Virginia Historical Society Podcasts
By Virginia Historical Society
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Podcast Description
Recordings of public lectures and events held at the Virginia Historical Society.
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Lost Communities of Virginia by Terri Fisher | On May 3, 2012, Terri Fisher delivered a lecture entitled "Lost Communities of Virginia". Virginia's back roads and rural areas are dotted with traces of once-thriving communities. General stores, train depots, schools, churches, banks, and post offices provide intriguing details of a way of life now gone. Lost Communities of Virginia documents thirty small communities from throughout the commonwealth that have lost their original industry, transportation mode, or way of life. Using contemporary photographs, maps, and excerpts of interviews with longtime residents of these communities, the book documents the present conditions, recalls past boom times, and explains the role of each community in regional settlement. Terri Fisher is outreach and programs coordinator at the Community Design Assistance Center at Virginia Tech and executive director of the Giles County Historical Society. (Introduction by Paul Levengood) | 5/7/12 | Free | View In iTunes |
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To Bind Up the Nation’s Wounds: An Overview of the Thirteenth Amendment by Lauranett Lee | On April 14, 2012, Dr. Lauranett Lee delivered a lecture entitled "To Bind Up the Nation’s Wounds: An Overview of the Thirteenth Amendment". This talk highlighting the historical significance of the document. Other speakers during the lecture included Edward Ayers and Senator Henry Marsh. (Introduction by Edward Ayers and Senator Henry Marsh) | 4/30/12 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Brown's Battleground in Prince Edward County, Virginia by Jill Titus | On April 12, 2012, Jill Titus delivered a lecture entitled "Brown's Battleground in Prince Edward County, Virginia". When the U.S. Supreme Court handed down its decision in Brown v. Board of Education in 1954, Prince Edward County abolished its public school system rather than integrate. In her new book, Brown's Battleground: Students, Segregationists, and the Struggle for Justice in Prince Edward County, Virginia, Jill Titus situates the crisis in Prince Edward County within the seismic changes brought by Brown and Virginia's decision to resist desegregation. She reveals the ways that ordinary people, black and white, battled, and continue to battle, over the role of public education in the United States. Dr. Titus is associate director of the C. V. Starr Center for the Study of the American Experience at Washington College in Chestertown, Maryland. (Introduction by Paul Levengood) | 4/24/12 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Lost in Shangri-La: A Story of Survival and Rescue during World War II by Mitchell Zuckoff | On April 5, 2012, Mitchell Zuckoff delivered the 2012 Stuart G. Christian, Jr., Lecture entitled "Lost in Shangri-La: A Story of Survival and Rescue during World War II." The Stuart G. Christian, Jr., Lecture was named in honor of the former president of the VHS (1989–91). Near the end of World War II, a plane carrying twenty-four members of the United States military, including nine Women’s Army Corps members, crashed into the New Guinea jungle. Three survivors were stranded deep in a jungle valley inhabited by cannibals. The story of their survival and the efforts undertaken to save them are the crux of Lost in Shangri-La. A riveting story of deliverance under the most unlikely circumstances, Mitchell Zuckoff’s book deserves its place among the great survival stories of World War II. Zuckoff teaches journalism at Boston University. (Introduction by Paul Levengood | 4/16/12 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Fighting for America: The Struggle for Mastery in North America, 1519-1871 by Jeremy Black | On March 28, 2012, Jeremy Black delivered a lecture entitled Fighting for America: The Struggle for Mastery in North America, 1519–1871. In his latest book, prize-winning author Jeremy Black traces the competition for control of North America from the landing in 1519 of Spanish troops in what became Mexico to 1871 when, with the Treaty of Washington, Britain accepted American mastery in North America. The story Black tells is one of conflict, diplomacy, and geopolitics. The eventual result was the creation of a United States of America that stretched from Atlantic to Pacific and dominated the continent. The gradual withdrawal of France and Spain, the British accommodation to the expanding U.S. reality, the impact of the American Civil War, and the subjugation of native peoples are all carefully drawn out. Jeremy Black teaches history at Exeter University in the United Kingdom. This lecture is cosponsored with the Society of Colonial Wars in the State of Virginia. (Introduction by Nicole McMullin) | 4/10/12 | Free | View In iTunes |
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When the Sun Stood Still: Reflections on the Reverend John Jasper in His Bicentennial Year by Samuel K. Roberts | On February 23, 2012, Samuel K. Roberts delivered a lecture entitled "When the Sun Stood Still: Reflections on the Reverend John Jasper in His Bicentennial Year." Among the larger than life personages in Richmond during the latter years of the nineteenth century is to be counted the pastor of Jackson Ward’s Sixth Mount Zion Baptist Church, the Rev. John Jasper. He was born a slave in the second decade of the century, and his mark on Richmond's popular consciousness lasts even to the present. In large measure, this is because of a sermon he first preached in 1878, "The Sun Do Move and the Earth Am Square." Hailed by some and vilified by others, Jasper's sermon seemed to defy modern notions of astronomy. Yet, he was asked to preach it more than 250 times, including before the General Assembly, before his death in 1901. Reflections on this enigmatic character will explore the context in which his audiences heard him, as well as that of our own. Samuel K. Roberts is the Anne Borden and E. Hervey Evans Professor of Theology and Ethics at Union Presbyterian Seminary. This lecture is cosponsored with Sixth Mount Zion Baptist Church.(Introduction by Paul Levengood) | 4/10/12 | Free | View In iTunes |
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American Emperor: Aaron Burr's Challenge to Jefferson's America by David O. Stewart | On March 15, 2012, David O. Stewart delivered a lecture entitled "American Emperor: Aaron Burr's Challenge to Jefferson's America." A canny and charismatic politician who rose to become third vice president of the new United States, Aaron Burr seemed to throw it all away in 1805 and 1806 in an extraordinary attempt to lead a secession of the American West. American Emperor by acclaimed author David O. Stewart traces Burr from the threshold of the presidency in the contested election of 1800, through his duel with Alexander Hamilton, and then across the American West as he schemed with foreign ambassadors, the traitorous general-in-chief of the army, and future presidents, including Andrew Jackson. His immense ambition was matched by his undisguised contempt for Thomas Jefferson, a president he thought ineffective and unwise. The indecisive Jefferson finally had Burr arrested and charged with treason. Burr led his own legal defense in an historic treason trial in Richmond before Chief Justice John Marshall, winning an acquittal and freedom. Mr. Stewart is an attorney who practices law in Washington, D.C.(Introduction by Paul Levengood) | 3/28/12 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Thanksgiving in American History | On November 21, 2011, internationally renowned historians and hosts Edward Ayers, Brian Balogh, and Peter Onuf presented "Thanksgiving in American History." Exploring competing myths surrounding Thanksgiving’s origins, the American History Guys peeled back layers of tradition that have created the celebration that we know today. From Pilgrims, to turkey, to football games, to parade floats, the Guys offered surprising perspectives on the shaping of one our nation’s most beloved holidays. A special guest—who made a case for Virginia’s claim on Thanksgiving’s roots— also joined the Guys.(Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 12/14/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Virginia's Confederate Monuments by Timothy S. Sedore | On December 8, 2011, Timothy S. Sedore delivered a lecture entitled "Virginia's Confederate Monuments." Hundreds of memorials in stone commemorate the Civil War in Virginia at courthouses, cemeteries, town squares, and battlefields. With "An Illustrated Guide to Virginia's Confederate Monuments", Timothy S. Sedore presents the first comprehensive handbook of this legacy of America's greatest national trauma in the Old Dominion. Timothy S. Sedore is a professor of English at The City University of New York, Bronx Community College. (Introduction by Paul Levengood) | 12/13/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
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1861: The Civil War Awakening by Adam Goodheart | On November 30, 2011, Adam Goodheart delivered a lecture entitled "1861: Civil War Awakening." With his new book, "1861: The Civil War Awakening," Adam Goodheart revisits the most turbulent and consequential year in American history. In the hands of a master storyteller, we relive a time that witnessed the breakup of the nation and the first bloodletting in what became a four-year catalog of internecine violence and destruction. As the first year of the Civil War Sesquicentennial comes to an end, this lecture will pull together for us all of the drama and tumult of 1861 and present vividly the characters who populated that decisive era. Adam Goodheart teaches history and is director of the C. V. Starr Center for the Study of the American Experience at Washington College in Maryland. (Introduction by Paul Levengood) | 12/2/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Civil War Medicine by Dr. Adrian Wheat | On October 27, 2011, Dr. Adrian Wheat delivered a lecture entitled "Civil War Medicine." Staggering numbers of sick and wounded soldiers placed unprecedented demands on the practice of medicine on both sides during the Civil War. This lecture will describe the state of medical science in the 1860s and its application in Virginia during the war, mostly on the Confederate side. It will assess the complicated issue of care on the battlefield, transportation of patients to fixed general hospitals, and the role of sanitation. Dr. Adrian Wheat practiced medicine for many years as an army surgeon and helped found the Society of Civil War Surgeons. Most recently he advised the VHS on surgical topics for the exhibition "An American Turning Point: The Civil War in Virginia". This lecture is cosponsored with the Richmond National Battlefield Park.(Introduction by Paul Levengood). | 10/18/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
