember 24, 2014

Archives

Keep Your Eyes Aloft

Seventy years ago in Greene County, Virginia, civilian volunteers began to look toward the skies and record their observations in a log book, a simple…

Callie FreedNovember 6, 2013

Archives

Prince Edward Co. Declarations for Revolutionary War Pensions

While examining Prince Edward County court records for chancery suits, former Local Records Archivist Catherine OBrion found a group of declarations to the justices of the…

Greg CrawfordJanuary 18, 2012

Archives

More Augusta County Images Are Here!

The latest images from the Augusta County Chancery Causes are now available on the Chancery Records Index. With this addition, one hundred boxes of Augusta County…

Greg CrawfordAugust 16, 2011