Women’s Votes Count! An introduction to the League of Women Voters

by Mel Frizzell, Special Collections Assistant

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Bumper Sticker in the Records of the League of Women Voters of Hampton Roads in the ODU Libraries’ Special Collections

Women’s votes count!  That is what the League of Women Voters is all about!  The League of Women Voters was founded in 1920 – the same year that women’s suffrage, the legal right for women to vote, was incorporated into the U.S. Constitution with the passage of the 19th Amendment.

The League of Women Voters was created from the merger of two then existing organizations – the National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA) and the National Council of Women Voters (NCWV).   NAWSA had long been a champion of Women’s suffrage. The original organization was established in 1890 and was led by Susan B. Anthony until she retired in 1900.   NCWV was envisioned as an organization to follow NAWSA once women had received the right to vote.  At the 1919 National Convention of NAWSA, a motion was made to merge the two organizations into a new organization called “The League of Women Voters.”   The merger officially took place on January 6, 1920.  The League of Women Voters filled the role originally seen for NCWV and in doing so distanced itself from more radical figures within NCWV.  This decision set the tone for the League of Women Voters to become a non-partisan organization embracing women from across the political spectrum.

The League of Women Voters is a non-profit organization.  Its original goal was “to educate women on election processes and lobby for favorable legislation on women’s issues.”   The modern League works “to promote political responsibility through informed and active participation in government” as well as “to protect and expand voting rights and ensure everyone is represented in our democracy.”

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Leaflet from the Records of the League of Women Voters of Hampton Roads – in the ODU Libraries’ Special Collections

While the League of Women Voters is non-partisan, they often do take stands on political issues.   Before taking stands or offering positions on political issues, they first study these issues and develop a consensus of members.  They support many progressive positions.  They support health care reform and believe that “Every U.S. resident should have access to affordable, quality health care, including birth control and the privacy to make reproductive choices.”  They believe that we should protect the environment.   They support counting all citizens in our national Census.  They believe in fair immigration policies that “promote the reunification of immediate families, meet economic, business, and employment needs, and [are} responsive to those facing political persecution or humanitarian crises.”  They are against racial and partisan gerrymandering of voting districts and support a “fair and transparent process that produces the most representative maps.”  They are against big money, special interests, SuperPACS, and dark money in American politics and for greater transparency regarding campaign finances.  They are against voter suppression whether the suppression of women, People of Color, the disabled, or other marginalized groups.  They are for responsible gun control.   The League of Women Voters has also done studies and taken stands on the Equal Rights Amendment, domestic violence, sexual harassment, green space, affordable housing, civil rights restoration, and many other issues.

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Bumper Sticker in the Records of the League of Women Voters of Hampton Roads – in the ODU Libraries’ Special Collections

The League of Women Voter’s helps women take action on many of these issues by creating Action Guides, pamphlets, and by offering tips on lobbying and writing one’s legislators.  At the organization level, national, state, and local Leagues advocate for legislation on these issues and even take up litigation in support or opposition of certain issues and causes.

In addition to their studies and positions, the League of Women Voters actively works to register voters.  They provide voting information to voters; create non-partisan voting guides; survey the opinions and platforms of political candidates; moderate candidate debates; and even monitor elections. 

The League of Women Voters includes the national organization, state-wide boards, and local groups.  Each of these levels has its own newsletters, conventions, meetings, and other events.

There had been a chapter of the League active in Norfolk, Virginia in the 1930s.  That chapter had disbanded at the beginning of World War II.  In 1957, a new League chapter was founded in Norfolk.  In the early 1960s, the League gained additional membership from Virginia Beach when Princess Anne County merged with the city of Virginia Beach.  In 1964, the Norfolk and Virginia Beach membership merged to become the League of Women Voters of Norfolk-Virginia Beach.  In 1994, the local League was renamed League of Women Voters of South Hampton Roads. 

