A Guide to the Correspondence and Subject Files of the Librarian of Virginia, 1832-2024 Jan Librarian of Virginia, Correspondence and Subject Files 28078, 28117, 28179, 28366, 28480, 28771, 30470, 31312, 31641, 31999, 32336, 33057, 34229, 34710, 35146, 37403, 37564, 37767, 40565, 41116, 41207, 41208, 41543, 43385, 44953, 50466, 50523, 54082.

A Guide to the Correspondence and Subject Files of the Librarian of Virginia, 1832-2024 Jan

A Collection in
the Library of Virginia
Accession Number 28078, 28117, 28179, 28366, 28480, 28771, 30470, 31312, 31641, 31999, 32336, 33057, 34229, 34710, 35146, 37403, 37564, 37767, 40565, 41116, 41207, 41208, 41543, 43385, 44953, 50466, 50523, 54082


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Library of Virginia

The Library of Virginia
800 East Broad Street
Richmond, Virginia 23219-8000
USA
Phone: (804) 692-3888 (Archives Reference)
Fax: (804) 692-3556 (Archives Reference)
Email: archdesk@lva.virginia.gov(Archives)
URL: http://www.lva.virginia.gov/

© 2012 By The Library of Virginia. All Rights Reserved.

Processed by: Erin Faison

Repository
The Library of Virginia
Accession Number
28078, 28117, 28179, 28366, 28480, 28771, 30470, 31312, 31641, 31999, 32336, 33057, 34229, 34710, 35146, 37403, 37564, 37767, 40565, 41116, 41207, 41208, 41543, 43385, 44953, 50466, 50523, 54082
Title
Correspondence and Subject Files of the Librarian of Virginia, 1832-2024 Jan
Extent
83.05 cu. ft. (250 Boxes)
Creator
Office of the Librarian of Virginia
Language
English

Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Use Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Preferred Citation

Correspondence and Subject Files of the Librarian of Virginia, [Cite specific date and accession number]. State government records collection. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Va.

Acquisition Information

Accession 28078, was transferred from the Main Office, Virginia State Library, Richmond, Virginia, 22 August 1973.

Accession 28117, was transferred by the State Librarian's Office, 30 March 1973.

Accession 28179, was transferred from the Main Office, Virginia State Library, Richmond, Virginia, 22 January 1974.

Accession 28366, was transferred by the State Librarian's Office, 11 September 1974.

Accession 28480, was transferred from the Main Office, Virginia State Library, 9 December 1974.

Accession 28771, was transferred by the State Librarian's Office, 17 October 1976.

Accession 30470, was transferred by the State Librarian's Office, 30 June 1979.

Accession 31312, was transferred by the State Librarian's Office, 19 January 1982.

Accession 31641, was transferred by the State Librarian's Office, 14 January 1983.

Accession 31999, was transferred by the State Librarian's Office, 23 February 1984.

Accession 32336, was transferred by the State Librarian, 12 March 1985.

Accession 33057, was transferred by the State Librarian's Office, 16 May 1988.

Accession 34229, was transferred by the State Library records manager, 26 August 1992.

Accession 35146, was transferred by the State Librarian's Office, 8 November 1996.

Accession 34710, was transferred by State Library records manager, 29 August 1994.

Accession 37403, no acquisition information available, this collection was retrospectively accessioned, 9 June 2000.

Accession 37564, no acquisition information available, this collection was retrospectively accessioned, 15 August 2000.

Accession 37767, was transferred by the Librarian of Virginia's Office, 17 November 2000.

Accession 40565, was transferred by Librarian of Virginia's Office, 28 April 2003.

Accession 41116, was transferred by Librarian of Virginia's Office, 22 March 2004.

Accession 41207, was transferred by Librarian of Virginia's Office, 24 May 2004.

Accession 41208, was transferred by Librarian of Virginia's Office, 24 May 2004.

Accession 41543, was transferred by the Librarian of Virginia's Office, 9 November 2004.

Accession 43385, was transferred by the Librarian of Virginia's Office, 26 July 2007.

Accession 44953, no acquisition information available, this collection was retrospectively accessioned, 5 May 2010.

Accession 50466, no acquisition information available, this collection was retrospectively accessioned, 26 June 2012.

Accession 50523, no acquisition information available, this collection was retrospectively accessioned, 25 July 2012.

Accession 54082 was transferred by the Office of the State Librarian, 22 January 2024.

Accruals

The Library of Virginia has multiple accessions for the correspondence and subject files of the Librarian of Virginia and will continue to receive accruals for this ongoing series.

Processing Information

This finding aid contains multiple accessions for the correspondence and subject files of the Librarian of Virginia and new accruals will be added to the finding aid as they are received. Each new accession will begin in Box 1. Original order has been maintained and inconsistencies exist in the filing in the separate accessions: material may be filed by sender, recipient, institution or type of document; universities and university libraries are often filed by state, but may also be filed under the specific name of the institution. Also note that documents by the same author or insitution can be found in multiple folder due to the subjective nature of the filing. Memorandums written by the State Librarian may also be filed under "A" for administration.

