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Article Set - Chapter
Fitzhugh Family
The colonial history of Stafford and King George counties—and thus of northern Virginia—is inseparable from that of the large
Article
Fore-edge Painting
Image
![The poems of Winthrop Mackworth Praed / with a memoir by the Rev. Derwent Coleridge. Pages ruffled farther apart show a painted landscape and city](/sites/default/files/styles/fp_landscape_768x576/public/Foreedge%20Painting_Rare%20Books%20ND%202370%20.P8_v1_DSC3145_0.jpg.webp?itok=ARBwm3xq)
Rarely are books prized as objects of art; often the content of the text, or the plates accompanying the text, are...
Article
Founding Frenemies: Hamilton and The Virginians
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![Founding Frenemies Note issued by the National Bank in 1793](/sites/default/files/styles/fp_landscape_768x576/public/FoundingFrenemies_P6_Hamilton_BankNote_CMYK.jpeg.webp?itok=zH3BK0Gb)
This exhibition examined how critically important relationships between Alexander Hamilton and three Virginians shaped...
Article
George Washington Portrait by Charles Peale Polk
Image
![VHE_GeorgeWashington.1905.10_teaser.jpg VHE_GeorgeWashington.1905.10_teaser.jpg](/sites/default/files/styles/fp_landscape_768x576/public/VHE_GeorgeWashington.1905.10_teaser.jpg.webp?itok=zW_zU62S)
This depiction of George Washington (1732–1799) as commander of the Continental army was painted in the 1790s by Charles...
Media
George Washington: The Making of a Leader
![](/sites/default/files/oembed_thumbnails/z7hBmmFsvfVPgTpdYDzIIlx7jQt4pQJ6vu0tqQBRAzo.jpg)
In this lecture, historian David O. Stewart discusses his new book, George Washington: The Political Rise of America’s Founding Father.
Washington’s...
Article Set - Chapter
Gordon Family
The Gordon portraits depict the family of an Ulster merchant and planter of Scottish origin who emigrated to Lancaster County
Article Set - Chapter
Interpreting Historical Images
A historical image can be interpreted in a number of ways. Each approach brings a different set of considerations, or frame
Article Set - Chapter
Invented Scenes for Narratives
When artists were hired to illustrate written accounts of events in Virginia, they did not aim to make realistic
Article
Let Us Commence: Graduating At A Distance
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![Let Us Commence: Graduating At A Distance Samantha Hukeless’s diploma from Van de Vyver Institute.](/sites/default/files/styles/fp_landscape_768x576/public/LetUsCommence_Screen%20Shot%202020-05-19%20at%2012.53.58%20PM.jpeg.webp?itok=MbIdG0xM)
Learn about the history of commencement ceremonies and traditions in Virginia.
Article
Mark Catesby
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![VHE_Catesby_QH41.C292.1754.Rare_.OS_.Bluejay.jpg VHE_Catesby_QH41.C292.1754.Rare_.OS_.Bluejay.jpg](/sites/default/files/styles/fp_landscape_768x576/public/VHE_Catesby_QH41.C292.1754.Rare_.OS_.Bluejay.jpg.webp?itok=92Ar1teT)
The first accounts of the strange flora and fauna of the New World created a great demand among European scientists for...
Article
Martha (Dandridge) Custis Washington
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![VHE_MarthaWashington.1857.3_teaser.jpg VHE_MarthaWashington.1857.3_teaser.jpg](/sites/default/files/styles/fp_landscape_768x576/public/VHE_MarthaWashington.1857.3_teaser.jpg.webp?itok=MvRERM1q)
This portrait of Martha Washington (1731–1802) is the work of Charles Willson Peale, who also painted the sitter several...
Article
Murals Inspired by the Story of Virginia
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![Still Relevant by Ed Trask Ed Trask paints a mural of flowers](/sites/default/files/styles/fp_landscape_768x576/public/FreshPaint_StillRelevant_DSC0887_e1%20copy.jpg.webp?itok=vx9S_GnP)
Richmond is now home to more than 100 outdoor murals, and this popular form of artwork reflects the city’s modernity and...
Exhibition
Oh, Shenandoah
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![Long Branch Plantation, Clarke County Long Branch Plantation, Clarke County](/sites/default/files/styles/fp_landscape_768x576/public/3-Long-Branch-Plantation-Clarke-County-Millwood_Web.jpg.webp?itok=U-h11ed6)
Article
Oysters in Virginia
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![VHE_Oysters_OysterCan_Teaser.jpg VHE_Oysters_OysterCan_Teaser.jpg](/sites/default/files/styles/fp_landscape_768x576/public/VHE_Oysters_OysterCan_Teaser.jpg.webp?itok=2BC7sR7V)
Learn about the history of oyster in Virginia's food culture, tourism, and economy.
Article
Patrick Henry Arguing the Parsons’ Cause
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![79295e56bc070b2a46410264f019e5ec.jpg 79295e56bc070b2a46410264f019e5ec.jpg](/sites/default/files/styles/fp_landscape_768x576/public/79295e56bc070b2a46410264f019e5ec.jpg.webp?itok=2gN652fQ)
The Parsons’ Cause was a legal conflict rooted in the volatility of the tobacco-based economy and the state-sponsored...
General Content
Randolph Family
No family in colonial Virginia was more prominent or more powerful than the Randolphs.
Media
Secrets & Symbols: Desk by John Shearer
![](/sites/default/files/oembed_thumbnails/qVBIakvYkzVm_SjvAOrjz7uQC4Ub1DVsMbDbDLUeNVQ.jpg)
Desk, 1817
John Shearer (about 1760–after 1818)
VMHC Collection, Gift of The Children of Louis and Harriett Waldrop
John Shearer, a Scottish immigrant...
Media
Secrets & Symbols: Teresa Blount Portrait
![](/sites/default/files/oembed_thumbnails/EtK2e7gNbI5sy1nbenwtPVUFMqkZG7BHb_ExG2ercXE.jpg)
Portrait of Teresa Blount, about 1710–20s
Unknown artist
VMHC Collection
Traditionally, portraits contain clues to a sitter’s social identity. This...
Article
Silver in Virginia
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![SilverService.2003.390.57.A_C.jpg SilverService.2003.390.57.A_C.jpg](/sites/default/files/styles/fp_landscape_768x576/public/SilverService.2003.390.57.A_C.jpg.webp?itok=3h2z90ki)
Colonial Virginians acquired much of their important silver from London. After the Revolution, population growth, a...
Article
The Brook Hill Collection
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![The Brook Hill Collection Books from the Brook Hill collection](/sites/default/files/styles/fp_landscape_768x576/public/BrookHillCollection_New-Book-Images-001_edited.jpeg.webp?itok=dOOK5X9w)
In 2018, the VMHC was gifted an extraordinary collection of books, documents, and art associated with the Stewart and...