To learn more, contact us about viewing the Records of the League of Women Voters of Hampton Roads

Resources:

Records of the League of Women Voters of Hampton Roads – ODU Libraries Special Collections and University Archives

League of Women Voters Official Website

League of Women Voters on Wikipedia

Encapsulating a Moment in Norfolk History

by Steven Bookman, University Archivist

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Florence Crittenton Home’s Time Capsule, Norfolk, Virginia

While filling out a recent research request in the archives, I noticed a box in the stacks that read “ODU Time Capsule.” Being an inquisitive (“nosy”) archivist, I decided to take a look and see what was inside. Up to this point, I hadn’t heard of any active time capsules on campus. The box was a part of a recent transfer from the office of the Vice President for Administration and Finance, which oversees the grounds and landscaping on campus.  In the box were a few early histories of the William & Mary Norfolk Division, the predecessor to Old Dominion University (ODU), and a copper tube with one of the ends open.

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Discovering what is inside the copper box

Inside the tube were old publications, news clippings, artifacts, and other material related to the Florence Crittenton Home for Unwed Mothers, which operated in Norfolk from the 1890s to the 1970s. The home was last located in the Larchmont area of Norfolk overlooking the Lafayette River. The home’s mission was to aid unmarried women during their pregnancies. One might ask “How did a time capsule with material from the Florence Crittenton Home come to ODU?” It may be a surprise to some people, but ODU and the Florence Crittenton Home have had a relationship going back 45 years. In 1977, the house and the records of the Florence Crittenton Home were given to ODU, with the records being house in Special Collections and University Archives. From the 1970s to the early 2000s, the Florence Crittenton Home was the location for ODU’s Center for Coastal Oceanography (CCPO) before the facility was torn down to make room for new housing. One would suspect that the time capsule was found during the demolition of the building and given to the Vice President for Administration and Finance office.

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Inventory of the time capsule

As to the time capsule itself, it appears to have been placed during the cornerstone laying ceremony on October 15, 1949. Included in the time capsule are a copy of the cornerstone laying program and the charter of Florence Crittenton Home; clippings from local newspapers about the groundbreaking ceremony and the new facility; manuals from the local Masonic Lodge; a brief history of the home; a travel edition of the New Testament Psalms and Proverbs; samples of dirt from the area; and two coins, one a quarter from 1948, and the other is a half dollar commemorating the 250th anniversary of Norfolk from 1936. Since the time capsule is important to the history of the Florence Crittenton Home, it will fit better to be a part of the home’s records.

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Corner-Stone Laying Program
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Dirt from the site of the Norfolk Florence Crittenton Home was included in the box
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A small copy of the New Testament was included in the box

So, if you are interested in finding out more information about the Florence Crittenton Home, the physical records are in Special Collections and University Archives. The guide to the collection can be found at https://archivesguides.lib.odu.edu/repositories/5/resources/40. Photographs of the home while it was a part of the CCPO can be found in the ODU Libraries Digital Collections at https://dc.lib.odu.edu/digital/collection/oduphotos/search/searchterm/Crittenton%20Hall/field/buildi/mode/exact/conn/and. A short video clip on the home’s mission can be found in the WTAR-WTKR Hampton Roads, Va., Historic News Film Collection at https://dc.lib.odu.edu/digital/collection/wtar/id/1862/rec/1.

Hampton Roads LGBTQ+ Community Snapshot 1977

By Mel Frizzell, Special Collections Assistant

In December 1977, the Norfolk Unitarian-Universalist Gay Caucus (UUGC) undertook what may have been the first survey of the LGBT community in Hampton Roads.  The survey was not intended to be a complete profile of the local gay community as those surveyed tended to be either bar goers or those active in the local Gay and Lesbian community.  Questions pertaining to the local Trans community were virtually non-existent.  Surveys were distributed in local gay bars including the Cue, the Nickelodeon, the Late Show, the Ritz, and at UUGC meetings.  The results of the survey were released in the January, February, March, and April 1978 issues of Our Own Community Press.  The January issue gave an overview of results.  The February issue featured the results as they pertained to women / Lesbians who took the survey.  The March issue shared results pertaining to gay and bisexual men.  The April issue highlighted comments made by survey respondents.

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According to the February 1978 issue of Our Own, “The typical woman who filled out one of the UUGC questionnaires… is between 18 and 24 years old, lives in Norfolk, is registered to vote, Protestant, makes between $5-10,000, rents, has some college education, considers herself exclusively gay, attends a gay bar once a week, and always feels good about her sexuality.”  A total of 86 women responded to the survey.  

