The symposium, held in conjunction with the exhibition "Working Out Her Destiny: Women’s History in Virginia," examines what we have learned about Virginia women since the seminal 1984 exhibition and publication A Share of Honour, produced by the Virginia Women’s History Cultural Project. A Share of Honour’s author, Suzanne Lebsock, will be a featured participant and will guide a discussion of recent research and of questions that remain for future study.

Participants will attend a full slate of historical presentations. Research workshops on the Library’s holdings related to women’s history will be conducted by Library staff and thematic sessions will feature some of the field’s most innovative and important scholars. Among the topics addressed by the symposium will be women’s involvement during the past in Virginia’s economy, public life, private life, religious and intellectual life, race relations, and with issues of gender and sexuality. In addition, a “History Makers” panel will present path-breaking Virginia women reflecting on their experiences and includes, among others, Ann Compton, ABC News, Meyera E. Oberndorf, Mayor of Virginia Beach, Elizabeth B. Lacy, Justice, Supreme Court of Virginia, and Belle Wheelan, Virginia Secretary of Education.

Registration is required, which includes the History Maker’s panel and reception to follow, all sessions, and a box lunch. A preliminary program with registration form is available at the web address provided below.

To register, please mail the completed registration form and your check to the Library of Virginia Foundation, 800 East Broad Street, Richmond, VA 23219. For further information or questions, please contact Jan Hathcock at the following telephone number.

The Library of Virginia is a major research institution located at 800 East Broad Street in downtown Richmond, Virginia, and serves as the library agency of the state, the archival agency of the Commonwealth, and the reference library at the seat of government.