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The First Thanksgiving by Graham Woodlief and Barbara Ramos | On October 13, 2011, Graham Woodlief and Barbara Ramos delivered their lecture entitled "The First Thanksgiving." Because of what they learned in elementary school, most Americans probably associate Thanksgiving with the Pilgrims in Massachusetts in 1621. Less well know outside Virginia is the fact that more than a year earlier, a hardy band of Englishmen landed at Berkeley Hundred on the James River and held the real first Thanksgiving. Captain John Woodlief and thirty-seven men sailed from Bristol, England, on the ship "Margaret" and reached Berkeley Hundred nearly three months later in December 1619. They marked their deliverance from the stormy north Atlantic with a simple service of thanks to God. Graham Woodlief and Barbara Ramos will tell the story of this first Thanksgiving in English-speaking America and of the origins of the Virginia Thanksgiving Festival, which led to President Kennedy's mention of Virginia in his Thanksgiving proclamation of 1963. This lecture is cosponsored with the Virginia Thanksgiving Festival. (Introduction by Thomas A. Silvestri, President and Publisher, Richmond Times-Dispatch). | 10/18/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
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The Constitution of Virginia: From Jefferson's Day to Our Own Time by A. E. Dick Howard | On September 8, 2011, A. E. Dick Howard delivered a Banner Lecture entitled "The Constitution of Virginia: From Jefferson's Day to Our Own Time." Commentators often refer to Professor A. E. Dick Howard as "The Father of Virginia's Constitution" for good reason. He was executive director of the commission that wrote Virginia’s current constitution and directed the successful referendum campaign for ratification of that document. In this lecture, held during the 40th year since ratification, he will weave the story of Virginia's constitution with the great issues of our state's history—founding a republic, nurturing religious liberty, grappling with problems of race, facing the challenges of a changing society, and reflecting the hopes and aspirations of the people of Virginia. It is a story that has its great moments, such as Jefferson's Statute for Religious Freedom, and its sobering chapters, such as massive resistance. Ultimately, it is the story of how a people, though their constitution, shape their destiny. The author of numerous books, Professor Howard is the White Burkett Miller Professor of Law and Public Affairs at the University of Virginia.(Introduction by Paul Levengood) | 9/12/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
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The Virginia Plan: William B. Thalhimer and a Rescue from Nazi Germany by Robert H. Gillette | On August 4, 2011, Robert H. Gillette delivered a Banner Lecture entitled "The Virginia Plan: William B. Thalhimer and a Rescue from Nazi Germany." Among the Jews attempting to flee Nazi Germany in the 1930s were students of the Gross Breesen agricultural institute who hoped to secure visas to America. In a bold plan, Richmond department store owner William B. Thalhimer created a safe haven for the students on a Burkeville farm. This is the remarkable history of Thalhimer's heroic rescue mission and the struggle of the refugees to make a new home in rural America. In his new book, "The Virginia Plan", Robert H. Gillette narrates a saga of sacrifice, survival, and hope on two continents. (Introduction by Nelson Lankford) | 8/8/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Facts & Legends of Sports in Richmond by Brooks Smith and Wayne Dementi | On July 14, Brooks Smith and Wayne Dementi delivered a Banner Lecture entitled "Facts & Legends of Sports in Richmond." Basing their presentation on their recent book, Brooks Smith and Wayne Dementi will give an illustrated lecture on the history of sports in Virginia's capital city. Smith and Dementi will present the venues, memorable events, and athletes of Richmond sports. The essays in "Facts & Legends of Sports in Richmond" were originally presented in Smith's commentary series, which first aired on WCVE public radio. The many new and vintage photographs featured in the book come from the collections of the Dementi family of photographers. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 7/19/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
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The Wild Vine: A Forgotten Grape and the Untold Story of American Wine | On June 30, 2011, Todd Kliman delivered a Banner Lecture entitled "The Wild Vine: A Forgotten Grape and the Untold Story of American Wine." Vineyards and wine making have become all-American success stories in recent years, especially in Virginia. In his book, "The Wild Vine", author Todd Kliman engagingly traces the story of the native grape hybrid, and its nineteenth-century Virginia advocate, that led by a circuitous path to the rebirth of wine-making in the twentieth century. The story begins long before California supposedly put America on the viticulture map with Dr. Daniel Norton's experimentations with grapes in Richmond. The Norton hybrid migrated to the Midwest and then, after seemingly disappearing, returned to Virginia soil to great success in more recent times. Todd Kliman is food and wine editor of the "Washingtonian". (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood and Jack Berninger) | 7/1/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
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George Washington's America: A Biography Through His Maps | On June 9, 2011, Barnet Schecter delivered a Banner Lecture entitled "George Washington's America: A Biography Through His Maps." The maps George Washington drew and purchased, from his teens until his death, were always central to his work. Inspired by these remarkable maps, Barnet Schecter has crafted a unique portrait of our first Founding Father, revealing his early career as a surveyor, his dramatic exploits in the French and Indian War, his struggles throughout the American Revolution as he outmaneuvered the far more powerful British army, his diplomacy as president, and his shaping of the new republic. Schecter, the author of "The Battle for New York", the hinge battle in the American Revolution, and "The Devil's Own Work", a chronicle of the Civil War draft riots in New York, is an independent historian who lives in New York City. This lecture is cosponsored with The Society of Colonial Wars in the State of Virginia. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 6/14/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Lincoln and McClellan | On May 12, 2011, John C. Waugh delivered a Banner Lecture entitled "Lincoln and McClellan." There was no more remarkable yoking of personalities in the Civil War than Abraham Lincoln and George McClellan. In "Lincoln and McClellan", award-winning author John C. Waugh takes an in-depth look at this fascinating pair, from the early days of the conflict to the 1864 presidential election when McClellan ran against Lincoln on an antiwar platform and lost. Waugh weaves a tale of hubris, paranoia, failure, and triumph, illuminating as never before this unique and complicated relationship. John C. Waugh is an independent historian and former correspondent and bureau chief for "The Christian Science Monitor". (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 5/17/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Motives of Honor, Pleasure, and Profit: Plantation Management in the Colonial Chesapeake, 1607–1763 | On April 21, 2011, Lorena S. Walsh delivered a Banner Lecture entitled "Motives of Honor, Pleasure, and Profit: Plantation Management in the Colonial Chesapeake, 1607–1763." In a new account of early English America, Walsh offers an enlightening history of plantation management in the Chesapeake colonies of Virginia and Maryland. Her scope ranges from the founding of Jamestown to the close of the Seven Years' War and the end of the "Golden Age" of colonial Chesapeake agriculture. Walsh's narrative incorporates stories about the planters themselves, including family dynamics and relationships with enslaved workers. An accomplished author of books on early America, Lorena S. Walsh was for twenty-seven years a historian at the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation. This lecture was cosponsored with The Society of Colonial Wars in the State of Virginia. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 4/27/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
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The Crooked Road to Civil War | On April 14, 2011, Nelson D. Lankford delivered a Banner Lecture entitled "The Crooked Road to Civil War." When Abraham Lincoln was inaugurated in March 1861, Virginia remained a loyal state within the Union. In the convention that met in Richmond to consider the commonwealth's relationship to the national government, union men held a strong majority. But as events unfolded, their loyalty wavered. Nelson Lankford recounts the dramatic events of that spring, when no one could foretell the future of the country, seemingly poised on the brink of dissolution. Dr. Lankford is vice president for programs at the Virginia Historical Society and author of "Cry Havoc! The Crooked Road to Civil War, 1861." This lecture is cosponsored with the Richmond National Battlefield Park. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 4/16/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Year of Meteors: Stephen Douglas, Abraham Lincoln, and the Election that Brought on the Civil War | On March 24, 2011, Douglas R. Egerton delivered a Banner Lecture entitled "Year of Meteors: Stephen Douglas, Abraham Lincoln, and the Election that Brought on the Civil War." In "Year of Meteors", Douglas R. Egerton recreates the tumultuous presidential election year of 1860, which upset every conventional expectation and split the American political system beyond repair. At the beginning of the year, Senator Stephen A. Douglas, leader of the Democrats, the only party with a large following in both North and South, seemed poised to win. By fall the Democratic Party had disintegrated, enabling the upstart Republicans to put an untried but canny dark horse candidate in the White House. "Year of Meteors" tells the story of Abraham Lincoln's rise to power and the series of events that led to secession and ultimately civil war. Dr. Egerton teaches history at Le Moyne College in Syracuse, N.Y. (Introduction by Nelson D. Lankford) | 3/24/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
