Dear VA-Histers:
I would like to invite you to the next in the Library's noon book talks.
(A full listing of forthcoming lectures and programs at the Library of
Virginia is appended to the bottom of this message.) On Wednesday,
September 3, 2003, Virginia author Dr. Eugene P. Trani will speak on his
book The First Cold War: The Legacy of Woodrow Wilson in U.S.-Soviet
Relations, co-authored with Dr. Donald E. Davis, and published by the
University of Missouri Press. Dr. Trani is President of Virginia
Commonwealth University and the author of several books, including The
Presidency of Warren G. Harding. His coauthor, Dr. Donald E. Davis, is
Professor of History at Illinois State University in Normal and is the
editor of No East or West: The Memoirs of Paul B. Anderson. The book
will be available in the Library Shop and a book signing in the lobby
will follow the lecture.
In The First Cold War, Davis and Trani review the Wilson
administration's attitudes toward Russia before, during, and after the
Bolshevik seizure of power. They argue that before the Russian
Revolution, Woodrow Wilson had little understanding of Russia and made
poor appointments that cost the United States Russian goodwill. Wilson
later reversed those negative impressions by being the first to
recognize Russia's Provisional Government, resulting in positive
U.S.-Russian relations until Lenin gained power in 1917.
The authors see in Wilson's approach the foundations for the "first Cold
War"-meaning not simply a refusal to recognize the Soviet Union, but a
strong belief that its influence was harmful and would spread if not
contained or quarantined. Wilson's Soviet policy in essence lasted until
Roosevelt extended diplomatic recognition in the 1930s. But The First
Cold War suggests that Wilson's impact extended beyond Roosevelt to
Truman, showing that the policies of Wilson and Truman closely resemble
each other with the exception of an arms race. Wilson's intellectual
reputation lent credibility to U.S. Cold War policy from Truman to
Reagan, and the reader can draw a direct connection from Wilson to the
collapse of the USSR. Wilsonians were the first Cold War warriors, and
in the era of President Woodrow Wilson, the first Cold War began.
" 'The First Cold War' brings new ideas and a fresh viewpoint to one of
the most significant subjects in twentieth-century international
relations....It persuasively advances the thesis that the policy
position Wilson arrived at through trial and error...formed the basis
for America's long and ultimately successful prosecution of the Cold
War. This is an important book with a fascinating, pertinent message."
-John Milton Cooper, Jr.
". . . [the book] is written with style and verve...it runs contrary to
the conventional American memory of Woodrow Wilson purely as an
idealist...."
-Richmond Times Dispatch
FORTHCOMING LECTURES AND PROGRAMS
The Library of Virginia is located at 800 East Broad Street in historic
downtown Richmond. The event schedule is subject to change. Please call
804/692-3592 to confirm dates and times.
Tuesday, September 16, 2003
Eastern Shore Andes and Other Virginia Myths
Time: Noon
Place: Conference Rooms
FREE
Historian Brent Tarter will explore some of the most famous and
not-so-famous myths about Virginia. His talk is tied to the lobby
exhibition Virginia I Hardly Know Ye about the inaccuracies, false
impressions and false conclusions that color Virginia's history.
Saturday, September 20, 2003
6th Annual Library of Virginia Literary Awards Celebration
Time: 6:30 PM-8:30 PM
FEE
These awards honor outstanding Virginia authors in the areas of fiction,
non-fiction and poetry. The event attracts authors, publishers, and
those who enjoy the written word. It is a chance to rub elbows with
promising new writers and literary legends.
Saturday, September 27, 2003
Celebrate the 200th Anniversary of Marbury v. Madison
Time: 2:00 PM
Place: Lecture Hall
FREE
2003 marks the 200th anniversary of Marbury v. Madison, the landmark U.
S. Supreme Court decision that established The U. S. Constitution as the
supreme law of the land. The program will begin with a historical
re-enactment of a family debate between President Thomas Jefferson and
Chief Justice John Marshall. Professor R. Kent Newmyer will speak on
"Marbury v. Madison: John Marshall and the American Judicial System."
Justice Donald W. Lemons of the Virginia Supreme Court will close with a
talk on "John Marshall: The Character of the Man." This event is
co-sponsored by the Library of Virginia, The John Marshall Foundation,
and APVA's John Marshall House. A tour of the John Marshall House and
refreshments in the garden follow the talks.
October 3-4, 2003
James River Writers Festival
Place: Lobby and Conference Rooms
FEE
A two-day writing workshop featuring speakers of national and local
stature, a plenary focusing on the craft and business of publishing,
breakout discussion groups, open question-and-answer sessions and
panels. See http://www.jrwf.org <http://www.jrwf.org/>
Thursday, October 9, 2003
Unboxing the Past: A Symposium on the Underground Railroad,
Abolitionism, and Slavery in Virginia
Time: 9:00 AM to 7:00 PM
Place: Conference Rooms and Lecture Hall
NOONTIME LECTURE AND EVENING ARE FREE; FEE FOR MORNING SESSION, LUNCH,
AND WALKING TOUR (Registration required, 804-692-3722.)