Older women were not well represented in the survey.  69% of the women surveyed were under the age of 24, and an additional 29% were between the ages of 25 and 34.  Only 2% of the women were over the age of 34.  Half of these respondents were from Norfolk, and the rest were from other cities in Hampton Roads with ten respondents from outside the area.  Two thirds of these women were registered to vote.  Political affiliation was not reported, but religious affiliation was.  Nearly half of the respondents identified as Protestant.  Nearly a third were Catholic.  A smaller number identified as Jewish, not religious, or other (including two who identified as witches).  48% of respondents had an annual income between $5,000-10,000, 29% had an income less than $5,000 a year.  Very few respondents made over $15,000 a year.  Only 14% of these women owned their own home; 68% rented, and 18% lived with parents, with a lover, or had other living arrangements.  Only 14% of these women had college degrees, 43% had completed some college, 35% had only graduated high school.  A very few women had advanced degrees or had not completed high school at all.  The highest number of these women (20%) worked in service and blue-collar industries.  17.5% of respondents were students and another 17.5% worked in government jobs.  Other jobs included healthcare, education, management, clerical jobs, merchandising, and artists.  Very few women surveyed were lawyers, journalists, engineers, or housewives.  8% of those women surveyed were unemployed.

Of the women surveyed, 8% claimed to be exclusively heterosexual, 44% considered themselves exclusively homosexual, and others claimed varying degrees of bisexuality.  Most of these women (84%) always or usually felt good about their sexuality.  14% had mixed feelings about their sexuality, and only one woman usually felt bad about her sexuality.   No one claimed to always feel bad about their sexuality.  36% of the women surveyed went to gay bars once a week, 28% went to bars only once a month, and 25% went to gay bars more than once week.  Only 22% of these women belonged to gay organizations, while 28% belonged to social groups; 20% to professional groups; 15% to political groups; 38% to special interest groups; and 13% to religious groups.  26% of the women surveyed did not belong to any organization at all. 

Popular LGBT publications among women were Our Own Community Press, The Advocate, Gay Blade, and Gay Community News.  Only a small number read Lesbian publications such as Lesbian Connection or Lesbian Tide.

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A total of 440 men answered the survey.  This was over five times the response rate for women.  The typical profile for men answering the survey was very similar to that of the women.  The typical man answering the survey lived in Norfolk, was between the ages of 18 and 24, was registered to vote, rented their housing, had some college education, was Protestant, had an annual income of $5,000-10,000, considered themselves exclusively gay, and always felt good about their sexuality. 

While the “typical” snapshot of respondents was similar, actual percentages varied and there were some differences between the men and women surveyed.  The typical male (49.2%) went to gay bars more than once a week whereas the largest number of women (36%) only went to bars once a week.  There was a larger number of men than women over the age of 24 who responded to the survey.  There were more men over the age of 35 and even some over the age of 50.  Men were less likely to have a religious affiliation at all, or if they did – to have a non-Christian affiliation (Jewish, Humanist, Buddhist, Moslem, B’ai H’ai, etc.).  Twice as many men than women had completed college, and men generally had higher incomes.  Women were slightly more likely be registered voters.  Men were more likely to consider themselves “exclusively” homosexual than women, but women tended to overall to feel better about their sexuality.  Men were more likely to belong to a gay organization or conversely to no organization at all than were women.

As for men’s statistics, 51.5% of men lived in Norfolk.  34.5% lived in other Hampton Roads cities.  The remainder came from other places in Virginia, Washington DC, or from out of state.  54% of men were aged 18-24; 34% were 25-34; 9% were 35-49; and 1.5% were over age 50.  45% of male respondents identified as Protestant; 25.5% as Catholic; 15.0% as none; 7.0% as other; and 4.5% as Jewish.  The highest percentages of men worked in either government or service jobs (16.2% and 16.4% respectively).  Other higher percentage occupations included students (9.7%); management (7.7%); healthcare (7.4%); merchandising (7.4%); and other professionals (7.0%).  Only 4.9% of men surveyed were unemployed.  65% of male respondents were registered to vote.   37% of those men surveyed had annual incomes between $5,000-10,000; 23.3% had annual incomes of $10,000-15,000; 17% had incomes over $15,000; and 20% had incomes under $5,000.  29.8 percent of the men surveyed had college degrees; 35.6% had some college; 27.8% had only graduated high school; and 5.9% did not have a high school diploma.  52.5% of men rented their housing; 21.0% owned their own home; and 23.5% had other living arrangements.

