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VHS Announces Five New Board Members
Organization Values Trustees’ Experience, Knowledge, and Geographic Diversity
The Virginia Historical Society (VHS) welcomes five new trustees who will serve through 2018:
Charles L. Cabell; Cordel L. Faulk; William H. Fralin, Jr.; George C. Freeman III; and William C. Wooldridge. A
private nonprofit organization, the VHS is a history museum and research library committed to connecting people to
America’s past through the unparalleled story of Virginia.
The VHS board is made up of twenty-one trustees, six honorary vice chairmen, and one regional vice chairman.
Thomas G. Slater, Jr., Partner and Group Head Litigation, Intellectual Property, and Labor Group at Richmond’s
Hunton and Williams, will serve his second year as chairman of the board. E. Claiborne Robins, Jr., President & CEO
of E. C. Robins International, Inc., continues in his post as vice chairman.
View PDF Announcement
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VHS will Participate in Civil War & Emancipation Day
The VHS will be participating in Civil War & Emancipation Day, the signature event of The Future of Richmond's Past. This
collaborative effort among leaders of Richmond’s cultural organizations and educational institutions works to frame the
sesquicentennial years (2011 – 2015) in which the nation will commemorate the anniversaries of the American Civil War
and Emancipation. Civil War & Emancipation Day provides free admission to more than 25 participating sites in the
Richmond area and offers an array of informative walking tours and presentations. For that day only, the VHS is
presenting Who Are You Wearing?: The Civil War Zouave Fever. This small exhibition features recently-acquired and rare
items belonging to Charles Hopkins, a Civil War Zouave unit soldier who fought and died in Virginia during the war. This
is the first time this collection has ever been publicly displayed. It includes a Zouave uniform complete with leggings, fez,
red pantaloons, and seven-foot-long sash; tinted photograph of Hopkins; and letters to family members. This is a onetime
opportunity to see the Zouave items because the collection will not be publicly exhibited again at the VHS this year.
More information
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RVA Street Foodies Bring Dinner and a Show to VHS
In a world … where the food truck court at Virginia Historical Society dominated last summer’s dining choices, Richmond will love this summer’s blockbuster sequel.
It’s time for dinner and a show as the RVA Street Foodies Court rolls into the VHS parking lot on Tuesday, April 2, arriving with more great gourmet food carts.
The Food Truck Ralley event drew hundreds to the VHS last season and now returns each Tuesday and Friday from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. through Sept. 6. There will be no RVA Street Foodies on May 14 or June 21. Though the museum will be closed during this year’s foodie court, restroom facilities in the museum lobby will be available to the public.
More information
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Time-Travel through Virginia History
Seven Richmond Sites Partner for Free Weekend to Support “Year of the Historic Home”
To celebrate the Executive Mansion’s 200th anniversary, Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell
and First Lady Maureen McDonnell declared 2013 the commonwealth’s “Year of the Historic Home.”
In honor of this monumental occasion, Richmond’s most renowned historic homes and museums will come
together in a collaborative effort to open their doors admission-free to the public.
Exclusively during the weekend of March 23 and 24, 2013, Virginians, Richmonders, and tourists alike can join the
city’s prominent historical properties in supporting the Governor and First Lady’s efforts.
For this first-of-its-kind promotion, seven participating sites—Agecroft Hall, the John Marshall House, the Edgar
Allan Poe Museum, Virginia House, the White House of the Confederacy, Wickham House, and the Wilton House
Museum—will offer complimentary admission to visitors who have a printed Time Traveler Passport* from the Year of
the Virginia Historic Home website (www.historicalhomes.virginia.gov). This special offer equates to a more than $55 per
person savings.
View PDF Announcement
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Hunton & Williams Establishes Fund to Support
VHS Educational Outreach Initiatives
Former Virginia Historical Society (VHS) trustee and long-time supporter Hugh Vernon
White, Jr., passed away in August 2012. White served on the VHS board from January 1997 to December 2006 and
was chairman in 2004 and 2005.
