The Annual Women Veterans Luncheon Returns to Campus
On November 11, 2022, the entire staff of SCUA pitched in to help with the 25th Annual Women Veterans Luncheon! After two years of Zoom presentations, guests gathered at the Alumni House and were served lunch while they enjoyed the program. An exhibit of items from the Women Veterans Historical collection was featured.
Other highlights included an amazing performance of the Star Spangled Banner by the acapella singing group UNCG Chariots and the keynote speaker U.S. Navy veteran and documentary filmmaker Pacifica J. Sauer. Sauer discussed the making of her film The Invisible Project and how collecting the stories of women veterans is a source of empowerment and healing. WVHP curator Beth Ann Koelsch emceed the event.
“Gertrude Weil and Her Fight For Women’s Suffrage” event held at the Old Guilford Courthouse.
Interim Head of the Martha Blakeney Hodges Special Collections and University Archives, Kathelene McCarty Smith, was among the speakers at the “Gertrude Weil and the League of Women Voters: Her Leadership and Legacy” commemoration held on Friday, October 7, at the Old Guilford Courthouse where the League had its beginnings. Smith spoke specifically about Weil’s fight for Women’s Suffrage and social justice. The proceedings within the chamber were followed by the unveiling of a “Votes for Women” Trail Marker and a monument in Weil’s name in the courthouse gardens.
WFMY News 2 Featured Tales of UNCG’s “Grey Lady”
Seeking a “new” local ghost to feature for their Halloween news broadcast, Frank Manning of WFMY News 2 reached out to SCUA for any evidence of the ghost who treads the boards in the UNCG Auditorium. Specialist Carolyn Shankle gathered the archival documentation of the Grey Lady’s house and early photographs of the auditorium under construction. Several alumni recalled their encounters with the ghost. Interested in learning more – watch it by selecting this link.
SCUA Exhibits for Homecoming Weekend!
SCUA staff displayed creative and informative exhibits for UNCG’s 2022 Homecoming weekend, held on October 14th and 15th. Archivist Scott Hinshaw participated in the events centered at the Alumni House with a great exhibit featuring the Classes of 1971 and 1972, which were celebrating their 50th Reunion. SCUA was invited to attend and present a pop-up exhibit celebrating both class years in the Alumni House Oakley Family Reception Room. The exhibit, with artifacts and materials chosen by Archivists Kathelene McCarty Smith and Scott Hinshaw, was on display for both days. Archivist Scott Hinshaw enjoyed interpreting the collection of textiles and materials, as well as listening to stories from the alumni and their families on Friday and Saturday. Since the Classes of 1971 & 1972 were firmly co-ed at that point in UNCG’s history, SCUA had both women’s and men’s apparel on display. It’s rare to have a men’s class jacket, and SCUA has exactly one example of a men’s UNCG gym outfit (shirt and shorts), so SCUA was thrilled to be able to share these rarer items with the public. Other materials in the exhibit featured photos of the school from the period, yearbooks, student handbooks, and Coraddi issues.
Archivists Sean Mulligan and Kathelene Smith attended a Luncheon to Celebrate Women in Sports held in the Fleming Gymnasium in celebration of the 50th Anniversary of Title IX sponsored by the UNCG Athletics Department. Attendees enjoyed the historical gym suits, as well as a display of photographs, yearbooks, and artifacts from the University Archives.
“Get Lit” Festival Premiers at the Mitford Museum
SCUA’s Interim Head Kathelene Smith attended the first annual literary weekend held September 30 – October 1, at The Mitford Museum in Hudson, North Carolina. Smith represented the North Carolina Literary Map, which is hosted by UNCG’s Special Collections and University Archives. Programming featured writers’ workshops, readings, and conversations with authors, such as New York Times bestselling authors Wiley Cash and Sarah McCoy, former NC Poet Laureate Joseph Bathanti, award-winning author Sarah Loudin Thomas, and memoirists Gretchen Griffith and Sandra Warren.
“Ye Merrie Games and Revels:”
The Tradition of May Day Celebrations at North Carolina
Women’s Colleges
You may ask – how did a pagan ritual, which began on the Celtic British Isles, devolve into an event celebrated at women’s colleges across the country? This question was addressed in a talk by Interim Head Kathelene Smith for the Society of North Carolina Archivists Archives Month titled “’Ye Merrie Games and Revels:’ The Tradition of May Day Celebrations at North Carolina Women’s Colleges.” The presentation addressed the beginnings of the May Day tradition and its growth as a major campus event from the late 19th century to the mid twentieth century throughout the state, at schools such as Bennett College, Flora MacDonald College, Meredith College, Salem College, St. Mary’s College, and State Normal and Industrial College (now UNCG).
Panel Discussions Focus on Beer-Related Research and Archivists’ Work
On November 1, University Archivist Erin Lawrimore was part of the “Brewers Education Kollektive” panel discussion, focusing on brewing education programs and beer-related research happening at universities and technical colleges across North Carolina.
Lawrimore was also part of the “Ask the University Archivist.” panel discussion held on November 4 at the North Carolina Community College Archives Association annual meeting at Mitchell Community College in Statesville. The panel gave community college archivists the opportunity to talk to university archivists about the work they do and the similarities/differences between our work. Erin also conducted a workshop titled “Oral History 101: Planning for Success,” focusing on the important steps that go into building a successful oral history program.