Of the men surveyed, 43.6% identified exclusively homosexual; 1.6% claimed to be exclusively heterosexual; and the rest claimed varying degrees of bisexuality.  79.6% of the men always or usually felt good about their sexuality; 18.7% felt both good and bad about their sexuality; and only 1.1% usually or always felt bad about their sexuality.  Nearly half the men surveyed (49.2%) visited gay bars more than once a week; 25.5% visited gay bars weekly; 18.2% visited gay bars once a month or less; and of these only .7% never visited gay bars.  26% of the men surveyed belonged to gay organizations; 37.3% belonged to no organizations at all.  Men also took part in professional organizations (27.3%), social organizations (26.2%), political organizations (14.1%), religious organizations (18.0%), and special interest groups (24.4%).

Popular publications among men included Our Own Community Press, The Advocate, In Touch, Gay Blade, Blueboy, Cruise, Gay Community News, Christopher Street, Gay Times, Eagle, GPU News, Drummer, Mandate, Playgirl, and After Dark.

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Stot, 2013: https://www.advocate.com/arts-entertainment/pride/2013/06/12/photos-remembering-birth-pride

While the demographics created a snapshot of LGBT bar goers and those active in the local LGBT community in 1977, the most revealing and sometimes entertaining portion of the survey were open-ended responses to the questions “What do you see as the greatest need of the lesbian/gay community of Tidewater?”  Overall themes to these questions included the need for unity and a sense of gay community; gay and straight education on gay issues; politics and legislation for gay rights; acceptance and understanding; more and better bars; and social outlets other than the bars.  

Comments included practical suggestions for the community – a Lesbian bar, live gay/lesbian music events, a gay military organization, a gay bookstore, a gay business association, an organization for aging gay men, a gay community center, and a gay church.  All of these things have come to pass in Hampton Roads (at least at some point) since the 1977 survey.  Some comments were idealistic like this one.  “For them to learn to live together.  To be friends no matter what color the person’s skin might be or what sex the person might be.  To be openminded with everything, because being gay is hard enough without fighting each other.”  Other idealistic responses included developing a unified gay/lesbian political philosophy, or ending division and labels within the community.  Some comments focused on educating the public on gay/lesbian issues, helping gay and lesbian folks to feel better about themselves, and helping folks come out of the closet.  There were also a few colorful comments by folks who obviously weren’t comfortable with segments of the gay/lesbian community at the time.  “The flaunting of homosexuality is the major problem.  The super “fags’ and ‘butch’ are what gives the rest of us bad names.”  Another respondent suggested, “More Gay Bars!… Make anyone over 40 stay out!  And have a special bar just for trolls.”  

Since 1977, hopefully at least some things have changed for the better in the Hampton Roads LGBT community.  Gay bookstores have come and gone, as have Lesbian bars.  LGBT military organizations have formed, especially at the height of the gay military ban and “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.”  We have an organization for aging Gay men, an LGBT business organization, and an LGBT community center.  There’s an LGBT church, and even room at the annual Pride month Interfaith event for non-Christians and LGBT folks involved in non-traditional religions such as Wicca and Paganism.  We have an LGBT Pride organization, an annual Pridefest, a Pride Boat Parade, and even a whole month of local Pride events.  While not well represented in the 1977 survey, we now have organizations and events for Trans folks in our community too. 

While we may have lost some things this past year or more due to Covid, this Pride month consider all that we have gained and learned since the early days of the Hampton Roads LGBT community.  What will the Hampton Roads LGBT community be like 44 years from now?

