Join us for a talk by author and historian Laura E. Helton on her book “Scattered and Fugitive Things: How Black Collectors Created Archives and Remade History.” During the first half of the 20th century, a group of collectors and creators dedicated themselves to documenting the history of African American life. At a time when dominant institutions cast doubt on the value or even the idea of Black history, these bibliophiles, scrapbookers and librarians created an enduring set of African diasporic archives. This book tells the stories of these Black collectors, traveling from the parlors of the urban North to historically Black college and university reading rooms and branch libraries in the Jim Crow South. Helton, an assistant professor of English and history at the University of Delaware, reveals Black collecting as a radical critical tradition that reimagines past, present and future.
The Carole Weinstein Author Series supports the literary arts by bringing both new and well-known authors to the Library of Virginia through online or in-person events. Free and open to the public, the series focuses on Virginia authors and Virginia subjects across all genres.
A book signing will follow the talk. This book will be available at the Virginia Shop.
This is a free event. Seating in the Lecture Hall is available on a first come, first served basis. Limited free parking is available in the deck underneath the Library building. For more information, contact education@lva.virginia.gov.
