Vanderbilt University Libraries

Vanderbilt audiences were treated to a concert by Grammy Award-winning roots musician Dom Flemons at the Blair School of Music’s Turner Recital Hall on Sept. 14. The event featured Flemons performing with various traditional instruments as well as recording songs on a phonographic “wax” cylinder assisted by Martin Fisher, curator of recorded media collections at Middle Tennessee State University’s Center for Popular Music.

Flemons’ time on campus also included a presentation to Vanderbilt University Blair School of Music students, collaboration with Anne Potter Wilson Music Library staff, and a visit to the Heard Libraries’ Special Collections and University Archives, which houses the Dom Flemons American Songster Collection.

📷: John Amis and Harrison McClary/Vanderbilt University

Join the Heard Libraries for a performance by Grammy Award-winning songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Dom Flemons on Saturday, Sept. 14. The concert will be at 5 p.m. in the Vanderbilt Blair School of Music’s Steve and Judy Turner Recital Hall. A public reception will precede the performance beginning at 4:15 p.m. in the Blair School lobby.

Tickets may be reserved through the Blair box office on a “pay as you wish” scale. Those who contribute $20 or more will receive a limited-edition Hatch Show Print poster commemorating the concert. Posters will be available for pickup only at the event.

Known as “The American Songster,” Flemons is considered an expert player on the banjo, guitar, harmonica, jug, percussion, quills, fife, and rhythm bones. He has released multiple solo albums, including the Grammy-nominated “Traveling Wildfire” in 2023. He was a founding member of the Carolina Chocolate Drops string band, with whom he won a Grammy in 2010.

Reserve tickets here: vu.edu/dom-flemons-tickets

What will Vanderbilt look like in 150 years? And how will future generations consider what the university was like in 2024?

Last spring, the Heard Libraries began collecting and curating materials—both physical and digital—to provide insight into campus life and the university’s values and priorities during its 150th year. These items were placed in a time capsule and interred in a cornerstone of Kirkland Hall on Aug. 21, not to be opened again until the year 2174.

Learn more about what items were selected and the careful process to preserve them: vu.edu/time-capsule-V150

📷: Tim Gollins/Vanderbilt

Discover treasures from the Heard Libraries’ collections—including university artifacts, rare books, historic photographs and more—at a Special Collections, University Archives and History of Medicine Collections open house on Thursday, Sept. 5, from 3 to 5 p.m.

During the event, you’ll have the opportunity to view our latest exhibit, “Please Continue: Literary Correspondence as Conversation,” enjoy baked goods and drinks, and converse with university curators, archivists and librarians about how to collaborate and access our collections.

All in the Vanderbilt community are welcome. Special Collections and University Archives is located at 1101 19th Ave. S.

📷: Tim Gollins/Vanderbilt

Join the Heard Libraries and the Vanderbilt University College of Arts and Science's Program in Culture, Advocacy and Leadership for a performance by Ballet Folklórico Internacional Majestad Negra (Black Majesty International Folkloric Ballet) this Friday, Aug. 30, on Vanderbilt’s Alumni Lawn.

Majestad Negra is an internationally recognized group of dancers, singers and drummers who perform bomba, a traditional form of Afro-Puerto Rican music and dance.

The event is free and open to the public, but tickets are required: vu.edu/majestad-negra-tickets. Opening remarks are scheduled for 4:30 p.m., and the performance begins at 5 p.m.

Food trucks will be available at Alumni Lawn. Bring a blanket or lawn chair, and close out the week with an exciting performance by Majestad Negra!

The Heard Libraries recently acquired the Phil Schaap Jazz Collection, what may be the largest collection of recorded jazz interviews in the world. Staff at the Anne Potter Wilson Music Library have embarked on a five-year project to catalog the collection and make much of it publicly available online.

Learn more about legendary New York jazz DJ Phil Schaap, his extraordinary collection, and how it came to Vanderbilt in this New York Times story: vu.edu/phil-schaap-jazz-collection

📷: Phil Schaap, pictured in foreground. (Phil Schaap Jazz Collection, Special Collections and University Archives, Vanderbilt University)

Vanderbilt University Librarian Jon Shaw has been named a 2024 Education Champion by Amazon. The prestigious honor was announced as part of the Amazon Web Services IMAGINE conference held July 23–24 in Austin, Texas. Here, Jon is pictured with Kim Majerus, vice president of global education and U.S. state and local government at AWS.

Jon’s nomination, submitted by Amazon Nashville, commends his pivotal role in transforming IT infrastructure, fostering research and innovation, and enhancing digital preservation at Vanderbilt’s Heard Libraries. His initiatives have significantly updated processes, upskilled teams and fortified connections within and beyond the academic community.