You can browse the issues of Our Own Community Press mentioned in this blog post, as well as all other issues of Our Own, in our digital collections: https://dc.lib.odu.edu/digital/collection/ourown

Virginia Symphony Celebrates 100th Anniversary

by Mel Frizzell, Special Collections Assistant

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The Records of the Virginia Symphony Orchestra in the Old Dominion University Library’s Special Collections and University Archives document the history of the Virginia Symphony from its first concert in 1921 up to the present day.  These records include concert programs from that first concert through 2019.  Other materials in the collection include newspaper clippings; newsletters; marketing; fundraising and membership campaigns; finances; correspondence; contract information; board of directors and executive committee information; meeting agendas and minutes; and by-laws.  Multimedia are also included in the collection.  These include audio cassettes, CD’s, VHS tapes, and DVD’s of various concerts, interviews, and promotional materials.  There are even Betamax tapes, audio reels, old film reels, and other media.  There are also photos, slides, scrapbooks, posters, and other memorabilia.  New programs and other materials are periodically added to the collection.

Over the years, the Symphony played at number of local venues. These venues have included the Armory auditorium, Blair High School Auditorium, Norfolk Center Theater, Harrison Opera House, Chrysler Hall, Norfolk Scope, Virginia Beach Pavilion Theater, Portsmouth Performing Arts Center, the Sandler Center for the Performing Arts, the Ferguson Center for the Arts at Christopher Newport University, and the Norfolk State University Performing Arts Center, among other venues.  The Blair High School Auditorium was chosen in the 1930s to help save costs during the Great Depression.  The Symphony played at the newly created Center Theater beginning in 1943, and this became a regular venue for Symphony Performances beginning in 1947.  The Center Theater was renovated and renamed the Harrison Opera House in 1993. The Symphony moved performances to Chrysler Hall in 1972 and this has become its permanent home.

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Early conductors for the Symphony included Walter Edward Howe, W. Henry Baker, Bart Wirtz, Arthur Fickenscher, and Frank L. Delphino.  In 1934, Henry Cowles Whitehead, son of Symphony founder, Dr. Robert C. Whitehead, became conductor.  After Henry Whitehead’s death in 1948, Edgar Schenkman became conductor from 1948 until 1966.  In 1966, Edgar Schenkman resigned as conductor of the Norfolk Symphony in order to devote his full attention to the Richmond Symphony which he’d also conducted since 1957.  In 1966, Russell Stanger came on as conductor and he held the position until 1980.  Richard Williams, previously conductor of the Cedar Rapids Symphony, replaced Stanger as conductor from 1980 to 1986.  Winston Dan Vogel conducted from 1986 to 1990.  JoAnn Falletta was appointed conductor in 1991 and she remains with the Virginia Symphony 30 years later in 2021.  Falletta is stepping down at the end of the current season in May.

The Symphony has performed under several names over the years and its history has included mergers with other local symphonies, choral associations, and other musical organizations.  The Symphony started out under the name Norfolk Civic Symphony Orchestra in 1920.  The Norfolk Civic Symphony Orchestra became the Norfolk Symphony Orchestra in 1930.  In 1949, the Orchestra merged with the Civic Chorus and became the Norfolk Symphony and Choral Association.  Other mergers in the late 1970s included mergers with the Peninsula Symphony Orchestra and the Virginia Beach Pops Symphony Orchestra.  For a time, the group was known as the Virginia Orchestra Group, the Virginia Philharmonic, and a few other names, before finally settling on the Virginia Symphony Orchestra in 1990.

Besides the Symphony proper, a number of supporting groups and organizations formed over the years. The Civic Orchestral Association organized in 1921, but was not chartered until 1931.  The Norfolk Orchestral Association was formed in 1922.  The Women’s Committee of the Orchestral Association was formed early in the Symphony’s history.  This committee organized the first Symphony membership campaign in the mid-1930s.  The Women’s Committee was later renamed the Women’s Auxiliary of the Norfolk Symphony and Choral Association in 1953.  It became the Norfolk Symphony Association Auxiliary in 1977.   Later supporting groups include the Virginia Symphony Foundation and the Virginia Symphony League which hold fundraising activities to help fund the Symphony.  The Virginia Symphony Society of Greater Williamsburg encourages support and enjoyment of the Symphony in the Williamsburg area.  The Virginia Symphony regularly collaborates with other arts organizations including the Virginia Opera, the Virginia Arts Festival, and the Richmond Ballet.