To honor his memory and celebrate the many contributions Mr. White made to the VHS and the law firm,
Hunton & Williams LLP and a number of its present and former partners are establishing the Hugh V. White, Jr.,
Outreach Education Fund. Hunton & Williams has invited others to join them in this effort. (2/26/13)
View PDF Announcement
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Virginia Historical Society hosts three movies for the Richmond International Film Festival
On Saturday, March 2, 2013, the Virginia Historical Society will feature three movies from the Richmond International Film Festival followed by a 45-minute panel discussion with the directors of each film. Doors open at 12:30 and the program starts at 1:00 p.m.
More Information
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Photographs are “Windows to the Blue Ridge and Beyond”
Second Set of Images Tell More Stories from State’s History
On February 20, 2012, the Virginia Historical Society (VHS) opened an exhibition featuring
twenty-three silver sulfide prints by award-winning naturalist photographer and Farmville, Va., native Jack Jeffers. A year
later, on February 11, 2013, the VHS unveiled another set of Jeffers images—twenty-three more—marking the start of
the second rotation of the popular exhibition End of an Era: The Photography of Jack Jeffers.
(02/19/13)
View PDF Announcement
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Virginia Historical Society Holding Lincoln Movie Memorabilia Collection Drive
On Saturday, February 9, 2013, at 1:00 p.m., the Virginia Historical Society (VHS) is hosting the first public screening of “The Making of Lincoln.” This documentary—one of the five films that make up the 2013 Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) Southern Film Festival—gives a behind-the-scenes look at Lincoln, the award-winning feature film by Steven Spielberg that focuses on President Abraham Lincoln’s role in the abolition of slavery. After the screening, members of the production team will participate in a panel discussion about the feature. In addition to showing the documentary, the VHS will be holding a Lincoln movie memorabilia collection drive during the event.
(02/04/13)
View PDF Announcement
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VHS Seeking Donated Books
The Virginia Historical Society Summer Book Sale will be Saturday, June 15. The VHS is looking for donations of gently used hard and soft cover, fiction and nonfiction books. We are asking that they be in good condition and have a historical connection. Books may be donated at the VHS Museum Shop during regular business hours: Monday-Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Sunday from 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. Donations are tax deductible. All books collected will be sold at deeply discounted prices during the Summer Book Sale on June 15. All money raised from the book sale will be used to support VHS educational initiatives.
(02/05/13)
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VHS announces 2013 calendar of events
The Virginia Historical Society has announced its 2013 Exhibitions and Events Calendar. Highlights include classes, bus trips, behind-the-scenes tours, and much more. One of the featured exhibitions for 2013 is The President’s Photographer: Fifty Years Inside the Oval Office, which features dozens of rarely seen images of recent U.S. presidents as seen through the eyes of their official photographers.
(12/12/12)
View PDF of Exhibitions and Events Calendar
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VHS creates William Willis Berry Educational
Fund
Former Virginia Historical Society (VHS) trustee and long-time supporter William Willis Berry
of Richmond passed away in April 2012. Berry served on the VHS board from January 2003 to December 2008.
Soon after Berry’s death, Carole and Marcus Weinstein, on behalf of Weinstein Properties, established a VHS
endowed fund in his memory. The Dominion Foundation also made a contribution to the William Willis Berry
Educational Fund.
(12/7/12)
View PDF Announcement
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VHS Slave Name Database Wins Award
At the Mid-Atlantic Regional Archives Conference (MARAC) meeting in Richmond
October 25-27, 2012, the Virginia Historical Society (VHS) was recognized for Unknown No Longer: A
Database of Virginia Slave Names. The Conference’s Arline Custer Memorial Award Committee presented the
VHS with the 2012 C. Herbert Finch Online Publication Award, which included a $250 gift, for its work on
the slave name database.
(11/28/12)
View PDF Announcement
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Online exhibition features political memorabilia from the collection of Allen A. Frey
As a hobbyist and collector of American presidential memorabilia, Dr. Allen Frey has assembled a chronological, visual summary of every presidential election. The online exhibition, Getting the Message Out: Presidential Campaign Meorabilia from the Collection of Allen A. Frey, features a page dedicated to each election and includes a concise summary of the major features of the election. The online exhibition also includes more than 100 images of presidential campaign memorabilia from the Collection of Allen Frey.