Congratulations, Jon! 👏

Join our Special Collections and University Archives team on Tuesday, Aug. 6, from 4 to 7 p.m. for an LGBTQ Archives open house. Curator of Community Histories Sarah Calise will give a talk at 5:30 p.m., and all are welcome at the come-and-go event. Attendees will have an exclusive opportunity to view artifacts from Heard Libraries’ growing LGBTQ collections, including drag queen dresses, scrapbooks, publications, photographs and more.

The open house will be on the second floor of the Special Collections and University Archives building at 1101 19th Ave. S. The event is free, and refreshments will be provided. Paid parking is available in the Wesley Place Garage, and paid and some free street parking is available adjacent to the building.

For more information, email [email protected].

The Heard Libraries celebrate the life and work of Dr. Mildred Stahlman (1922–2024), a neonatal medicine pioneer and longtime physician at Vanderbilt University Medical Center.

Stahlman was the subject of “A Life Well Lived” on NBC’s Today Show in a segment that featured many images from the Heard Libraries’ History of Medicine Collections, which are housed at the Eskind Biomedical Library. Watch here: vu.edu/mildred-stahlman

Happy Independence Day from the Heard Libraries! 🇺🇸

Here’s a photo from a century ago of teachers at the Peabody Demonstration School leading young students in a parade featuring American flags. The demonstration school was created in 1915 as part of George Peabody College for Teachers. Today, the independent K–12 institution is known as the University School of Nashville. This image was captured near the present-day Jesup Psychology Building and Gillette House on the Vanderbilt University campus.

The Heard Libraries wish everyone a safe and happy July Fourth.

With great sorrow the Heard Libraries share the news of the passing of Edelmira Massa Zapata (1953–2024), director of the Fundación Instituto Folclórico Colombiano Delia Zapata Olivella, who worked to preserve Colombia’s popular folkloric tradition through choreography and dance.

“La Maestra” and her noted group, El Palenque de Delia, were hosted at Vanderbilt in March 2024 at the invitation of the Center for Latin American, Caribbean and Latinx Studies (Vanderbilt CLACX) and performed at Vanderbilt Blair School of Music’s Ingram Hall. The program, titled “Gente de todos colores,” included Afro-Colombian dances from all regions of Colombia. Edelmira choreographed others in honor of her mother, Delia Zapata Olivella (1926–2001), an acclaimed dancer who traveled the world performing Afro-Colombian, Hispanic and Indigenous Colombian dances. Edelmira continued her mother’s legacy by preserving, documenting and performing traditional and experimental dance.

While at Vanderbilt, Edelmira lectured to students and faculty, held master classes attended by Vanderbilt’s and Nashville’s Latinx communities, spoke to Special Collections librarians and archivists, and consulted the Zapata Olivella archives.

The Heard Libraries are privileged to host the Delia Zapata Olivella Papers as well as the collections of her siblings: acclaimed novelist, anthropologist, folklorist and physician Manuel Zapata Olivella, and writer, diplomat and Colombian presidential candidate Juan Zapata Olivella. The Delia Zapata Olivella archives are fully digitized and accessible to all and are among the libraries’ most-visited collections by researchers from Colombia and many other countries.

Edelmira’s passing has shocked those who knew and admired her—at Vanderbilt and in Colombia. She was a person of seemingly boundless energy and infectious good humor, full of new dreams and artistic ideas. Her legacy is large and will continue through her foundation and dance troupe, as well as through the family’s archives at Vanderbilt. Those of us at the libraries and CLACX share the pain of this loss with her family and El Palenque. May she rest in peace.

Officials of the government of Québec and Vanderbilt University gathered with invited guests June 18 to celebrate the many ties between the Canadian province and Middle Tennessee and to announce a new partnership in support of academic and cultural exchange between Québec and the university.

The event, held at Vanderbilt’s Special Collections and University Archives, also served as an early observance of La Fête Nationale du Québec—Québec’s National Day—and featured Québecois food and drink, a preview of costumes from Cirque du Soleil's “Songblazers,” which will have its world premiere in Nashville July 2, and an exhibition of items from Heard Libraries’ French collections.

Pictured, left to right: Neko Likongo, Université du Québec à Montréal; Isabelle Dessureault, Québec’s chief representative to the Southeast U.S.; Robert Barsky, professor of French and comparative literature and director of the W.T. Bandy Center for Baudelaire and Modern French Studies at Vanderbilt; and Vanderbilt University Librarian Jon Shaw.

Photos: Harrison McClary/Vanderbilt

On June 14, the Metro Nashville Historical Commission unveiled a marker for Warehouse 28, a former gay dance club located at 2529 Franklin Pike from 1978 to 1994. The historical marker honors the club’s legacy as both a place for building gay community in Nashville and the significant role it played during the AIDS epidemic of the 1980s.

