Special Collections Research Center

A student working in a study carrel, framed by two rows of book shelves
Past Exhibits

Past Exhibits

  • Stylized illustration of a black quill pen over an abstract background.

    Scholarship on Display: English Department

    On Display: November 3, 2015 - October 31, 2016

    Location: Bright Gallery, 2nd Floor Rotunda

    This exhibit features publications and research from current faculty members in the English Department.

  • Two people working in a field, one digging and the other standing with a shovel.

    Can You Dig It?

    On Display: October 3 - 31, 2016

    Location: Read & Relax

    This exhibit is a photographic glimpse into the archaeology of William & Mary over the last 70 years.

  • The First Library of the College

    Up in Flames

    On Display: December 17, 2015 - June 30, 2016

    Location: Special Collections Lobby

    In the late seventeenth century, colleges usually built their library collections from donations, not college funds. The main donor for William & Mary’s first library was Francis Nicholson, the royal…

  • Three soccer players in action, one with the ball, in a black-and-white photo.

    Tribe Pride

    William & Mary Athletics Display

    On Display: June 15, 2015 - June 12, 2016

    Location: Kaplan Arena

    Tribe Pride: William & Mary Athletics Display uses photographs, artifacts, and publications housed in the University Archives to showcase history of intercollegiate sports at William & Mary.

  • Joseph Palin Thorley

    Artisan, Scholar, Soldier, Historian

    On Display: June 10, 2015 - June 12, 2016

    Location: 3rd Floor Rotunda Gallery

    Featuring documents, photographs, and selected ceramic works from the Joseph Palin Thorley Papers in Swem Library’s Special Collections Research Center, this exhibit provides unique insights into the…

  • People marching with LGBTQIA pride flags on a sunny day.

    William & Mary Mattachine LGBTIQ Research Project

    Documenting the LGBTIQ Past in Virginia

    On Display: April 1 - 28, 2016

    Location: Swem Entrance Gallery

    The William & Mary Mattachine LGBTIQ Research Project: Documenting the LGBTIQ Past in Virginia aims to better understand, chronicle, and preserve the history of LGBTIQ people in Virginia.

  • Headshot of Rev. Curtis Harris

    Honoring Local Leaders: Rev. Curtis Harris

    On Display: July 22, 2015 - March 31, 2016

    Location: Marshall Gallery, 1st Floor Rotunda

    Over the course of a fifty-year career, Rev. Harris has served his community of Hopewell, Virginia, not only as a civil rights activist, but also as political official and religious leader.

  • Graphic with stylized letters "A to Z" on a dark patterned background.

    In Alphabetical Order

    A Selection of Materials from Special Collections

    On Display: October 22, 2015 - March 31, 2016

    Location: Marshall Gallery, 1st Floor Rotunda

    This exhibit features a selection of the varied materials found in Swem Library's Special Collections, arranged from A to Z.

  • Decorative plate with the Wren Building and Lord Botetourt statue on a wooden surface.

    Staying Connected

    Together Serving Others, October 2011-October 2015

    On Display: March 1 - 28, 2016

    Location: Media Wall Area Near Main Entrance

    The artwork displayed in this exhibit commemorates the 40th Reunion of William & Mary's Class of 1975 and the culmination of the Staying Connected initiative.

  • Illustration of Santa Claus in a red suit holding a smoking pipe with holly on his hat.

    Twas The Night Before Christmas

    The Nancy H. Marshall "A Visit from St. Nicholas" Collection

    On Display: December 4, 2015 - January 15, 2016

    Location: Swem Lobby Exhibit Case

    Continuing our annual tradition, this year’s exhibit showcases the variety of form that has proliferated since the poem’s publication more than 180 years ago.

  • Abstract painting with pink and green circles, patterns, and a central oval.

    109 Years Since The Jungle

    On Display: November 4 - December 15, 2015

    Location: Media Wall Area Near Main Entrance

    Contemporary artists respond to Upton Sinclair's classic text The Jungle, which portrays the wretched conditions for works and animals in the Chicago meat-packing industry of the early 20th century.

  • William & Mary logo on an illustration of a gold medal connected to a chain.

    Re-Mixing the Old Dominion

    35 Years of Virginia Hip-Hop History and Culture

    On Display: February 4 - December 6, 2015

    Location: Special Collections Lobby

    This exhibit explores Virginia's 35 years of hip-hop history through oral histories, curated playlists, artifacts, posters, and other archival materials in the William & Mary Hip Hop Collection.

  • Vintage illustration of an owl perched on a branch.

    Beyond the History Books

    On Display: April 14 - November 30, 2015

    Location: Read & Relax

    Slavery at William & Mary is a chapter that until recently had often been left out of written histories. From its founding in 1693 to the outbreak of the Civil War, the college owned, hired out, and…

  • The Nunnally Ichthyology Collection

    Fish Collection at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science

    On Display: October 19 - 29, 2015

    Location: Media Wall Area Near Main Entrance

    Through its 56-year history, the VIMS collection has grown from an uncatalogued teaching collection to one of the largest repositories for freshwater, Chesapeake Bay, and coastal fishes in Virginia.

  • Senior Sketchbook Exhibition

    On Display: September 25 - October 15, 2015

    Location: Media Wall Area Near Main Entrance

    Senior art students in Professor Brian Kreydatus's ART 460 Senior Exhibition course each selected one of their sketches from the summer sketchbook project to be featured in an exhibit in Swem Library.

  • Historic stone house with a modern glass addition and people outside.

    The Menokin Project: Re-imagining a Ruin

    Through Their Eyes: A Photographic Journey

    On Display: May 21 - October 6, 2015

    Location: Botetourt Gallery

    The Menokin Foundation hopes to transform the historic mansion of Francis Lightfoot Lee and 500-acre classroom into an educational and environmental experience like no other. You are invited to step…

  • Scholarship on Display: Economics Department

    On Display: December 1, 2014 - September 30, 2015

    Location: Bright Gallery, 2nd Floor Rotunda

    Scholarship On Display is a rotating exhibit series showcasing faculty work from academic departments at William & Mary. This installment features publications and research from current faculty…

  • Black and white photograph of Louis Draper

    Louis H. Draper

    A glimpse into the world and artistry of the Richmond-born, black photographer

    On Display: February 17 - May 17, 2015

    Location: Swem Lobby

    During Louis H. Draper's photography career, he amassed nearly 1,000 prints and negatives of street photography in Harlem, abstract images, portraits, and photographs of trips to Senegal and the…

  • Antique cannon on wooden carriage standing on green grass.

    The Siege of Petersburg

    The Fall of the “Cockade City” and the End of the Confederacy

    On Display: November 14, 2014 - May 17, 2015

    Location: 1st Floor Rotunda

    As Swem Library wraps up its commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the Civil War and the 50th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act, it is clear that both the politics and execution of war are…

  • Colorful yarn hanging on a line against a snowy landscape and cloudy sky.

    2014 Global Education Office Study Abroad Photo Contest

    On Display: April 9 - May 3, 2015

    Location: Botetourt Gallery

    The Global Education Office Study Abroad Photo Contest gave returning students the chance to share their experiences abroad and demonstrate their skill with a camera.