(10/25/12) View Online Exhibition
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Save the Date: Shoppers Fair is November 1 - 3
The Museum Stores of Richmond Holiday Shoppers Fair is a gathering of shops from central Virginia's favorite cultural institutions. This annual one-of-a-kind shopping extravaganza takes place Friday, November 2, and Saturday, November 3, at the Science Museum of Virginia. The special members-only preview--complete with food, wine, music, and discounts--is Thursday evening, November 1. During the event, the VHS booth will feature Kathy and Richard Verlander signing Rocks Across the Pond, a book about their son, Detroit Tiger Justin Verlander. Plan now to attend this special event that allows you to shop at 14 different stores in one location. All purchases support nonprofit museums in Richmond.
(10/3/12)
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Join the VHS team for the 2012 Amazing Raise
The VHS is participating in the GiveRichmond.org 2012 Amazing Raise, a unique 36-hour giving challenge. This online philanthropic effort encourages the community to come together and raise as much money as possible for their favorite nonprofit. The challenge only takes place between 6:00 a.m. on Wednesday, September 19, and 6:00 p.m. on Thursday, September 20. All tax-deductible donations collected will be used to support the VHS Youth Education Fund, which helps ensure that school-age children across Virginia can enjoy VHS on-site educational programming at no cost. (9/18/12)
Explore Youth Education Fund initiatives with this new VHS video.
Make an Amazing Raise donation to the VHS at http://giverichmond.s3.amazonaws.com/index.html.
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Emancipation Nation Watch Party at VHS on 9/17
As part of the National Endowment for the Humanities sponsored event, Emancipation Nation: Celebrating Freedom on Constitution Day, the VHS and The American Civil War Center at Historic Tredegar are co-presenting a watch party. This event—modeled on gatherings of slaves and abolitionists held on the eve of the Emancipation Proclamation becoming law on January 1, 1863—features a live-streamed panel of five leading Civil War scholars at the Smithsonian Museum of American History in Washington, D.C. The conversation features Edward Ayers, Eric Foner, Thavolia Glymph, Gary Gallagher, and Christy Coleman. During the discussion, these historians will recreate the national scene and the dilemmas facing Americans on September 22, 1862, without drawing on their knowledge of what would unfold over the next few months and years. Perspectives from the White House, enslaved people from the South, military personnel, Frederick Douglass, Northern free blacks, and their allies will be highlighted. The conversation will also emphasize the immediate and long term implications of emancipation as it relates to the U.S. Constitution. Following the program, VHS historians will discuss Virginia’s connections to Emancipation. This event begins at 1:15 p.m. on September 17 and is free and open to the public.
(8/28/12)
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VHS Honors Nine with Special Awards
At a special luncheon on July 18, 2012, the Virginia Historical Society (VHS) presented awards
to individuals who have made significant contributions to research, education, and the mission of the society. A total of
nine VHS awards were presented to teachers, a collector, an author, students, volunteers, and staff. (8/29/12)
View PDF Announcement |
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VHS Buzzing with Researchers this Summer
Neighbor conflicts during the American Civil War, women’s suffrage, church property rights, drinking and temperance in the 1860s, American slaveholding attitudes in the antebellum era, electricity’s impact on the urbanization of the South, clergymen during the Revolution, and the formation of the Haitian state—these are just some of the topics being explored this year at the Virginia Historical Society (VHS) by the 2012 fellowship recipients. (8/20/12)
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Four Negro League Baseball Players at Free Event Hosted by Virginia Historical Society
On Saturday, August 11, 2012, from 10:30 a.m. to 11:45 a.m., the Virginia Historical Society (VHS) will host four Negro League baseball players at its museum located at 428 North Boulevard in Richmond. Henry "Pistol" Mason, Joe "Pop" Durham, Mamie "Peanut" Johnson-Goodman, and Pedro Sierra will participate in an interview-style educational program answering questions about their Negro League ball-playing days and Civil Rights struggles in the 1950s and 1960s. After the discussion, they will sign autographs and take pictures with visitors. In addition to meeting Negro League players, two Richmond Flying Squirrels baseball players will participate in the event. (8/1/12)
View PDF Announcement |
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Murals nominated for Top Endangered Artifact
The Virginia Historical Society Charles Hoffbauer Memorial Military Murals are nominated for the Virginia Association of Museums’ (VAM) Virginia Top 10 Endangered Artifacts. This program raises public awareness about collections needs throughout Virginia, D.C., and beyond. Virginia's Top 10 is not a grant-giving program; it is designed to give museums, libraries, and archives an opportunity to promote the ongoing and expensive care of collections. The VHS needs your vote for the murals. Vote as many times as you like! (8/1/12)