Warehouse 28 provided free condoms to clubgoers, distributed informational pamphlets about HIV/AIDS, and held fundraisers in support of AIDS organizations and patients. Co-owner Steve Smith was a co-founder of the Nashville Council on AIDS, Resources, Education and Services (Nashville CARES) in 1985.

Vanderbilt Special Collections and University Archives houses the Ron Sanford Papers, a recently acquired collection of photographs, publications, posters and artifacts from Nashville’s drag and LGBTQ communities. Many photographs of Warehouse 28 from the 1980s are included in this important community collection.

To research the Ron Sanford Papers or any of Heard Libraries’ LGBTQ collections, contact [email protected].

The Heard Libraries and Vanderbilt Institute for Spatial Research are teaming up with the Friends of William Edmondson Homesite Park and Gardens to collect oral histories of Nashville’s Edgehill community. Share your memories of Edgehill from the 1920s to present, and of famed folk-art sculptor William Edmondson and his impact on the community, on Saturday, June 1, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Nashville Public Library’s Edgehill Branch, 1409 12th Ave. S. Learn more: vu.edu/edmondson

The Vanderbilt Television News Archive and Director Jim Duran are featured in a new article by “EdTech Magazine.” The article details the Heard Libraries’ efforts to transition its massive and one-of-a-kind television news archive to the cloud beginning in 2019, making it more accessible and sustainable. Read more: vu.edu/vtna-ed-tech

Photo credit: EdTech Magazine/William DeShazer

Working with rare books can be a challenge, but it’s rewarding in the eyes of Heard Libraries’ Special Collections team! One example is this beautifully decorated book from the 1800s about family members of the House of Bourbon in France. Using glue and a keen eye, Curator of Rare Books Teresa Gray reattached two topaz stones that fell off the front cover. This book is available to view by placing a request through the library catalog.

Congratulations, Class of 2024! 🎓

Heard Libraries celebrate all graduates and welcome their friends and family members to campus for Vanderbilt’s Commencement May 9–10. We celebrate with you! 👏🎉

Heard Libraries are celebrating the Class of 2024! 🎓🎉

Central Library’s 10 graduating student workers were invited to select books from the library’s collection, and a special book plate bearing each senior’s name was attached inside their chosen book. Their names also were added to the books’ online records—so they now can be located in the library by searching the student’s name.

Congratulations, seniors! Thanks for your many contributions to the libraries.

Staff from Vanderbilt’s Jean and Alexander Heard Libraries served as volunteer judges for the 2024 Tennessee History Day contest on April 20. The state competition is part of National History Day, a yearlong education program in which students in grades 6–12 conduct extensive research on topics related to an annual theme and present their findings as historical papers, exhibits, documentaries, performances or websites. Winners at the state level will go on to represent Tennessee at the National History Day contest to be held in June in College Park, Maryland.

Pictured, left to right, are: Stephanie Morgan, librarian for Art, History of Art and Architecture, and French and Italian; Bailey Scogin, former Heard Libraries coordinator for ILL lending and current archivist at the Tennessee State Library and Archives; Miriam Wnuk, assistant manager for resource-sharing services; Sarah Calise, metadata coordinator and curator of community histories; Rachel Lane Walden, assistant director for research and education services at Eskind Biomedical Library; Jennifer Castle, subject librarian for Human and Organizational Development; and Celia Walker, associate university librarian for community engagement. Not pictured: Faith McConnon, term assistant archivist.

We’re getting close to the finish line! Today marks the last day of undergraduate classes. While that means the spring semester is all but over, be sure to prepare for finals! Whether you study from textbooks, notes or computers—like the students in this photo, circa 1988—the Heard Libraries are here to help.

Vanderbilt’s first library was located in “Main Building,” the first building constructed on campus and known today as Kirkland Hall. On this day in 1905, fire broke out in Old Main, which also housed administrative offices, all the university’s classrooms and laboratories as well as a museum and chapel.

“The building burned for two hours, from the top downward, as frantic students carried or tossed out books and lab equipment from the lower floors,” wrote Paul Conkin, Distinguished Professor of History, Emeritus, in “Gone with the Ivy,” his 1985 history of the university. “The beloved clock in the south tower was engulfed in flames but survived just to the noon hour, struck a desperate 30 times, and then fell into the rubble.”

When the fire was extinguished, the walls of the building’s two towers, some exterior walls and the arched doorway at the top of the entrance steps were still standing, but the interior of the structure and most of its contents were lost.