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American City, Southern Place: Richmond on the Eve of War. | On March 10, 2011, Gregg Kimball delivered a Banner Lecture entitled "American City, Southern Place: Richmond on the Eve of War." As a city of the upper South intimately connected to northeastern cities, the southern slave trade, and the Virginia countryside, Richmond embodied many of the contradictions of mid-nineteenth-century America. Gregg Kimball depicts the Richmond community as a series of dynamic, overlapping networks, showing how various groups of residents, immigrants and natives, free people and slaves, those high born and low, understood themselves and their society within this web of experience. Drawing on a wealth of archival material and private letters, Dr. Kimball elicits new perspectives on the nature of antebellum society and the coming of the Civil War. Gregg Kimball is director of education and outreach at the Library of Virginia and the author of "American City, Southern Place: A Cultural History of Antebellum Richmond." This lecture is cosponsored with the Richmond National Battlefield Park. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 3/11/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
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The Diary of a Public Man and Abraham Lincoln | On March 3, 2011, Daniel Crofts delivered a Banner Lecture entitled "The Diary of a Public Man and Abraham Lincoln." "The Diary of a Public Man," published anonymously in several installments in the North American Review in 1879, claimed to offer verbatim accounts of secret conversations with Abraham Lincoln, William H. Seward, and Stephen A. Douglas among others in the weeks just before the start of the Civil War. Despite repeated attempts to decipher the diary, historians never have been able to pinpoint its author or determine its authenticity. Part detective story, part biography, and part a detailed narrative of events in early 1861, A Secession Crisis Enigma presents a compelling answer to an enduring mystery. Dr. Crofts is a professor of history at The College of New Jersey. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 3/11/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Inventing George Washington: America's Founder in Myth and Memory | On February 24, 2011, Ed Lengel delivered a Banner Lecture entitled 'Inventing George Washington: America's Founder in Myth and Memory.' In 'Inventing George Washington,' Edward G. Lengel shows how the former president and war hero continued to serve his nation on two distinct levels after his death. The public Washington evolved into an eternal symbol as the "Father of His Country," while the private man remained at the periphery of the national vision for successive generations. As some exalted Washington, others sought to bring him down to the earth, thus creating a series of competing mythologies that depicted Washington as every imaginable sort of human being. Dr. Lengel is editor-in-chief of the Washington Papers Project and a professor of history at the University of Virginia. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 2/28/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
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The Jeffersons at Shadwell | On January 13, 2011, Susan Kern discussed her book, 'The Jeffersons at Shadwell.'In The Jeffersons at Shadwell, Susan Kern merges archaeology, material culture, and social history to reveal the fascinating story of Shadwell, the birthplace of Thomas Jefferson and home to his parents, Jane and Peter Jefferson, their eight children, and more than sixty slaves. Kern's scholarship offers new views of the family's role in settling Virginia as well as new perspectives on Thomas Jefferson himself. The story of Shadwell affects how we interpret much of what we know about Thomas Jefferson today. Dr. Kern is a visiting assistant professor of history at the College of William and Mary. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 1/18/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Richmond's Hollywood Cemetery | On December 9, 2010, John Peters discussed his new book, 'Richmond's Hollywood Cemetery. One of America's great rural cemeteries, overlooking the falls of the James River, Hollywood provides a final resting place for Richmond's indeed, Virginia's political, business, and creative leaders, as well as 18,000 Confederate dead. Since before the Civil War, the elaborate ironwork, stone monuments, mausoleums, and natural setting have memorialized the varied lives of the individuals who have populated Virginia’s capital city. In this lecture based on his new book, 'Richmond's Hollywood Cemetery' , author and photographer John Peters brings these stories to life once more. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 12/14/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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"We Shall Not Be Moved": Virginia Songs of Labor | From the textile mills of Danville to the coal fields of Wise to the tobacco factories of Richmond, workers have rallied to songs of labor. The songs told of heavy work, unjust conditions, and union struggles and were typically performed in the musical styles of their native folk traditions. On December 2, 2010, historian Gregg Kimball along with singers Jackie Frost and Sheryl Warner performed songs by such Virginia musical luminaries as the Carter Family as well as rank-and-file workers who filled churches, labor halls, and strike lines to protest their working conditions.(Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 12/2/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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The Real Lost Cause: The Idea of Union in the Memory of the Civil War | On Thursday November 17, 2010, Gary W. Gallagher delviered a talk on "The Real Lost Cause: The Idea of Union in the Memory of the Civil War" at the Alexander W. Weddell Trustees Lecture. Next year we mark the 150th anniversary of the beginning of the Civil War. Only through the bloodiest conflict of our history did Americans resolve long-running disputes over Union and slavery. Ever since then, the significance of the war—its advent and its many outcomes—has stirred debate and study. In "The Real Lost Cause: The Idea of Union in the Memory of the Civil War," Gary W. Gallagher addressed the way North and South have reflected on the nature of what it meant to be a part of the United States of America. Dr. Gallagher is the Cavaliers' Distinguished Teaching Professor and Nau Professor of History at the University of Virginia and the author of "The Confederate War and Causes Won, Lost, and Forgotten: How Hollywood and Popular Art Shape What We Know about the Civil War." (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 11/23/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Steel Drivin' Man: John Henry, the Untold Story of an American Legend | On Thursday, November 4, 2010, Scott Reynolds Nelson discussed his book Steel Drivin' Man: John Henry, the Untold Story of an American Legend. According to the ballad that made him famous, John Henry did battle with a steam-powered drill, beat the machine, and died. Folklorists have long thought John Henry to be mythical, but historian Scott Nelson has discovered that he was a real person—a nineteen-year-old from New Jersey who was convicted of theft in a Virginia court in 1866, sentenced to ten years in the penitentiary, and put to work building the C and O Railroad. There, at the Lewis Tunnel, Henry and other prisoners worked alongside steam-powered drills. In his book, Nelson pieces together the biography of the real John Henry. It is also the story of work songs, songs that not only turned Henry into a folk hero but also, in reminding workers to slow down or die, were a tool of resistance and protest. This lecture complements the VHS exhibition Organized Labor in Virginia. Scott Reynolds Nelson teaches history at William and Mary.(Introduction by E. Lee Shepard) | 11/5/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Secretariat | On Thursday, October 13, 2010, Kate Chenery Tweedy discussed her book Secretariat's Meadow. Secretariat, the great red stallion who became the 1973 Triple Crown winner, was born on March 30, 1970, at The Meadow, a historic farm in Caroline County. The new book, Secretariat's Meadow, celebrates the farm, the family—especially Chris Chenery and his daughter, Penny—and Secretariat. The story is told by Penny Chenery's daughter, Kate Chenery Tweedy, with the assistance of her coauthor, Leeanne Ladin. More than 300 photos, most of which have never been seen, offer a magnificent visual journey to complement this special story in one of America's greatest sports moments.(Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 10/14/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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An African Republic: Black and White Virginians in the Making of Liberia | On Thursday, October 28, 2010, Marie Tyler-McGraw discussed her book, An African Republic: Black and White Virginians in the Making of Liberia. The West African nation Liberia arose from the aspirations of the American Colonization Society, which attempted to persuade free blacks to emigrate from the United States to that colony. Ultimately, the colonization scheme failed, but Liberia endured. No state was more involved with the project than Virginia. Virginians figured prominently among both leaders of the ACS and among settlers building a new life in Africa. Though their paths rarely intersected, these black and white Virginians played key roles in founding Liberia. In this presentation based on her latest book, Marie Tyler-McGraw tells this compelling story of hope and misunderstanding, race and freedom. Also the author of a history of Richmond, Dr. Tyler-McGraw is an independent scholar and public historian. The lecture is co-sponsored by The Richmond Forum in conjunction with its November 6, 2010 program, featuring President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of Liberia.