Vote Now |
Learn more about Hoffbauer’s murals
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Cogapp to Deliver New Digital Platform for VHS
In order to better connect local, regional, and international audiences to these valuable resources, the VHS
recognized the need for a website that would engage online users, attract physical visitors, and allow scholars to
access and utilize the fantastic range of stories, objects, and documents. Cogapp is thrilled to have been chosen as partner for the
society’s digital redevelopment. (7/18/12)
View PDF Announcement |
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Free Family Day Open House on July 21
The VHS offers a day full of games, historical demonstrations, trivia, register-to-win opportunities, music, crafts,
children’s activities, behind-the-scenes tours, a giant book sale, and much more! This event takes place from on Saturday, July 21 from 10:00 a.m.–
5:00 p.m. Admission and all activities are free. (7/5/12)
View PDF Announcement |
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VHS announces 2012 calendar of events
The new 2012 calendar of exhibition and events features information on current and future exhibitions, banner lectures, gallery walks, classes, behind the scenes tours, Virginia House events, and special events. Calendar subject to change. Please visit the VHS calender to confirm information
(6/26/12)
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VHS Continues to host Food Truck Rally
The Virginia Historical Society is hosting the RVA Food Truck rally, a gathering of
several mobile catering vendors. Participating food trucks will offer
gourmet chef inspired food, specialty beverages, and desserts. Patrons are invited to utilize the
picnic tables and grassy courtyard located inside the VHS parking lot to enjoy their dining
purchases. The events take place on Tuesdays and Fridays until August 31 except June 19th and June 22nd. (weather permitting)
Food will be sold from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
(6/6/12)
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Restoring the Hoffbauer Murals
The Memorial Military Murals, by Charles Hoffbauer (1875–1957), are an American treasure. Important cleaning and conservation work has started, thanks to a Save America's Treasures grant awarded by a partnership between the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Park Service, Department of the Interior. The grant comes with a challenge to match it with private support—with your support.
(3/8/12)
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VHS Seeking Donations of Used History Books
The VHS is looking for donations of gently used books. The books may be hard or soft cover, fiction or nonfiction. Books should be in good condition and have a historical connection. Books may be donated at the VHS Museum Shop during regular business hours: Monday-Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Sunday from 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. All books collected will be sold at deeply discounted prices at a huge book sale during the Free Family Day Open House on Saturday, July 21. Donations are tax deductible. Last year the VHS Museum Shop sold more than 1,500 books during the one day book sale and all money raised was used to support VHS educational initiatives. If you have questions about book donations or the sale, please contact the Museum Shop at 804.342.9671.
(4/5/12)
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Thirteenth Amendment on Display at VHS
In conjunction with Richmond’s citywide Civil War & Emancipation Day activities, the Virginia Historical Society (VHS) will display an original congressional copy of the Thirteenth Amendment Resolution that ended slavery in the United States. The document will be on display at the vhs on Saturday, April 14, 2012, from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Sunday, April 15, 2012, from 1:00 to 5:00 p.m
(4/5/12)
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VHS hosts furniture institute
The Virginia Historical Society (VHS) is hosting a special educational program called With a Collector’s Eye: An Institute on Southern Furniture. The event will feature two sessions taught by guest instructor Sumpter Priddy III: New Perspectives: Lessons from the Antiques Market and The Maturing Field of Antiques Collecting in the South. Registration is required.
(3/8/12)
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Photographs are "Windows to the Blue Ridge and Beyond"
On February 20, the Virginia Historical Society (VHS) opened a new exhibition featuring twenty-three silver sulfide prints by award-winning naturalist photographer and Farmville, Va., native Jack Jeffers. The images depicted in End of an Era: The Photography of Jack Jeffers feature Virginia’s rugged mountain people, weather-beaten structures, and well-hidden Appalachia landscapes. With the prints presented, visitors can read excerpts of stories Jeffers shares about what he saw in Virginia’s Blue Ridge region in the late 1960s, 1970s, and early 1980s.