Learn more about the iconic building and its reconstruction: vu.edu/kirkland-hall-fire

Vanderbilt’s annual Rites of Spring is this Saturday, April 20! Since 1971, members of the university and Nashville communities have gathered on campus for the music festival held every April. Check out this photo from the celebration in 1979. Learn more about this year’s event at studentorg.vanderbilt.edu/rites-of-spring.

In a wide-ranging conversation at Langford Auditorium on Thursday evening, bestselling author James Patterson discussed his writing process, prolific career and formative years at Vanderbilt. “Where I got the confidence [to become a published author] is right here,” Patterson said of the university, from which he earned a master’s in English in 1970. John M. Seigenthaler served as moderator for the April 11 event. Patterson’s visit was co-sponsored by Heard Libraries, Dialogue Vanderbilt and the Vanderbilt Project on Unity and American Democracy in collaboration with Parnassus Books.

Photo 3, left to right: John M. Seigenthaler, James Patterson, Vanderbilt University Librarian Jon Shaw

On April 11, please make a gift in support of Heard Libraries as we join the Vanderbilt community in celebrating Giving Day. This annual tradition demonstrates the power of generosity and collective action. All contributions, no matter their size, will positively impact the work that we do. Give at: vu.edu/library-giving-day-2024

With Commencement only one month away, let’s look at an important icon of Vanderbilt’s ceremony. The Vanderbilt mace, an ancient symbol of a university’s authority to confer degrees, was first carried by Faculty Senate Chair Walter Waverly Graham at exercises on June 1, 1969. Vanderbilt’s mace originated in the 1960s, when Chancellor Alexander Heard and University Secretary Robert A. McGaw undertook a special project to oversee its creation. The mace was designed by Norah Creswick, an artist and jeweler based in Edinburgh, Scotland, and given to the university by members of the Board of Trust.

Pictured: Faculty Senate Chair Mildred Stahlman carries the Vanderbilt mace alongside Chancellor Alexander Heard at Commencement exercises in 1975.

Learn more: exhibitions.library.vanderbilt.edu/silver-and-gold/the-vanderbilt-mace-ceremonial-icon

April 9 is National Library Workers Day! Heard Libraries celebrate the hard work, dedication and expertise of our staff and librarians and their many contributions to the university. Thanks for all you do! 👏🫶

As you prepare for April 8’s total solar eclipse, learn about astronomer Edward Emerson Barnard and his ties to Vanderbilt. In 1883 the university placed Barnard, a Nashville native, in charge of the campus observatory. Although he lacked formal education and was only 26, his training at a local photography studio and his growing reputation as an amateur astronomer with several prize-winning discoveries to his name made him the ideal candidate for the job.

Along with taking his first courses in mathematics, physics and foreign languages at the university, Barnard furthered his astronomical research and made several key discoveries during his career at Vanderbilt, including seven comets. Barnard would go on to become one of America’s most noted astronomers for his discovery of 16 comets, the fifth satellite of Jupiter and Barnard’s Star, as well as his successful application of photography to stellar astronomy.

The Edward Emerson Barnard Papers are housed in Heard Libraries’ Special Collections and featured in “The Shadow of the Sun: E.E. Barnard and the Solar Eclipse.” View the online exhibit at: exhibitions.library.vanderbilt.edu/solar-eclipse

Bakers and book lovers came together at the 2024 Edible Books Festival hosted by the Jean and Alexander Heard Libraries on April 1. Vanderbilt community members were invited to create their interpretations of a favorite literary work in edible form. See all the winners: vu.edu/edible-books-2024

As Beyoncé kicks down the doors of country music with her latest album “Cowboy Carter,” space is being made for conversations about race in country music, and the history of Black country music.

Alice Randall, Andrew W. Mellon Writer-in-Residence of African American and Diaspora Studies, specializes in the history of Black country music and was recently interviewed in an ABC News episode of Nightline.

“I think “Texas Hold’em” and “16 Carriages” exist as a pinnacle moment for country music because they point back to an extraordinary Black country past, said Randall. “So, it is pointing back to an entire history of Black musicality and Black presence.”

Watch the episode at link ⬇, or check out the extended version on Hulu, “IMPACT x Nightline: It’s Beyoncé Country.” The interview was filmed in Vanderbilt University Libraries

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rFohYcDZzgM

Did you know that Vanderbilt once had a Department of Dentistry? From 1879 to 1921, the university educated several classes of dentists and celebrated their achievements, as seen in this 1912 invitation for guests to join the senior class and faculty for their annual Commencement exercises. Heard Libraries’ History of Medicine collection, “VUMC Through Time: A Photographic Archive,” has other images related to the dentistry department at: eblthroughtime.library.vanderbilt.edu.