(Introduction by E. Lee Shepard) | 10/14/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Virginia Environmental Endowment: Leadership, Leverage, and Legacy | On Thursday October 7, 2010, Gerald P. McCarthy discussed the Virginia Environmental Endowment. Since its inception in 1977, Virginia Environmental Endowment has had a profound influence throughout the Old Dominion. This lecture will focus on the origins, mission, and accomplishments of VEE. Gerald P. McCarthy will examine the effects of the endowment's grants on Virginia’s environment and the people who have helped to make those results possible. Sometimes described as "venture capital for environmental improvement in Virginia," VEE has played a unique role in the development of environmental research, education, and civic engagement. This lecture will address each of these aspects of its work and the strategic approach to grant making that has made VEE a leader within the foundation world. Mr. McCarthy is executive director of Virginia Environmental Endowment. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 10/8/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Grand Avenues: The Story of Pierre Charles L'Enfant, the French Visionary Who Designed Washington, D.C. | On September 23, 2010, Scott W. Berg discussed his book Grand Avenues: The Story of Pierre Charles L'Enfant, the French Visionary Who Designed Washington, D.C. In 1791 George Washington asked Pierre Charles L'Enfant, who had been a French volunteer during the American Revolution, to design a new federal city on the Potomac for the young republic. Suffering from constant interference, L'Enfant persisted in his work for a year before being dismissed. Yet, his ambitious geometrical plan for the District of Columbia survived and endures to this day. In Grand Avenues, Scott W. Berg resurrects the cranky L'Enfant and reveals how his influence persists in the nation's capital city. Dr. Berg teaches English at George Mason University.(Introduction by Nelson D. Lankford) | 9/24/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Memories of World War II | On July 22, 2010, Jack Mountcastle discussed photos from the temporary exhibition Memories of World War II: Photographs from the Archives of The Associated Press. The exhibition presented a stunning array of photographs from the greatest war in human history. It included photographs of Hitler and Mussolini at their peak, Londoners during the Blitz, the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising of 1943, Allied leaders at Tehran, GIs in Normandy, and Marines on the black sands of Iwo Jima. Organized from the archives of the Associated Press, this exhibition presented a spectrum of 121 of the most dramatic photographs from all theaters of the war and the home front. In this lecture Brig. Gen. John W. Mountcastle (USA, Ret.) surveyed the most important of these images. Before retiring from active duty, Jack Mountcastle was the army's chief of military history in Washington, D.C.(Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 6/27/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Take Care of the Living: Reconstructing Confederate Veteran Families in Virginia | On June 10, 2010, Jeffrey W. McClurken, discussed his book, "Take Care of the Living: Reconstructing Confederate Veteran Families in Virginia." The Civil War ended in spring 1865, but for Confederate veterans and their families, its consequences persisted far longer as they began to pick up the pieces of their civilian lives in the devastated South. In his new book, Jeffrey W. McClurken assesses the wide-ranging effects of the war on Confederate veteran families in Southside Virginia. Coming to terms with postwar reality on an individual level meant reconstructing the household and seeking jobs and financial assistance. It also involved the state in providing replacement limbs for amputees, pensions, and homes for old soldiers and widows. These changes would influence the shape of southern society for generations to come. Dr. McClurken teaches history at the University of Mary Washington.(Introduction by Nelson D. Lankford) | 6/15/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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A Kingdom Strange: The Brief and Tragic History of the Lost Colony of Roanoke | On May 27, 2010, James Horn discussed his book "A Kingdom Strange: The Brief and Tragic History of the Lost Colony of Roanoke".In 1587, a small band of men, women, and children put down the first tentative roots of English settlement on the sandy soil of Roanoke Island along the North Carolina coast, in what was then considered part of Virginia. In the face of dwindling supplies and hostile Indians, the English leader, John White, left his family and friends and re-crossed the Atlantic in a desperate attempt to assemble ships to rescue the failing colony. However, the threat from the Spanish Armada delayed his return until 1590, and when he did, the colonists had completely disappeared. In his dramatic new account, master historian James Horn revisits the tragedy of this first, failed effort at English colonization in the New World. He offers new evidence about what happened to the Lost Colony and its people. The author of five books on early American history, James Horn is vice president of research and historical interpretation and director of the John D. Rockefeller Jr. Library at Colonial Williamsburg. "This lecture was cosponsored with the Society of Colonial Wars in Virginia." | 6/9/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Paying Up: The History of Taxation | On May 20, 2010, Internationally renowned historians and hosts Edward Ayers, Brian Balogh, and Peter Onuf present "Paying Up: The History of Taxation." From the very beginning, Americans have been arguing about whether their taxes are fair and just. The American History Guys will explored taxation's complicated and turbulent history—from the Stamp Act of 1765 to the Tea Party Movement of 2010—and discuss Americans' attitudes toward the Tax Man.(Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 6/9/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Tears in the Darkness: The Story of the Bataan Death March and Its Aftermath | On Thursday, May 6, 2010, the VHS held its annual Stuart G. Christian, Jr., Lecture in the Robins Family Forum. Elizabeth and Michael Norman discussed their book Tears in the Darkness: The Story of the Bataan Death March and Its Aftermath, the gripping story of the 1942 battle for the Philippines, the surrender of 76,000 Americans and Filipinos to the Japanese, and the infamous Bataan death march.(Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 5/18/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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George Marshall, His Men, and the Recovery of Europe | On November 18, 2009, Josiah Bunting, III, delivered the 2009 Alexander W. Weddell Trustees Lecture. The topic of his lecture was 'George Marshall, His Men, and the Recovery of Europe.' Mr. Bunting is the President of the Harry Frank Guggenheim Foundation in New York, Former President of Hampden-Sydney College, and Superintendent Emeritus of the Virginia Military Institute. (Introduction by J. Stewart Bryan, III, and Paul A. Levengood) | 5/4/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Patsy Cline and the Problem of Respectability | On April 4, 2008, Beth Bailey delivered this lecture at the 2008 symposium, "Sweet Dreams: The Life and Times of Patsy Cline." The continuing tensions in Winchester over Patsy Cline provide the basis for Beth Bailey's lecture. She discussed Patsy Cline and respectability by looking at questions of sexuality and gender in the context of the importance of "respectability" in postwar American culture. Dr. Bailey is Professor of History at Temple University. She is author of Sex in the Heartland; she is co-editor of A History of our Time; she also wrote From Front Porch to Back Seat: Courtship in 20th Century America and co-authored the twentieth-century chapters in A People and a Nation. (Introduction by Sandra G. Treadway, Library of Virginia) (Introduction by Nelson D. Lankford) | 5/4/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Realistic Visionary: The Presidency of George Washington | On October 20, 2006, Peter Henriques delivered this lecture at the 2006 symposium, 'Virginians in the White House.' Peter Henriques is Professor of History, Emeritus, at George Mason University. He specializes on Virginia history with particular emphasis on Virginia and the American Revolution and the Virginia founding fathers. Henriques's most recent work is 'Realistic Visionary: A Portrait of George Washington' (2006). (Introduction by Nelson D. Lankford) | 5/4/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Tobacco, Mosquito, Slave: Colonial Virginia and the Dawn of Globalization | On April 10, 2008, Charles C. Mann delivered the 2008 Stuart G. Christian, Jr., Trustees Lecture. In his recent best-selling book, 1491, a groundbreaking work of science, history, and archaeology, Mr. Mann radically altered our understanding of the Americas before the arrival of Columbus in 1492. In 'Tobacco, Mosquito, Slave,' Mann gave VHS members a preview of his next book, which will describe the creation of the first truly global network of trade and ideas—from the triangular trade linking Europe, West Africa, and the New World to the first trans-Pacific ties between the New World and East Asia. (Introduction by Charles F. Bryan, Jr.) | 5/4/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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The Cultural Worlds of Patsy Cline's Winchester | On April 4, 2008, Mike Foreman and Warren Hofstra delivered this lecture at the 2008 symposium, "Sweet Dreams: The Life and Times of Patsy Cline." (Includes comments from oral history interviews) Mike Foreman is an adjunct assistant professor of political science at Shenandoah University and a history instructor in the School of Continuing Education. Mr. Foreman co-edited Images of the Past; he is the author of A History of the Nurses Training School, Winchester Memorial Hospital, 1903–1964; and is currently working on Some Worthy Women, featuring biographical sketches of pioneer women leaders from Winchester and Frederick County. Warren R. Hofstra is Stewart Bell Professor of History at Shenandoah University in Winchester. In addition to teaching in the fields of American social and cultural history and directing the Community History Project of Shenandoah University, he has written or edited five books on American regional history, including The Planting of New Virginia: Settlement and Landscape in the Shenandoah Valley; A Separate Place: The Formation of Clarke County, Virginia; George Washington and the Virginia Backcountry; After the Backcountry: Rural Life in the Great Valley of Virginia, 1800–1900; and Virginia Reconsidered: New Histories of the Old Dominion. (Introduction by Sandra G. Treadway, Library of Virginia) | 5/4/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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History Begins at Home: A Personal Journey | On November 19, 2008, former VHS President and CEO Charles F. Bryan, Jr., delivered the Alexander W. Weddell Trustees Lecture. In this autobiographical lecture, Dr. Bryan reflects on the field of public history as it developed during the course of his own career. In this autobiographical lecture, Dr. Bryan reflects on the field of public history as it developed during the course of his own career. In 1988, he was appointed as President and CEO of the Virginia Historical Society. During his tenure, Dr. Bryan oversaw fund-raising campaigns that raised more than $110 million. These efforts have resulted in quadrupling the size of the Society's headquarters building and a significant expansion of educational programs statewide. In November 2008, Dr. Bryan retired from the VHS and was named president emeritus by the board of trustees. