Archival Silence within UVA's Special Collections Library

“Small Library to Monroe Hall”  by Timothy Jarrett is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0

The Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections Library has focused on procuring and preserving rare books, manuscripts, and artifacts since its formation in 1987. However, their steps towards establishing a full history is undercut by their lack of effort to share these resources with the greater student body.

What are the chances you have been to UVA’s Special Collections Library? Located next to the Shannon and Clemons Libraries, it is not the typical study spot for students. Yet, it no doubt holds some of the University’s most valuable resources. Holding more than 16 million historical objects – including first edition manuscripts, images, and maps – the Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections is an archive of Virginia’s history. Hidden in temperature-controlled vaults underground, the library holds artifacts from around the world and works from some of history’s greatest authors. However, it is only recently in UVA’s long legacy that the works held in the Special Collections Library have showcased the full, unabashed history of America rather than a carefully curated image.

Even centuries into the future, those who have attempted to share pieces of history have been rendered silent through institutional aversion. While the curators and analysts of Special Collections are doing their best to restore and integrate a variety of works, it is difficult to fill in the gaps of history that are left blank by this literary silence.

Archival silence is described as either intentional or unintentional moves to misrepresent history such that there are considerable voids in the stories that are told. With UVA’s history as a university that carefully curates which stories are told, such as selective choices to honor enslaved labor, its problematic past has persisted even today. Through its history of commemorating white supremacy in the form of monuments that celebrate a one-sided history, the University has simultaneously dampened the voices of those wishing to share their version of history. Despite the recent removal of figures, of which include Roger E. Lee and George Rogers Clark, their names remain ever present in historical conversations, often at the cost of those who were actually part of UVA’s culture.

An example of recent efforts made to highlight new voices in history lies in the “Visions of Progress: Portraits of Dignity, Style, and Racial Uplift” photography exhibit that has been on display in the Special Collections library since 2022. John Edwin Mason, chief curator of the exhibit, hoped to use the photos to paint a complete life story of the African-American individuals, rather than the “very specific, very white image of Charlottesville,” that had previously been cultivated. These photos were taken in the early 1900’s during the peak of Jim Crow, yet Rufus Holsinger endeavored to define the subjects of his photos by more than the oppression they faced. The unveiling of this exhibit was accompanied by tours throughout the year as well as a website that goes into the depth of the history of the sitters in each portrait. Accompanying descriptions identify family members as well as home locations in order to benefit genealogy research for present-day descendents who hope to retrace their ancestry. 

It is a remarkable feat to recover more than 100 lost photos of these Charlottesville African-Americans and all the more important that Special Collections and the Holsinger Studio make active attempts to share this exhibit with students and local residents alike by holding tours and celebrations. However, their works are hardly ever heard about. As the University has periodically removed monuments that honor controversial confederate and colonialist figures, it is a common consensus that this is the reach of their progressive efforts. Rather than commemorating the physical removals of UVA’s past, it would be a more productive and uplifting effort amongst UVA governing bodies to promote the historical additions they add to the University. This will aid in creating a full and complete picture of Charlottesville’s past throughout the centuries, working to fill the absences of knowledge fostered by archival silences.

In order to make progressive steps towards reforming the one-sided past shared at UVA, the University must do more to promote the important and transparent work of curators in the Special Collections Library. Elevated awareness of newly acquired works to Special Collections will expand the knowledge of Virginian and UVA-specific history held by students and residents of Charlottesville, in accordance with the cultural interests of Special Collections. The Special Collections Library identifies areas of growth that they hope to expand upon within their collection, including “American fiction, poetry, and drama, particularly works of writers of color, women, and communities not well represented in the existing predominantly white collections [and] narratives of the enslaved and newly emancipated…” Curators align their interests with the main goal of using a “reparative collecting model,” which underscores the essentiality of obtaining artifacts that depict the experiences of marginalized voices. However, these goals are buried within a lengthy web page describing the library’s general collection development strategy. If these are such major goals for the University, should they not be further prioritized so that those with interest, let alone in-depth researchers, can easily acquire this information?

Examples of measures UVA can take may be seen with a simple web search of “Archival Silence.” Immediately, websites for UMBC and the University of Colorado, Boulder appear with definitions of archival silence, biases in archives, and how this may affect the breadth of their historical collections. These websites directly address the prejudice that fosters this silence and how it has seeped into their collection in the past, as well as their current attempts to repair it. Both websites include additional resources – including videos and readings – that a researcher may look into to learn more about erased history in archival mediums. These efforts are a step in the right direction towards eventually understanding and sharing lost stories. 

In addition to making an effort to educate students on the foundation and backbone of UVA’s community, administration should also focus on dedicating commemorative events to the opening of new exhibits. This can be done through partnerships with major student organizations and hubs of knowledge, such as UPC or the Fralin Museum. Students cannot learn about the history of their University if there is no publicity surrounding the events that serve to inform. This active move towards progress will facilitate the spread of knowledge rather than passively allowing history to run its course. 

In combination with Special Collections’ goals to expand their archive of history from the perspective of underrepresented communities, it would be a considerable step to implement a page specifically dedicated to addressing how archival silence and negative influence has affected UVA’s collection. Highlighting and expanding on this issue would shed light on reparative actions that the student body expects to see from their University.