Conservation of Alexander Galt Diary
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Alexander Galt was an American sculptor born in Norfolk, Va. in 1827. He spent time studying in Italy from 1849-1853. He received important commissions in the United States and returned to Italy in 1856, coming back to Virginia in 1860. The outbreak of the Civil War saw him working for the Confederate army and doing a few private commissions.
In Alphabetical Order
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At Homecoming this year, Special Collections opened a new exhibit showcasing selected items from our holdings arranged from A to Z. In Alphabetical Order: A Selection of Materials from Swem Library's Special Collections was developed through a team effort with several staff and student workers involved.
Spell-Bound – Setting the Stage for Magic!
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The semester, and with it class visits to Special Collections, are in full swing. One book that is a popular choice for a whole range of classes ever since it was purchased with support from the Vinyard Fund in 2012, is Portable Mayan altar : pocket books of Mayan spells.
Get to Know Cuban Artists' Books with Ediciones Vigía
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Last summer, as part of the growing Cuban book arts and poster collections, Special Collections acquired a number of handmade books from Ediciones Vigía, an artist collective and publishing house in Matanzas, Cuba. Cuban poet Alfredo Zaldívar and designer Rolando Estévez cofounded Ediciones Vigía in 1985.
Open House this Saturday - Come Visit Us!
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The Special Collections Research Center, located on the first floor of Swem Library, is hosting an Open House this Saturday, October 24, from 9am-11am. We will showcase select items from University Archives as well as our general manuscript and rare book collections, highlighting both examples of philanthropy and firsts at William & Mary.
Electronic Records Day!
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Tomorrow, October 10th, is Electronic Records Day. This is the fourth annual Electronic Records Day, which the Council of State Archivists started.
Web Archiving at W & M
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Have you ever found an old website with the Wayback Machine or played the 1990 version of Oregon Trail in your browser?
"gave out and rec'd books"
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This quote from the diary of Civil War chaplain William E. Wiatt documents an unusual aspect of the his duties. The chaplain carried a circulating library for the soldiers he was tending. Wiatt's diary has been published, but the original is still in private hands. (Alex L. Wiatt. Confederate Chaplain William Edward Wiatt: An Annotated Diary. Lynchburg, Va.: H. E. Howard, Inc., 1994.
Teamwork: Saving History the William & Mary Way
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In 1997, William & Mary purchased property on Ironbound Road from a prominent African American couple, Charles E. (d. 2001) and Zelda DeBerry Gary (d. 2010). He, the owner of the West End Valet Shop and a notary public, and she, a nurse who once worked for the James City County school system, were long-time residents of Williamsburg.
It's Tumblr Time
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The Special Collections Research Center has partnered with William & Mary Libraries to create a Tumblr blog to show some of the treasures we have here in Special Collections along with events, news, exhibits, and behind-the-scenes looks at our work in the archives.
Commonplace Book of Captain Walter P. Snow of Maryland
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Thanks to the generosity of Mrs. Laura K. Lawrence of Williamsburg, the commonplace book of Captain Walter Snow of Maryland, a prominent ship captain and lawyer during the nineteenth century, has found a permanent home in William & Mary's Special Collections Research Center, where it has been digitized and will be preserved for future generations of students and scholars to use and enjoy.
Scholarship on Display
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Each year, Swem Library displays W&M faculty scholarship from a selected department in its Bright Gallery. Previous exhibits have included scholarship from Psychology, Art and Art History, Geology, and Religious Studies, among others.
From Fact to Fiction: Using Primary Sources in Creative Writing Classes
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Libraries and archives may not be the first places that come to mind when creative writing students are thinking about composing their next assignment. Inspiration is often assumed to be all a writer needs, but there are actually several ways in which books, manuscripts and University Archives collections can be helpful.
"Send me word . . ."
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I recently arranged and described the papers of Cynthia Beverley Tucker Washington Coleman, a member of the prominent Tucker & Coleman families and co-founder of the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities (known today as Preservation Virginia).
The Missing Portrait
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Jane Gay Robertson, the sister of Governor Wyndham Robertson, married John Hipkins Bernard. He had inherited from his grandfather a home named "Rose Hill: in Caroline County, Va. Bernard renamed it "Gay Mont," in honor of his wife.
Walk This Way: Introducing the TribeTrek Walking Tour App
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Swem Library's Special Collections Research Center is excited to introduce TribeTrek, a new app that showcases the history of our campus. Photographs from the University Archives illustrate self-guided campus tours, allowing users to see how buildings and landmarks have changed through the years, while at the same time learning about the many traditions at William & Mary.
We Want Your Electronic Records and Digital Material!
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More than ever, we are creating electronic traces of our lives and electronic records in our work. Whether you transfer your department's records to University Archives or you are donating personal papers to the Special Collections, we want your digital material!
From One Box to Another
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Making sure our collections are properly described, housed, and discoverable is an ongoing task in Special Collections. As time goes on, the boxes, folders, and other packing materials we use to store collections wear out or become acidic, and collections require new storage options for their continued preservation.
"We Find It Very Thrilling to Be Here at Such an Exciting Period"
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After a full academic year working at the Special Collections Research Center, I came to reflect on why my experience as an Archives and Manuscript Collections apprentice has meant so much to me. It may sound trite but this assistantship has not only stimulated my professional interest in archives management, it also gave me the opportunity to learn so much about a variety of peoples and topics through the collections I processed.
"Quite an Experience": The Papers of WWII Nurse Mary Frances Switzer
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Like few other historical events, the Second World War exerts a deep fascination in our collective memory, as shown by the extent to which WW II stories abound in popular culture. Now fully processed, the papers of war nurse Mary Frances Switzer at the Special Collections Research Center offer an absorbing – though less commonly heard – point of view of war experiences on the ground.