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 5/4/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Woodrow Wilson: The Virginia Factor | On October 20, 2006, Mr. Berg delivered this lecture at the 2006 symposium, 'Virginians in the White House.' Winner of the Pulitzer Prize, A. Scott Berg is the author of best-selling books on Maxwell Perkins, Samuel Goldwyn, Charles Lindbergh, and Katharine Hepburn. He is currently writing a biography of Woodrow Wilson. Mr. Berg holds a B.A. from Princeton University. | 5/4/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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The Crooked Road to Civil War, 1861 | On March 29, 2007, Dr. Lankford delivered the Stuart G. Christian, Jr., Lecture. In early March 1861, civil war loomed. By late April, Americans had begun to kill their fellow citizens. Cry Havoc! The Crooked Road to Civil War, 1861 recounts in riveting detail the events that divided the states and reveals how quirks of timing, character, and place all conspired to transform the nation into a battlefield. Nelson Lankford, author of Richmond Burning, chronicles the eight critical weeks that began with Lincoln's inauguration through the explosion at Fort Sumter and the president's fateful response to it. (Introduction by Charles F. Bryan, Jr.) | 5/4/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Jefferson in Perspective | On March 21, 2009, Daniel P. Jordan delivered the Stuart G. Christian, Jr., Lecture. Drawing on his many years as president of Monticello, Dr. Jordan reflected on the meaning of Thomas Jefferson within the broader context of his times and his enduring legacy for us today. Daniel P. Jordan recently retired as president of Thomas Jefferson's Monticello, one of the most beloved historic sites in America. No other historian today has immersed himself more deeply into the multifaceted life of our third president. Drawing on his many years at Monticello, Dr. Jordan reflected on the meaning of Thomas Jefferson within the broader context of his times and his enduring legacy for us today. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 5/4/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Patsy Cline and a Changing South, from Depression to Postwar Affluence | On April 4, 2008, Mr. Malone delivered this talk at the 2008 symposium, 'Sweet Dreams: The Life and Times of Patsy Cline.' Bill Malone is Professor of History, Emeritus, at Tulane University. He is author of Country Music, U.S.A.; Southern Music, American Music; Don't Get Above Your Raisin': Country Music and the Southern Working Class; and to be published this June, Working Girl Blues: The Life and Music of Hazel Dickens. He also produced and annotated the Smithsonian Collection of Classic Country Music. He has been a Guggenheim Fellow. He has delivered the Lamar Lecture at Mercer University, published as Singing Cowboys and Musical Mountaineers: Southern Culture and the Roots of Country Music. He has served as a joint visiting scholar at Duke and the University of North Carolina. His weekly radio show, "Back to the Country," on Madison, Wisconsin's WORT-FM has been on the air for years and has regularly garnered listeners' choice awards. In all, he continues is his role as the dean of country music scholarship, combining, in his words, "the passionate predilections of the fan . . . with the wary skepticism of the scholar." (Introduction by Nelson D. Lankford) | 5/4/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Hidden Things Brought to Light: Finding Lumpkin's Jail and Locating the Burial Ground for Negroes (Questions on first two prese | On Saturday, February 28, 2009, the community was invited to attend a conference about Richmond's African American history, "Hidden Things Brought to Light: Finding Lumpkin's Jail and Locating the Burial Ground for Negroes." Sponsored by the Virginia Historical Society, the City of Richmond Slave Trail Commission, and the Virginia Department of Historic Resources, the half-day conference presented recent scholarship on two downtown Richmond historical sites, the Burial Ground for Negroes and Lumpkin's Slave Jail, both of which have special importance for the history of African Americans in Virginia. | 5/4/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Hidden Things Brought to Light: Locating the 1809 Negro Burial Ground | On Saturday, February 28, 2009, the community was invited to attend a conference about Richmond's African American history, "Hidden Things Brought to Light: Finding Lumpkin's Jail and Locating the Burial Ground for Negroes." In this session, Chris Stevenson, spoke on locating the 1809 Negro Burial Ground. | 5/4/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Hidden Things Brought to Light: Shockoe Valley Topography and the Slave Trade | On Saturday, February 28, 2009, the community was invited to attend a conference about Richmond's African American history, "Hidden Things Brought to Light: Finding Lumpkin's Jail and Locating the Burial Ground for Negroes." In this session ,Jeffrey Ruggles, curator for prints and photographs at the VHS, spoke on Shockoe Valley topgraphy and the slave trade. | 5/4/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Hidden Things Brought to Light: Finding Lumpkin's Jail and Locating the Burial Ground for Negroes (Welcome and Introductions) | On Saturday, February 28, 2009, the community was invited to attend a conference about Richmond's African American history, "Hidden Things Brought to Light: Finding Lumpkin's Jail and Locating the Burial Ground for Negroes." Sponsored by the Virginia Historical Society, the City of Richmond Slave Trail Commission, and the Virginia Department of Historic Resources, the half-day conference presented recent scholarship on two downtown Richmond historical sites, the Burial Ground for Negroes and Lumpkin's Slave Jail, both of which have special importance for the history of African Americans in Virginia. | 5/4/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Telling Our Stories: School Desegregation in Western Virginia | On February 22, 2007, Dr. DeLaney delivered this Banner Lecture at the VHS. In 1954 the Supreme Court held in Brown v. Board of Education that segregation by race in public schools was unconstitutional. In subsequent years, the course of integration followed a slow and varied path. The unfolding of that experience in the schools of western Virginia, particularly as related through oral history interviews, is the special focus of research by Theodore C. DeLaney. Dr. DeLaney is associate professor of history and director of the African American Studies Program at Washington and Lee University. (Introduction by Nelson D. Lankford) | 4/30/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Skeletons on the Zahara | On January 24, 2008, Dean King delivered this Banner Lecture. In 1815 the American sailing ship Commerce ran aground on the northwestern shore of Africa. In his prize-winning book, Skeletons on the Zahara, Dean King recounts the misfortunes of the shipwrecked crew. They were captured by nomadic Arab slave traders and marched across the desert, subjected to heat, starvation, and cruelty. At last the survivors made it back to the coast where they were ransomed and freed. King, a Richmond writer, brings this once-famous adventure story, well known to nineteenth-century readers, back to life. (Introduction by Charles F. Bryan, Jr.) | 4/30/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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General Lee's Army: From Victory to Collapse | In this lecture, based on his new book General Lee's Army, Dr. Glatthaar used the story of Robert E. Lee's army as a powerful lens for viewing the entire Civil War, from the early springtime of southern hopes to final crushing defeat, from the homefront to the heart of the most famous battles of the war. Dr. Glatthaar teaches history at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. (Introduction by Charles F. Bryan, Jr.) | 4/30/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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George Thomas: Virginian for the Union | On March 6, 2008, Dr. Einolf delivered a talk on George H. Thomas, one of the most successful Union generals of the Civil War. Most southern-born army officers resigned their commissions to join the Confederacy in 1861. But a substantial minority remained loyal to the national government, including George H. Thomas, the "Rock of Chickamauga," one of the most successful Union generals of the Civil War. On March 6, 2008, Christopher Einolf spoke on his biography of the career soldier from Southampton County. Dr. Einolf teaches at the University of Virginia. (Introduction by Charles F. Bryan, Jr.) | 4/30/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Who Looks at Lee Must Think of Washington | On February 28, 2008, Dr. Tilton delivered a talk in conjunction with the VHS exhibition, Lee and Grant. In his 1866 poem, "Lee in the Capitol," Herman Melville portrays a dignified Robert E. Lee advocating reconciliation before the Congressional committee on Reconstruction. One of the poet's most powerful references is his association