(2/21/12)
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CNN covers Unknown No Longer database
President and CEO Paul Levengood was recently interviewed about the Unknown No Longer database and upcoming workshops. Check out a new article written about the project.
(2/6/12)
See CNN article |
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VHS offers "Unknown No Longer" workshops
Attend a workshop to learn how to use Unknown No Longer: A Database of Virginia Slave Names. This free database is the latest step by the Virginia Historical Society to increase access to its varied collections relating to Virginians of African descent. Dr. Lauranett Lee, Curator of African American History, and Paige Newman, Assistant Archivist, will highlight some of their research findings and provide tips on how to navigate the database. Workshops are free and open to the public. Reservations are required and space is limited. (1/23/12)
More Information |
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VHS will host environmental history conference
From the Earth: The Environment in Virginia's Past and Future is a FREE, day-long conference focusing on the historic relationship between Virginia's environment and its people. The event will take place at the Virginia Historical Society on Friday, March 16, 2012, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The conference is sponsored by the Virginia Historical Society and made possible by a generous grant from the Virginia Environmental Endowment.
(1/12/12)
More Information |
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Virginia Historical Society Honors Twelve with Special Awards
At a special luncheon in July, the Virginia Historical Society (VHS) presented awards to individuals who have made significant contributions to research, education, and the mission of the Society. A total of ten VHS awards were presented to a teacher, a businessman, an author, students, volunteers, and staff.(9/6/11)
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Virginia Historical Society Begins Work on Massive Civil War
Mural Conservation Project
The National Park Service and the President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities recently awarded $14.3 million in federal competitive Save America's Treasures grants to sixty-one organizations and agencies that will conserve nationally significant cultural and historic sites, buildings, objects, documents, and collections. Among the recipients is the Virginia Historical Society, awarded $375,000 to clean and conserve Charles Hoffbauer's Memorial Military Murals depicting Confederate leaders and soldiers during the spring, summer, autumn, and winter "seasons" of the American Civil War.
(8/18/11) Press Release |
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Virginia Historical Society Wins 2011 AASLH Award of Merit
The American Association for State and Local History (AASLH) recently announced that the Virginia Historical Society (VHS) is the recipient of a 2011 Award of Merit from the AASLH Leadership in History Awards committee. The VHS was honored for An American Turning Point: The Civil War in Virginia, a 3,000-square-foot exhibition featuring more than 200 objects and 17 audiovisual programs, currently on display at the Society’s museum through December 30, 2011. An American Turning Point is a signature project of the Virginia Sesquicentennial of the American Civil War Commission and is a major component of the commonwealth’s commemoration of the Civil War sesquicentennial from 2011 to 2015.
(8/8/11) Press Release |
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Robert E. Lee's Lonely Struggle
In its Disunion series on April 19, 2011, the New York Times recently highlighted important work being done in the manuscript collections of the Virginia Historical Society. In the article, noted Lee scholar Elizabeth Brown Pryor described the context in which R. E. Lee made his fateful decision in April 1861 to resign from the U.S. Army. She based her exploration into this topic on a letter in the VHS collections written by the general's daughter, Mary Custis Lee, which reveals new insight into Lee's actions during that tumultuous month. Read Pryor's transcription of the letter. |
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VHS Creating Searchable Online Slave Database
The VHS recently received a $100,000 grant from Dominion Resources and The Dominion Foundation to fund the creation of Unknown No Longer: A Database of Virginia Slave Names. This free, online database will contain personal information about enslaved Virginians gleaned from some of the more than eight million processed manuscripts in VHS collections. (3/4/11) Press release |
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New exhibition focuses on the Civil War in Virginia
Using original objects, interactive technology, and state-of-the-art audiovisual programs, An American Turning Point: The Civil War in Virginia relates the personal experiences of the free and enslaved men, women, and children of wartime Virginia. An American Turning Point is a signature program of the Virginia Sesquicentennial of the American Civil War Commission.
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