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Listen to oral histories with Virginia Symphony Members in the ODU Libraries’ Digital Collections: https://dc.lib.odu.edu/digital/collection/vsooh

The milestones and notable achievements of the Symphony are many.  In May 1924, the Orchestra performed their first choral work, Mendelssohn Symphony, No. 2, Lobgesang.  The Orchestra began charging admission to concerts in 1929, and it is believed that no musicians were paid before that time.  The cost of admission in 1929 was 50 cents for adults and 25 cents for children.  The first Young People’s Concert was performed in 1936.  These concerts continued until 1942, when they were interrupted by World War II.  Youth concerts resumed a few years after the war, and in 1953 the Women’s Auxiliary founded a Youth Orchestra.  The Symphony published the book “Song in their Hearts, 1920-1960” in 1961.  The book was written by Grace Shepherd Ferebee.  The year 1966 brought racial integration to the Symphony.  James M. Reeves, a bass player, became the first Black orchestra member.  Reeves went on to become a faculty member at Norfolk State University in 1974, and he served as head of the music department from 1979 until he retired int 1984.  In 1979, the Symphony performed under Russell Stanger with pianist Shura Cherkassky at Kennedy Center in Washington, DC.  In 1997, the Symphony performed at Carnegie Hall in New York City under the direction of JoAnn Falletta.

The Virginia Symphony has grown and changed over the last 100 years – from a small group of amateur and professional players into an organized, full-time, professional organization supported by yet other organizations.  It has thrived during good times and survived challenges.  Here’s hoping for another great 100 years of the Virginia Symphony!

Sources:

MG 81-A, Virginia Symphony Orchestra Records, Special Collections and University Archives, Old Dominion University Libraries.  https://www.lib.odu.edu/archon/?p=collections/controlcard&id=129

“Virginia Symphony Chronology” by Dr. Jean Major

Virginia Symphony Official Website.  https://virginiasymphony.org/celebrate100/

Spooky Rare Book Spotlight: “The Witch of Pungo” by Louisa Venable Kyle

by Jessica Ritchie, Head of Special Collections and University Archives

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Illustration of Grace Sherwood’s “ducking” from The Witch of Pungo and Other Historical Stories of the Early Colonies by Louisa Venable Kyle

If you have lived, visited, or grown up in Virginia Beach like I did, then you are probably familiar with the infamous Witchduck Road. The road was named after the site of the last “witch ducking” that took place in Virginia in 1706. According to historians, local townspeople were searching for answers as to why their crops were dying and, as was fashionable at the time, they blamed women. They were particularly suspicious of the farmer’s wife Grace Sherwood, who dared to wear trousers, worked as a midwife, and knew a little too much about the healing power or herbs. Neighbors accused Grace of bewitching their pigs and cotton crops, and even flying through a keyhole in the black of night! A judge agreed with Grace’s accusers and ordered her to be tried by ducking. On July 10th, 1706 Grace was bound by her toes and thumbs, and dropped into the Lynnhaven River. The judge decreed that if she drowned she would die an innocent woman, but if she survived, it was because she was a witch. Luckily, Grace managed to escape her bonds and swam to shore, but shortly thereafter was imprisoned for witchcraft. After approximately 7 long years in jail she was released and returned to her three sons, and eventually died at the age of 80 on her farm in Pungo (now a part of Virginia Beach) in 1740. Go Grace!

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A statue depicting her was erected near Sentara Independence on Independence Boulevard in Virginia Beach, close to the site of the colonial courthouse where she was tried. The statue depicts Grace standing near a raccoon and holding herbs, which represent her love of animals and her nursing skills.

As a child, I struggled to understand that there was a time in history where innocent women were blamed for society’s ills and drowned just to prove their innocence. I still struggle with that thought, but I am pleased to see that Grace Sherwood’s legacy has been preserved in the Sherwood Trail, including Witchduck Road and other landmarks in Virginia Beach. Her legacy has also been preserved in many stories, books, and news articles, including a children’s book by author Louisa Venable Kyle.

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The Witch of Pungo and Other Historical Stories of the Early Colonies by Louisa Venable Kyle, ODU Libraries’ Special Collections and University Archives Rare Book Collection

Born in Norfolk, Louisa Venable Kyle studied at Mary Baldwin Seminary and graduated from Lasell Seminary. She wrote for the Virginian-Pilot and The Portsmouth Star and was one of the founding members of the Princess Anne County Historical Society. Her children’s book The Witch of Pungo and Other Historical Stories of the Early Colonies is based on seven folktales from Princess Anne County, including the tale of Grace Sherwood. The book was published in 1973 by Printcraft Press, Portsmouth, Virginia, and was reissued in 1978 and 1988 by Four O’Clock Farms Publishing Company.