of Lee with George Washington. On February 28, 2008, Robert Tilton's lecture examined Melville's interpretation of Lee and his role in American history. Professor Tilton is co-curator of the exhibition Lee and Grant and teaches English and American Studies at the University of Connecticut. (Introduction by William M. S. Rasmussen) | 4/30/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Lee and Grant | On November 1, 2007, William M. S. Rasmussen delivered a lecture in conjunction with exhibition Lee and Grant. The two great opposing military commanders of the Civil War, Robert E. Lee and Ulysses S. Grant, towered over their contemporaries. In a major exhibition and book created in the 200th anniversary year of Lee's birth, the VHS explored the parallel lives of these two American heroes. In an illustrated lecture, co-curator and co-author William M. S. Rasmussen examined Lee and Grant and their influence on our history. Dr. Rasmussen is Lora M. Robins Curator at the VHS and curator of the exhibition. (Introduction by James C. Kelly) | 4/30/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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The Business of Virginia Has Always Been Business | On September 13, 2007, Dr. Levengood delivered this lecture on his book, Virginia: Catalyst of Commerce for Four Centuries. He is president-elect and CEO-elect of the Virginia Historical Society. This lecture was a program of the VHS's Reynolds Business History Center. (Introduction by Nelson D. Lankford) | 4/30/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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So Ends This Day: An Illustrated Update on the Life and Times of the USS Monitor, from 1861 to yesterday | On November 12, 2009, Anna Gibson Holloway delivered a lecture entitled 'So Ends This Day': An Illustrated Update on the Life and Times of the USS Monitor, from 1861 to yesterday.' Although the Union ironclad Monitor may have ended her working career in a gale off Cape Hatteras in December 1862, her story does not end there. Discovered in 1973, established as a National Marine Sanctuary in 1975, and the subject of intense recovery operations by NOAA and the U.S. Navy since then, the curious "cheesebox on a raft" still has stories to tell. Anna Holloway brought the Monitor to life in this lively, illustrated presentation by combining log entries, official correspondence, personal letters from officers and crew, and material evidence found in the ship itself. Holloway serves as vice president of museum collections and programs at the Mariners' Museum in Newport News, where she recently curated the award-winning exhibition Ironclad Revolution at the USS Monitor Center. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 4/30/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Lincoln: President-Elect | On December 4, 2008, Mr. Holzer delivered a talk on his newest Lincoln book, Lincoln: President-Elect. In the winter of 1860–61, the crisis that erupted with the election of Abraham Lincoln threatened to split the nation. In his newest Lincoln book, Lincoln: President-Elect, Harold Holzer examines the perilous interregnum before the president-elect's inauguration and recounts Lincoln's public and private struggle to preserve the Union. Mr. Holzer is co-chairman of the U.S. Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission and senior vice president for external affairs at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 4/30/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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One Nation Under Debt | On September 4, 2008, Robert E. Wright delivered this lecture on his book, Virginia: Catalyst of Commerce for Four Centuries.The United States was born in debt. Was this obligation a vital tool for forging national unity, or a monstrous burden? In One Nation Under Debt: Hamilton, Jefferson, and the History of What We Owe, Robert E. Wright follows our nation's debt from the founding to the credit crisis of today. A compelling and witty storyteller, Wright shows how the past can illuminate current financial woes. Dr. Wright teaches history at New York University's Stern School of Business. This lecture was a program of the VHS's Reynolds Business History Center. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 4/30/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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From Cotton Fields to Skyscrapers: The Transformation of the South in the Twentieth Century | On July 24, 2008, Dr. Levengood delivered a talk entitled 'From Cotton Fields to Skyscrapers: The Transformation of the South in the Twentieth Century.' At the dawn of the twentieth century, the South was by all measurements the poorest, most segregated region in the United States. One hundred years later, it was one of the fastest-growing parts of the nation, attracting population and industry at a dizzying rate. How did this transformation take place? How much of the traditional South remains? Looking at such key events as World War II and the South’s longstanding effort to attract business investment, Paul A. Levengood will chart the breathtaking course of the twentieth century and examine what survives and what has been lost in the rush toward prosperity and growth. Dr. Levengood is president-elect and CEO-elect of the VHS. This lecture is a program of the VHS's Reynolds Business History Center. (Introduction by Nelson D. Lankford) | 4/30/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Moses Ezekiel: Civil War Soldier, Renowned Sculptor | On June 12, 2008, Colonel Gibson delivered a talk on Moses Ezekiel, the first Jewish cadet at VMI and world renowned sculptor. Few sculptors of the nineteenth century were as well known during their lifetimes as Moses Ezekiel, though he is little-known today. The first Jewish cadet at VMI, he fought in the battle of New Market in 1864. Encouraged by Robert E. Lee to pursue his artistic calling, Ezekiel studied in Europe and became the first American to win the coveted Prix de Rome. Keith Gibson will draw on his biography of Ezekiel to bring to life this luminary of nineteenth-century art. Colonel Gibson is executive director of museum programs and architectural historian at the Virginia Military Institute. (Introduction by Robert F. Strohm) | 4/30/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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The Great Upheaval: America and the Birth of the Modern World, 1788–1800 | On April 16, 2008, Mr. Winik delivered a talk on his new book, The Great Upheaval: America and the Birth of the Modern World, 1788–1800. As the 1790s began, a fragile American republic took its first uncertain steps, the Russian empire expanded, and France plunged into revolution. Jay Winik's new book, The Great Upheaval, illuminates how events in these three nations combined to change the course of civilization. Mr. Winik is the author of the best-selling April 1865. (Introduction by Charles F. Bryan, Jr.) | 4/30/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Lee and the Historians in the Age of the Anti-Hero | On May 22, 2008, Mr. Krick delivered a talk on Gen. Robert E. Lee entitled "Lee and the Historians in the Age of the Anti-Hero." According to some recent historians, Gen. Robert E. Lee was not a hero to southerners during the Civil War but only afterward. Robert K. Krick argues to the contrary that he was idolized as a great leader in the midst of the conflict, not just later when the defeated South groped to interpret what had happened. For thirty years, Mr. Krick was chief historian of the Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park. He is the author of many books including, most recently, Civil War Weather in Virginia. (Introduction by Charles F. Bryan, Jr.) | 4/30/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Twilight at Monticello: The Final Years of Thomas Jefferson | On May 29, 2008, Mr. Crawford delivered a talk on his new book, Twilight at Monticello: The Final Years of Thomas Jefferson. Thomas Jefferson returned to Monticello in 1809 at the end of his second presidential term and died there seventeen years later. In his new book, Alan Pell Crawford reveals the private Jefferson at home, coping with debt and illness, mediating family quarrels, and navigating public disputes, still a towering figure in the early republic. Mr. Crawford's previous book on a Virginia subject was Unwise Passions: A True Story of a Remarkable Woman—and the First Great Scandal of Eighteenth-Century America. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 4/30/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Reading the Man: A Portrait of Robert E. Lee Through his Private Letters | On May 24, 2007, Ms. Pryor delivered this lecture on her book, Reading the Man: A Portrait of Robert E. Lee Through his Private Letters. Since his death, researchers have lamented that Robert E. Lee never wrote a memoir. But, as author Elizabeth Brown Pryor revealed during her Banner Lecture at the VHS, this collection contains numerous letters and notes in the hand of Robert E. Lee reflecting on his long career. Pryor, who was granted access to selected portions of the collection found at Burke and Herbert Bank before processing at the Society began, spoke about her recently published book, Reading the Man: A Portrait of Robert E. Lee Through his Private Letters. In her book, Pryor explores the thoughts and actions of Robert E. Lee largely through his own words—some of which were derived from the newly released papers at the VHS—focusing on Lee's religious beliefs, his views on slavery, his father, his days at West Point, and his decision to join the South during the Civil War. (Introduction by Nelson D. Lankford) | 4/30/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Sites and Stories: African American History in Virginia | On February 14, 2008, Lauranett Lee delivered this Banner Lecture. Historic highway markers are beloved features of the Old Dominion's landscape. Through these signs, away from the high speed of interstates, the careful motorist can piece together major themes running through Virginia's past. One of the most important but sometimes neglected such strands is the story of African Americans. In Sites and Stories, Lauranett L. Lee mounted an exhibition to present the narratives told by these markers. Her lecture highlighted the struggles and triumphs of African Americans in Virginia from 1619 to the recent past. Dr. Lee is curator of African American history at the VHS. (Introduction by James C. Kelly) | 4/30/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Historic Virginia Gardens: Preservation Work of the Garden Club of Virginia | On November 4, 2009, Margaret Bemiss and Will Rieley delivered a lecture entitled 'Historic Virginia Gardens: Preservation Work of the Garden Club of Virginia.' For nearly a century, the Garden Club of Virginia has undertaken garden research and preservation work at numerous historic sites across the Old Dominion. It has restored and created beautiful landscapes for the education and enjoyment of all, from backyard gardeners to design professionals. Author Margaret Bemiss and Will Rieley, landscape architect to the Garden Club of Virginia, presented an illustrated lecture on the new book, Historic Virginia Gardens, documenting this important contribution to the commonwealth's botanical and architectural heritage. