Join us on Saturday, October 4, 2025!
This year, the Virginia Museum of History & Culture will seize a once-in-a-generation opportunity to mark the important role Virginia played in the American Revolution. Give Me Liberty: Virginia & The Forging of a Nation examines Virginians both iconic and ordinary who brought about the American Revolution and a world changing democratic government. At the same time, Un/Bound: Free Black Virginians, 1619-1865 explores how Black Virginians achieved freedom and persevered against a system unwilling to grant them the rights promised by the Revolution. The VMHC’s varied and vibrant program of events will embrace this historic anniversary while highlighting our nation’s unfinished pursuit of a more perfect union.
Virginia led in the American Revolution. Innovative ideas flowed from pens and presses, incendiary oration inspired action, and volunteers fought off the world’s most powerful military. As colonists overthrew a king, a revolution from below saw countless enslaved Virginians enact their own declarations of independence. Virginia then debated what rights the United States should guarantee its citizens as the Revolution’s ramifications rippled around the world. But revolutionary action did not end there. Rebellions shook the system of slavery as civil war approached while Readjusters reimagined Virginia in the Reconstruction era. The Equal Suffrage League demanded women’s access to the ballot and the Civil Rights movement saw activists sit in and stand up from Cherrydale to Hopewell. To this day, Virginia Indians fight for rights previously denied to them. Virginia’s moderate reputation belies its citizens’ willingness to challenge the status quo. But revolutions are not always overtly political: economies, transportation, culture, science, and much more, have all experienced moments of dramatic change over the course of Virginia history, and our symposium embraces a broad definition of the term.
2025 will see the return of the VMHC’s Conrad M. Hall Symposium for Virginia History, a one-day event where historians, practitioners, and members of the public gather to explore our shared past. Featuring panels and presentations that highlight groundbreaking research into Virginia history, tailored gallery tours that celebrate revolutionary Virginian’s and their ideas, and a special keynote lecture, the symposium links past with present to inspire future generations.
About the 2025 Symposium
Attendees can expect a variety of interesting discussions including:
- 16 panels comprising more than 50 experts representing more than 20 colleges, universities, and public history institutions from across the Commonwealth and nation during a full day of engaging presentations that highlight groundbreaking research into Virginia history around the theme of "Revolution."
- Keynote panel featuring leading scholars of the American Revolution, Drs. Alan Taylor, Karin Wulf, and Sarah McCartney, in a conversation about the meaning of the United States 250th and the participants’ contributions to the VMHC’s exhibition Give Me Liberty: Virginia & The Forging of a Nation. Dr. Alan Taylor is a two-time Pulitzer Prize winner and the Thomas Jefferson Foundation Chair (Emeritus) at the University of Virginia. Dr. Karin Wulf serves as the Beatrice and Julio Mario Santo Domingo Director and Librarian of Brown University's John Carter Brown Library and formerly directed the Omohundro Institute of Early American History and Culture at the College of William & Mary. Dr. Sarah McCartney is an Assistant Teaching Professor with the College of William & Mary's National Institute of American History & Democracy Collegiate Program.
- Guests will also have access to:
- Special museum experiences
- Exhibitor hall featuring historical organizations from across the state
- Reception