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The Witch of Pungo author’s signature

ODU’s Special Collections and University Archives is fortunate to have a rare, autographed hardcopy of The Witch of Pungo. The books is in great condition with a vibrant orange color, and features a wonderful collection of illustrations and short historical essays related to each folktale. I am so pleased that we can keep the legacies of both Grace Sherwood and Louisa Venable Kyle alive and well by sharing this book with our students, faculty, and community members. It’s incredible to think that we have so much important history here in Hampton Roads, and I am glad authors like Kyle have kept those stories alive for future generations.

Sources:

“Louisa Venable Kyle”The Virginian-Pilot. October 25, 1999. Retrieved 17 October 2013.
“Grace Sherwood (ca. 1660–1740)”. The Associated Press. 9 July 2013. Retrieved 17 October 2013.
Grace Sherwood (ca. 1660–1740)”. Encyclopedia Virginia. Retrieved 17 October 2013.
RoadsideAmerica.com: Virginia Beach, Virginia: Witch of Pungo Statue

Further reading:
“The Virginia Case of Grace Sherwood, 1706.” In Narratives of the New England Witchcraft Cases, ed. George Lincoln Burr, 433–442. Mineola, New York: Dover Publications, Inc., 2002.Davis, Richard Beale.
“The Devil in Virginia in the Seventeenth Century.” The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography 65 (April 1957): 131–149.Gibson, Marion. 
Witchcraft Myths in American Culture. New York: Routledge Taylor and Francis Group, 2007.Kyle, Louisa Venable. The Witch of Pungo and Other Historical Stories of the Early Colonies. Portsmouth, Virginia: Printcraft Press, 1973.

Carolyn Rhodes, Pioneer and Inspiration

By ODU Student Assistant Caroline Vanderlinder

After transcribing some documents in the Carolyn Rhodes digital archive collection-https://dc.lib.odu.edu/digital/collection/crhodes-I was shocked to find out how extraordinary she was. Rhodes was one of the founders of the Old Dominion University’s women’s caucus, friends of women studies, as well as the trust for feminist education program. Rhodes made a huge contribution to the advancement of the status of women at the University. She went through all the ranks of assistant professor, associate professor, and then became an English professor in a time when advancement for women at ODU was slim.

During the 1970s, male professors received quicker promotions and tenure than female faculty members. The research conducted by the caucus showed males were granted a 57% chance of tenure while  females were granted a 33% chance. The information gathered by the caucus was collected from public information, and through every rank they found female employees earned $1000 less than males. If that was the information they found in the public records, I can’t imagine what they would have found if they were given access to the private records. In 1974, the president of ODU never refuted or attempted to disprove the information. It was only after the department of labor opened an investigation that the salary inequities were looked into, however the gap wasn’t closed fully.

Carolyn Rhodes’ shared her personal experiences during an oral history interview conducted in 2009: https://dc.lib.odu.edu/digital/collection/oralhistory/id/667/rec/2

After reading Professor Rhodes’ syllabus, I could see she was an intense professor who expected nothing but the best work from her students. At the time, Women’s studies was just beginning, and failure would not have been acceptable. Although she was a tough professor, her students and peers believed she was an inspiration. Her experiences and the knowledge she had to offer was irreplaceable. Apart from teaching at Old Dominion and the University of Kentucky, her teachings were also respected overseas at Peking University, China, and Babes-Bolyai University, Romania where she was a Fulbright lecturer in American Literature.

I am done transcribing the Carolyn Rhodes collection but I know I have so much more to learn about her. Learning about Carolyn Rhodes and what she has done for us women at ODU has made me proud.

Everyone in the Special Collections and University Archives program has thoroughly enjoyed working with Caroline, and we are so glad she stayed on with us to transcribe the Carolyn Rhodes digital collection during the COVID-19 closure. We wish her the best with her studies this fall! -Jessica Ritchie, Head of Special Collections & University Archives