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 4/30/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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The Battle of Hué City, South Vietnam, 1968 | On August 20, 2009, General Christmas delivered a lecture entitled 'The Battle of Hué City, South Vietnam, 1968.' The year 1968 marked a crucial turning point in the Vietnam War. During Tet, the lunar New Year holiday, the North Vietnamese and their Viet Cong allies staged attacks across South Vietnam, none more dramatic than the assault on Hué, the old imperial capital. The offensive ended in crippling military defeat for the attackers, and yet the strength of their assault led to a political setback for the United States, as critics at home gained traction and public support for the war eroded. Lt. Gen. G. R. (Ron) Christmas, USMC (Ret.), participated in the battle for Hué as a company commander and will present a first-hand account of the conflict. General Christmas is president and CEO of the Marine Corps Heritage Foundation. This lecture was part of the VHS commemoration of the Vietnam War era. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 4/30/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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The Shipwreck That Saved Jamestown: The Sea Venture Castaways and the Fate of America | On April 16, 2009, Lorri Glover delivered a Banner Lecture entitled "The Shipwreck That Saved Jamestown: The Sea Venture Castaways and the Fate of America." The wreck of the Sea Venture on Bermuda in 1609 and the role its survivors played in the eventual rescue of the failing colony at Jamestown are dramatic tales from the founding years of the nation. In a new book, authors Lorri Glover and Daniel Blake Smith retell this account of shipwreck, courage, mutiny, and deliverance. The authors make a forceful case that the Sea Venture bears no small part in the ultimate survival of English colonization in America. Dr. Glover teaches American history at the University of Tennessee. This lecture was cosponsored with the Society of Colonial Wars in Virginia. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 4/30/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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The Struggle with Drugs and Thugs in U.S.-Mexican Relations: Mexico: Narco-Violence and a Failed State? | On December 3, 2009, George W. Grayson delivered a lecture on his book 'Mexico: Narco-Violence and a Failed State?' The armed conflict between Mexico's rival drug cartels and the central government is headline news in the United States. George W. Grayson put Mexican-American relations into historical context and examined Mexican efforts to tackle both the demand and supply sides of the problems spawned by the wildly profitable supply route for illegal drugs making their way into the United States. Professor Grayson teaches at the College of William and Mary. (Introduction by Nelson D. Lankford) | 4/30/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Up from History: The Life of Booker T. Washington | On February 5, 2009, Dr. Norrell delivered a talk on his book, Up from History: The Life of Booker T. Washington. In his compelling new biography, the first full-length life of Booker T. Washington in a generation, Robert J. Norrell recreates the broad context in which the African American leader worked to overcome past exploitation and present discrimination. Although Washington has often been disparaged since the 1960s, Up from History details the positive power of his vision to invoke hope and optimism. On February 5, 2009, Dr. Norrell reinstated this extraordinary historical figure to the pantheon of black leaders. Robert J. Norrell teaches history at the University of Tennessee. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 4/30/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Prestwould: Gracious Living on the American Frontier, 1790–1830 | On October 1, 2009, Julian Hudson delivered a lecture entitled "Prestwould: Gracious Living on the American Frontier, 1790–1830." Prestwould Plantation, built at the end of the eighteenth century in a post-revolutionary Georgian style, is located on the bluffs above the Roanoke River near Clarksville, Virginia. Dr. Julian Hudson, the executive director of the Prestwould Foundation, has overseen the restoration of this historic property by leading preservation specialists. His lecture illustrated the material culture represented by Prestwould, beginning with Sir Peyton and Lady Jean Skipwith and extending down four subsequent generations. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 4/30/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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The Portent: John Brown's Raid in American Memory | On October 15, 2009, William M. S. Rasmussen delivered a lecture in conjunction with the current exhibition The Portent: John Brown's Raid in American Memory. One hundred and fifty years ago, John Brown's Raid on Harpers Ferry failed utterly. But the violent event and the executions it prompted shocked the nation. They reinforced white southern fears about slave insurrection, emboldened secessionists, and made Brown a martyr in the eyes of many northerners. Ever since, Brown has been a symbol of contrast and controversy. Dr. Rasmussen is Lora M. Robins Curator at the VHS and curator of the exhibition that marks these tumultuous events leading up to the Civil War. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 4/30/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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For Better or For Worse: The Journey of a POW and His Wife | On June 11, 2009, Phyllis and Paul Galanti delivered a lecture entitled "For Better or For Worse: The Journey of a POW and His Wife." In June 1966 Lt. Cmdr. Paul Galanti was shot down over Vietnam and endured nearly seven years of captivity. His wife Phyllis played a leading role in the efforts of the National League of Families of American Prisoners and Missing in Southeast Asia to publicize the plight of their loved ones and to secure their release. The Galantis presented an illustrated lecture recounting this dramatic story. Their talk was held in conjunction with the exhibition Bring Paul Home: Phyllis Galanti and Vietnam War POWs, which is based on the collection given by Phyllis and Paul Galanti to the VHS. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 4/30/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Hatteras Island: Keeper of the Outer Banks | On July 23, 2009, Ray McAllister delivered a lecture entitled "Hatteras Island: Keeper of the Outer Banks." The Outer Banks have enticed Virginians with the lure of sun, sky, and sea for generations. Despite this idyllic appeal, these once-isolated barrier islands have also witnessed a turbulent past. Pirates, hurricanes, shipwrecks, and U-boats all make their appearance in the varied story of the Outer Banks. Ray McAllister, an award-winning former Richmond Times Dispatch columnist, has become the established chronicler of coastal North Carolina with his latest volume on Hatteras, which follows earlier books on Wrightsville Beach and Topsail Island. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 4/30/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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The Ascent of George Washington: The Hidden Political Genius of an American Icon | On May 28, 2009, John Ferling delivered a talk on his book, The Ascent of George Washington: The Hidden Political Genius of an American Icon. In 2007 John Ferling spoke at the VHS on his history of the Revolutionary War, Almost a Miracle. Now he has drawn on his unsurpassed knowledge of that era to provide a fresh and provocative new portrait of the greatest of the Founders in The Ascent of George Washington. Dr. Ferling is the author of an earlier biography of George Washington and numerous books on the American Revolution. This lecture was cosponsored with the Society of Colonial Wars in the State of Virginia. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 4/30/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Werowocomoco and Fairfield Plantation: Rediscovering the Forgotten Landscapes of Gloucester County | On April 2, 2009, David Brown and Thane Harpole delivered this lecture entitled 'Werowocomoco and Fairfield Plantation: Rediscovering the Forgotten Landscapes of Gloucester County.' The excitement of discovering lost landscapes, including the Burwell family's ancestral home and the nearby village of Powhatan and Pocahontas, has resulted in the resurgence of support for historic preservation in the Middle Peninsula. David Brown and Thane Harpole described these activities to illustrate everyday life in colonial Virginia and to show how our interpretations of it influence our own day. Brown and Harpole are archaeologists, co-directors of the Fairfield Foundation, and founding members of the Werowocomoco Research Group. