Special Collections

Pumpkins are squash plants native to Americas and did not make an appearance in Europe until the early 1500’s.

Stereoviews offer a great window into the world of popular culture from the 1860’s into the 19230’s.

The SCRC is accepting applications for the 2022-2023 round of Research Travel Grants.

On the 17th of October 1834, a fourteen-year-old Chinese girl arrived on the shores of New York City. The ship’s passenger list included her name as “Auphmoy” which was later phonetically shortened to Afong Moy—because of this, we do not know her real Chinese name. So began Afong Moy’s story as the first known female Chinese immigrant to the United States.

I was late, to begin with. I hadn’t written about my time at the Swem Library’s Special Collections Research Center, within The Chapin-Horowitz Dog Book Collection. I kept promising myself—and others—that I would do it. The work was imminent. Forthcoming, shortly. About to arrive.

The poem “A Visit from St. Nicholas” was first published in 1823 and attributed to Clement Clarke Moore as author in 1837.

Belonging is an ongoing goal for our archives, and our aim is to have collections that support and reflect the research and interests of students, faculty, staff, and the world.

I am old enough that several of the places that I have lived over the years have been torn down, including the house on South Boundary Street that I lived in for two years as a W&M student. To all those who wander up and down DoG Street: think about the street's very different appearance before Colonial Williamsburg and many buildings were removed during its development. The stereoview below shows a very familiar building (the powder magazine), which had a very different setting prior to CW.