This day-long event includes a morning session with the Library of
Virginia's staff on archival collections, a noontime lecture and book
signing by Jeffrey Ruggles, author of the Library's recently published
Unboxing of Henry Brown, a bus tour of sites related to antebellum
African American life, and an early-evening symposium with noted
scholars.
October 12-18, 2003
A Commonwealth of Cultures: Virginia's Archives and Special Collections
Celebrate Archives Week in Virginia:
Tuesday, October 14, 2003
The Many Worlds of Littleton Waller Tazewell: Hidden Histories in the
Tazewell Family Papers
Time: Noon
Place: Conference Rooms
Trenton Hizer, senior archivist at the Library of Virginia, will discuss
the Tazewell Family papers, just one example of the rich private papers
collections at the Library of Virginia. This collection offers many
windows into the past. In addition to containing the political
correspondence of senators Henry Tazewell and Littleton Waller Tazewell,
the Tazewell Family papers also provide great insight into other aspects
of national, state, and local history, including African-American,
agricultural, legal, maritime, and social and cultural history, as
presented through the writings and documents of several generations of
one prominent Virginia family.
Wednesday, October 15, 2003
Bringing History to Life: Using Primary Sources in Living History
Presentations
Time: Noon
Place: Conference Rooms
FREE EVENT
Mark Greenough, a co-founder and director of Living History Associates,
Ltd., has been a history interpreter for more than 20 years. Greenough
will discuss his experiences using Virginia's rich historical resources
and the importance of archival records to his work creating authentic
17th, 18th and 19th-century historical characters.
Thursday, October 16, 2003
Our Collective Memory: A Panel Discussion on the Enduring Value of
Archives
Time: 5:30 PM - 7:30 PM
Place: Lecture Hall
How do archival records shape and change our perceptions of the past?
What will their creation in the present mean to future generations? What
are our responsibilities to all Virginians - past, present & future - in
documenting "our collective memory"? Using their experiences working in
archives as both researchers and archivists the panel will try to answer
these questions and others, as they explore the nature and enduring
value of archives in a democratic society. Scheduled speakers include
DeAnne Blanton, senior military archivist with the National Archives in
Washington, D.C., and co-author of They Fought Like Demons: Women
Soldiers in the American Civil War; James E. Wooten, executive director
of the Capitol Square Preservation Council; and Dianne Swann-Wright,
project historian for Getting Word, the African-American Oral History
Project at Monticello. Joan Echtenkamp Klein, Assistant Director for
Historical Collections at the Claude Moore Health Sciences Library at
the University of Virginia, will moderate.
Wednesday, October 29, 2003
An Expendable Man: The Near-Execution of Earl Washington, Jr.
Time: Noon
Place Conference Rooms
FREE EVENT
Award-winning Virginia author and journalist Margaret Edds will discuss
An Expendable Man, the story of Earl Washington, Jr., a black farmhand
wrongly convicted of rape and murder. Edds argues that Washington's
execution was prevented only by exceptional lawyering and pure luck, and
raises the possibility that less fortunate death-row inmates have been
wrongly executed. A book signing will follow the talk.
Wednesday, November 12, 2003
Saving Private Aaron through Zyvith: Virginia's World War II Separation
Notices
Time: Noon
Place Conference Rooms
FREE EVENT
In honor of Veterans Day, state records archivist Roger Christman will
discuss the collection of separation notices for Virginia World War II
veterans at the Library of Virginia. This collection, part of the
records of the World War II History Commission, includes a wealth of
valuable information on veterans who were discharged between 1942 and
1950 and were seeking employment in Virginia.
Thursday, December 4, 2003
Sparrowhawk: Writing Historical Fiction
Time: Noon
Place: Conference Rooms
FREE EVENT
Edward Cline will speak on his series of Sparrowhawk historical novels
set in Virginia. A book signing will follow the talk and will feature
all three of the Sparrowhawk series, including the new third book,
Caxton.
Tuesday, December 9, 2003
Anne Orthwood's Bastard: Sex and Law in Early Virginia
Time: Noon
Place: Conference Rooms
FREE EVENT
Author John Pagan will discuss and sign Anne Orthwood's Bastard: Sex and
Law in Early Virginia. In 1663, an indentured servant, Anne Orthwood,
was impregnated with twins in a tavern in Northampton County, Virginia.
Orthwood died soon after giving birth; one of the twins, Jasper,
survived. Orthwood's illegitimate pregnancy sparked four related cases
that came before the Northampton magistrates between 1664 and 1686.
These interrelated cases and the decisions reveal the cultural and
economic values of this Eastern shore community.
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