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 4/30/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Meuse-Argonne, 1918: The Battle That Ended World War I | On September 17, 2009, Edward G. Lengel delivered a lecture on his book 'To Conquer Hell Meuse-Argonne, 1918: The Battle That Ended World War I.' After four years of stalemate on the Western Front, a final Allied push broke the German army in autumn 1918. The Meuse-Argonne Offensive represented the war's largest commitment of American troops to battle and helped pave the way to German capitulation in November. In To Conquer Hell: The Meuse-Argonne, 1918, Edward G. Lengel tells the epic tale of American soldiers in the final campaign of World War I. Dr. Lengel is associate professor of history at UVA and an editor of the Papers of George Washington. (Introduction by Nelson D. Lankford) | 4/30/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Distorted Mirrors: Americans and Their Relations with Russia and China in the Twentieth Century | On April 1, 2010, Eugene P. Trani delivered a lecture on his book "Distorted Mirrors: Americans and Their Relations with Russia and China in the Twentieth Century." During the last century, United States relations with Russia and China went through many tumultuous changes. In a new appraisal, Eugene Trani shows where American images of Russia and China originated, how they evolved, and how they have often helped sustain foreign policies that were generally negative toward Russia and more positive toward China. Trani's wide-ranging new book draws on memoirs, archives, and interviews to show how influential individuals shaped perceptions and policies based on what they saw or thought they saw in those two countries. Dr. Trani is president emeritus of Virginia Commonwealth University.(Introduction by Nelson D. Lankford) | 4/26/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Dolley Madison: A Documentary | On February 4, 2010, Muffie Meyer delivered a lecture on the PBS documentary Dolley Madison. In March, the "American Experience" history series on PBS will broadcast a new documentary on the life of Dolley Madison. Today’s event offers a preview of part of the documentary, along with commentary about the making of the film by the producer and director, Muffie Meyer. This event is jointly sponsored by the Virginia Historical Society and James Madison's Montpelier. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 4/26/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Louis Brandeis: An American Legal Giant | On March 25, 2010, Melvin Urofsky delivered a lecture on his book "Louis Brandeis: An American Legal Giant." Louis Brandeis was one of the most important and distinguished justices to sit on the United States Supreme Court. In his latest book, Melvin Urofsky presents not only Brandeis the reformer, lawyer, and jurist, but also Brandeis the man, in all of his complexity, passion, and wit. Drawing on family papers and materials never before available, Urofsky gives us the remarkable story of Brandeis's influence on American society and jurisprudence, and the electrifying story of his time. Dr. Urofsky is a former professor of history at Virginia Commonwealth University. (Introduction by Nelson D. Lankford) | 4/26/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Robert E. Lee: Lessons in Leadership | On January 28, 2010, Noah Andre Trudeau delivered a lecture on his book Robert E. Lee. Almost 150 years after the fact, Robert E. Lee remains a towering figure of the Civil War era, an acclaimed strategist and an enigmatic personality. In his new book, the latest in the critically received Great Generals Series, prolific author Noah Andre Trudeau presents an insightful narrative about the Confederacy's preeminent military leader. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 4/26/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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On Hallowed Ground: The Story of Arlington National Cemetery | On February 18, 2010, Robert Poole delivered a lecture on his book "On Hallowed Ground: The Story of Arlington National Cemetery." In his new book, Robert Poole traces the founding of Arlington Cemetery on what had been the family plantation of Robert E. Lee's wife. Arlington first became a U.S. Army headquarters and then a cemetery for indigent Civil War soldiers before Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton made it the new national cemetery. Arlington's special significance grew after the war, as the government gathered soldiers' remains hastily buried on nearby battlefields and reinterred them at Arlington, where they received the honors of a grateful nation. The rituals and reverence associated with Arlington evolved over the next hundred years, paid through the blood of those who fought in the Spanish-American War, World Wars I and II, the Korean War, the Cold War, Vietnam, Desert Storm, Iraq, and Afghanistan. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 4/26/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Hidden Treasures: A Short History of the Mary Custis Lee Trunks | On April 22, 2010, Lee Shepard delivered a Banner Lecture entitled "Hidden Treasures: A Short History of the Mary Custis Lee Trunks." In 2002, two wooden trunks were found at Burke and Herbert Bank and Trust Company in Alexandria, Va. The trunks contained letters, legal papers, journals, travel souvenirs, financial records, and smaller artifacts that were collected by Mary Custis Lee, the eldest daughter of General Robert E. Lee. The collection of manuscripts and artifacts, now at the Virginia Historical Society, have been added to what is currently the largest holding of Lee family papers in any single repository. Lee Shepard will discuss and show images of items found in the trunks—including an 1810 letter from George Washington Parke Custis, the builder of Arlington House; an 1863 order from Robert E. Lee, in his own hand, announcing the death of General Stonewall Jackson; and an 1872 letter from former Arlington House slave Selina Gray to Mary Randolph Custis Lee. He will also reveal new information that we have learned not only about Robert E. Lee but also about his very interesting daughter Mary. Lee Shepard is vice president for collections at the VHS.(Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 4/26/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Flight from Monticello: Thomas Jefferson at War | On March 4, 2010, Michael Kranish delivered a lecture on his book "Flight from Monticello: Thomas Jefferson at War." In his new book, Michael Kranish recounts Thomas Jefferson's difficult tenure as Virginia's governor during the Revolution. The story begins with the background of struggle against British rule, then the tumultuous outbreak of fighting and Jefferson's role in the Continental Congress, followed by his rise to the governorship. Influenced by Jefferson, Virginia provided for a weak chief executive, and the state was ill-prepared for invasion. When war came to the Old Dominion, the legislature fled the capital, and Jefferson narrowly eluded capture twice. Kranish describes his many stumbles as he struggled to respond to the crisis. "Jefferson's record was both remarkable and unsatisfactory, filled with contradictions," writes Kranish. As a revolutionary leader who felt he was unqualified to conduct a war, Jefferson never resolved those contradictions. But, as Kranish shows, he did learn lessons from the hard tutelage of war. This lecture is cosponsored with the Society of Colonial Wars in Virginia. (Introduction by Paul A. Levengood) | 4/26/10 | Free | View In iTunes |
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Message, Money, and Management: A Roundtable Discussion on the Future of the Chesapeake Bay by Hon. Gerald Baliles, Ann F. Jenn | On March 16, 2012, Hon. Gerald Baliles, Ann F. Jennings, Gerald P. McCarthy, and Hon. W. Tayloe Murphy, Jr. participated in a roundtable discussion entitled "Message, Money, and Management: A Roundtable Discussion on the Future of the Chesapeake Bay." The roundtable discussion was session six of "From the Earth: The Environment in Virginia's Past and Future," a free day-long conference on the historical relationship between Virginia's environment and its people. The conference is made possible by a generous grant from the Virginia Environmental Endowment. (Introduction by Paul Levengood) | Free | View In iTunes | |
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Byrd's Line: A Natural History by Stephen C. Ausband | On March 16, 2012, Stephen C. Ausband delivered a lecture entitled "Byrd's Line: A Natural History." This lecture was session one of "From the Earth: The Environment in Virginia's Past and Future," a free day-long conference on the historical relationship between Virginia's environment and its people. The conference is made possible by a generous grant from the Virginia Environmental Endowment. (Introduction by Paul Levengood) | Free | View In iTunes | |
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Managing the Mountains: Land Use Planning, the New Deal, and the Creation of the Federal Landscape in Appalachia by Sara M. Gre | On March 16, 2012, Sara M. Gregg delivered a lecture entitled "Managing the Mountains: Land Use Planning, the New Deal, and the Creation of the Federal Landscape in Appalachia." This lecture was session four of "From the Earth: The Environment in Virginia's Past and Future," a free day-long conference on the historical relationship between Virginia's environment and its people. The conference is made possible by a generous grant from the Virginia Environmental Endowment. (Introduction by Elaine Hagy) | Free | View In iTunes | |
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Eco-History of the Tidewater: The Long View by Roy T. Sawyer | On March 16, 2012, Roy T. Sawyer delivered a lecture entitled "Eco-History of the Tidewater: The Long View." This lecture was session five of "From the Earth: The Environment in Virginia's Past and Future," a free day-long conference on the historical relationship between Virginia's environment and its people. The conference is made possible by a generous grant from the Virginia Environmental Endowment. (Introduction by Andrew Talkov) | Free | View In iTunes | |
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Abolitionist Art and the American Slave Trade by Maurie D. McInnis | On January 26, 2012, Maurie D. McInnis delivered a lecture entitled "Abolitionist Art and the American Slave Trade."In 1853 Eyre Crowe, a young British artist, visited a slave auction in Richmond and captured the scene in sketches that he later developed into a series of illustrations and paintings, including the culminating work, "Slaves Waiting for Sale, Richmond, Virginia." In her new book, "Slaves Waiting for Sale: Abolitionist Art and the American Slave Trade," Maurie D. McInnis uses Crowe's paintings to explore the trade in Richmond, Charleston, and New Orleans. Through that exploration, which her illustrated lecture will present, she describes the evolving iconography of abolitionist art and the role of visual culture in the transatlantic world of abolitionism. Professor McInnis teaches in the department of art at the University of Virginia. (Introduction by Cheryl Magazine) | Free | View In iTunes |
| Total: 93 Episodes |
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