Historical Information

For many years, The Library of Virginia had no definitive home. Valuable early records were kept at Jamestown as early as 1676 and were then moved to the College of William and Mary for a brief period at the century's end. By 1780, extant records were moved to the Capitol in Richmond.

Coincidentally, in 1779, the Virginia General Assembly was presented among its legislation, "A Bill for Establishing a Public Library" drawn up by Thomas Jefferson. The Bill provided for 2000 pounds yearly to be expended to maintain a State Library in Richmond. The facility was to be a reference library only without books being lent for home use. Perhaps ahead of its time, the bill failed to pass.

The Virginia State Library was created by an act passed by the General Assembly on January 23, 1823, to establish a public library with funds derived from the sale of William W. Hening's THE STATUTES AT LARGE. From 1823 to 1828, the Library was under the control of the governor and council. In 1828, the General Assembly created a joint committee on the library (located in a room in the southeastern corner of the Capitol) to oversee its administration. Use of the State Library was restricted to members of the state government in a policy that continued until at least 1856. The Secretary of the Commonwealth served ex officio as state librarian from 1832 to 1903.

The growth of the State Library was somewhat erratic. Book holdings increased from 1,313 in 1828 to 17,480 in 1856. Lack of funds and politics frequently intermingled to slow library development. General W. H. Richardson, State Librarian in 1852, became embroiled in an effort to remove him "to make way for some politician of democratic principles." At the close of Reconstruction, Dr. George William Bagby, then State Librarian, was terminated and his position abolished at the hands of Readjusters.

Eventually, on May 15, 1903, the General Assembly passed an act that created a library board to administer the library, authorized the deposit of public records in the library, provided for the publication of historical records by the library, and established a library fund for the purchase of books and private papers. The Library Board, which was responsible for naming the State Librarian, was itself appointed by the Board of Education. The General Assembly passed an act on March 29, 1944, transferring the power to appoint the Library Board to the governor.

While many public records somehow survived the Commonswealth's early years, many losses occurred due to fires, the ravages of war and negligence. When the library was moved, for example, in 1895 to a building separate from the Capitol, "chutes were constructed from the upper story of the Capitol to facilitate the delivery of books to the wagons of the junk dealer who had bought them." The move was poorly planned and the library's contents suffered great loss at the hands of those very authorities assigned to protect them.

The new facility quickly was found to be inadequate and efforts were made both in 1910 and 1920 to construct a proper building for the State Library and its collections. Ground was broken for a new facility on December 7, 1938. At last, on December 23, 1940, the newly completed Virginia State Library was opened to the public.

The Virginia State Library adopted the name, the Virginia State Library and Archives, in early 1987 to more adequately reflect its mission and purpose. On July 1, 1994 the name was changed to The Library of Virginia, evocative of the Library of Congress. In 1997 the library moved to it's fourth and current location, the 800 block of East Broad Street.

The title of State Librarian has been held by: John Pendleton Kennedy (1903-1906), Henry Read McIlwaine (1907-1934), Wilmer L. Hall (1935-1947), Randolph W. Church (1948-1970), Donald R. Haynes (1971-1984), Ella Gaines Yates (1985-1990), Dr. John C. Tyson (1991-1994), Nolan T. Yelich (1995-2007), and Sandra Gioia Treadway, 2007 July-2024 Jan. The current State Librarian, Dennis T. Clark, took office January 25, 2024.

Scope and Content

This collection consists of multiple accessions and includes, but is not limited to, incoming and outgoing correspondence, subject files, memorandums, invitations, newsletters, reports, invoices, and receipts. Correspondents include, but are not limited to, library board members, state and federal agencies, book and manuscript dealers, supply vendors, library associations, universities, historical societies, as well as, staff and patrons. While this series spans over 100 years, topics remain similar: budgets, policies and procedures, collection development, donations, acquisitions, patron requests, publications, building requirements and statistics. Correspondence is both handwritten and typed. Each accession is described in more detail within the finding aid.

Arrangement

This collection is arranged into the following series:

Series I. Correspondence and Subject Files

Contents List

Correspondence and Subject Files , 1827-2007 .
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2007-2024 (Accession 54082) .
14.35 cu. ft. (41 boxes)

Accession 54082 contains the correspondence and subject files of State Librarian, Dr. Sandra G. Treadway, 2007-2024. Subseries have been designated for State Government; Federal Agencies; Internal Divisions; Reports; Constituents; Localities; Subject Files; Library Board; Other Board, Commission and Committee Records; Miscellaneous; and Associations. Topics may include: Virginia State Library funding, collections and services. Files may contain correspondence, board agendas and attachments, event files, invitations, legislation, memoranda, minutes, programs and reports.

Arranged according to an internal numerical filing system. Original order has been maintained.

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