Virginia Historical Society Podcasts

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The Life of Duncan Lee, Red Spy and Cold Warrior by Mark A. Bradley (Audio) Nov 21, 2014

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On November 6 at noon, Mark A. Bradley delivered a Banner Lecture entitled "The Life of Duncan Lee, Red Spy and Cold Warrior." Duncan Chaplin Lee was a Rhodes Scholar, patriot, and descendent of one of America’s most distinguished families—and possibly the best-placed mole ever to infiltrate U.S. intelligence operations. In his new book, Mark A. Bradley traces the tangled roots of Lee’s betrayal and reveals his harrowing struggle to stay one step ahead of America’s spy hunters during and after World War II. Drawing on Lee’s letters and thousands of previously unreleased CIA, FBI, and state department records, Bradley tells the unlikely story of a spy who chose his conscience over his country and its dark consequences. Mark Bradley is a former CIA intelligence officer and is currently serving as an attorney in the U.S. Department of Justice’s National Security Division. He is the author of A Very Principled Boy: The Life of Duncan Lee, Red Spy and Cold Warrior.

Richmond’s Old Stone House and Poe Museum by Rose Marie Mitchell (Audio) Nov 06, 2014

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On October 30 at noon, Rose Marie Mitchell delivered a Banner Lecture entitled "Richmond’s Old Stone House and Poe Museum." Even though the Old Stone House in Richmond is often called the Poe House because the legend has grown that the writer once lived in the structure, the story is not true. Poe never lived there. How then did the connection between the man and the house eventually become a reality and not just an Idea? After countless years of interest in Edgar Allan Poe and over three years of research, Rose Marie Mitchell has gathered the facts and stories to bring it all together to show how the house and the man are connected and how the Old Stone House is worthy of preservation in its own right and certainly worthy of being a memorial site for the internationally known and respected author.

J. Harvie Wilkinson, Jr., Lecture "Woodrow Wilson-Across Three Centuries" by A. Scott Berg Nov 06, 2014

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On October 15 at 5:30 p.m., A. Scott Berg delivered the J. Harvie Wilkinson, Jr., Lecture entitled "Woodrow Wilson-Across Three Centuries." One hundred years after his inauguration, Woodrow Wilson still stands as one of the most influential figures of the twentieth century, and one of the most enigmatic. A. Scott Berg will speak about his newest biography, Wilson, the most personal and penetrating study about not only Wilson the icon but also Wilson the man.

Founders as Fathers: Going Home with Virginia's Revolutionary by Lorri Glover Oct 22, 2014

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On October 9 at noon, Lorri Glover delivered a Banner Lecture entitled "Founders as Fathers: Going Home with Virginia's Revolutionary." Set against the backdrop of Revolutionary Virginia, Lorri Glover’s new book, Founders as Fathers: Family Values and Revolutionary Politics, offers an intimate portrait of the lives of the country’s most celebrated political leaders, revealing, for the first time, how they struggled to balance civic duties against domestic responsibilities and contended with a revolution that remade family life every bit as much as political institutions. Glover’s lecture will bring to life the surprising, profound connections between family and politics in the lives of the Virginians who became the principal architects of the American Republic: George Mason, Patrick Henry, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and James Madison. Lorri Glover, the John Francis Bannon Endowed Chair in the Department of History at Saint Louis University, has written several books about early American history from the seventeenth century to the nineteenth, including Southern Sons: Becoming Men in the New Nation (2007) and Founders as Fathers: Family Values and Revolutionary Politics (2014).

Defiant: American POWs in Vietnam's Most Infamous Prison by Alvin Townley Sep 26, 2014

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On September 25 at noon, Alvin Townley delivered a Banner Lecture entitled "Defiant: American POWs in Vietnam's Most Infamous Prison." Defiant: The POWs Who Endured Vietnam's Most Infamous Prison, the Women Who Fought for Them, and the One Who Never ReturnedDuring the Vietnam War, hundreds of American prisoners of war faced years of brutal conditions and horrific torture at the hands of North Vietnamese guards and interrogators who ruthlessly grilled them for military intelligence and propaganda. Determined to maintain their Code of Conduct, the POWs developed a powerful underground resistance. To quash it, their captors singled out its eleven leaders and banished them to an isolated jail that would become known as Alcatraz. None would leave its solitary cells and interrogation rooms unscathed; one would never return. When the survivors of Alcatraz finally came home, one veteran would go on to receive the Medal of Honor, another would become a U.S. Senator, and a third still serves in the U.S. Congress. A powerful story of survival and triumph, Alvin Townley's Defiant will inspire anyone wondering how courage, faith, and brotherhood can endure even in the darkest of situations. Alvin Townley, a native of Atlanta, Georgia, is the author of several books, including Spirit of Adventure: Eagle Scouts and the Making of America's Future, Fly Navy: Discovering the Extraordinary People and Enduring Spirit of Naval Aviation, and Defiant: The POWs Who Endured Vietnam's Most Infamous Prison, the Women Who Fought for Them, and the One Who Never Returned.

Thomas Jefferson’s Enlightenment—Paris, 1785 Sep 17, 2014

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On September 11 at noon, James C. Thompson delivered a Banner Lecture entitled "Thomas Jefferson’s Enlightenment—Paris, 1785." In the summer of 1784, Thomas Jefferson traveled to Paris as minister of the United States to France and lived there for five years. During this time, he made a series of excursions with Pierre Cabanis, a philosophe and an influential member of French society. Cabanis acquainted Jefferson not only with the city and its people but also with the enlightened ideas in French thought. James Thompson provides rich details of this transformative period in Thomas Jefferson’s life in his book, Thomas Jefferson’s Enlightenment—Paris 1785. James C. Thompson has taught philosophy at Strayer University in Alexandria. He is the author of Beyond the Veil of Reason—Thomas Jefferson’s Early Political Initiatives, The Birth of Virginia’s Aristocracy, and Thomas Jefferson’s Enlightenment—Paris 1785.

Sheltering Arms: A Legacy of Caring by Anne Rutherford Lower Sep 03, 2014

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On August 28 at noon, Anne Rutherford Lower delivered a Banner Lecture entitled "Sheltering Arms: A Legacy of Caring." Sheltering Arms HospitalSheltering Arms: A Legacy of Caring is a new book featuring photographs and stories from every era of the organization’s rich history. Published in honor of Sheltering Arms’ 125th anniversary, the book chronicles the healthcare institution’s growth from humble beginnings in a donated house in downtown Richmond to a nationally recognized physical rehabilitation leader in 2014. Anne Lower has been an ardent supporter of Sheltering Arms for decades and has served as a member of the board of directors, president of the board, member of the women’s council, and as patient advocate. She is the author of Sheltering Arms Hospital: A Centennial History (1889–1989) and served as a valuable resource during the production of Sheltering Arms: A Legacy of Caring.

Nature's Civil War: Common Soldiers and the Environment in 1862 Virginia by Kathryn Shively Meier Sep 01, 2014

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On August 14 at noon, Kathryn Shively Meier delivered a Banner Lecture entitled "Nature's Civil War: Common Soldiers and the Environment in 1862 Virginia." Nature's Civil War: Common Soldiers and the Environment in 1862 VirginiaIn the Shenandoah Valley and Peninsula Campaigns of 1862, Union and Confederate soldiers faced unfamiliar and harsh environmental conditions, which contributed to escalating disease and diminished morale. Using a wealth of personal accounts, medical sources, newspapers, and government documents, Kathryn Shively Meier reveals how these soldiers strove to maintain their physical and mental health by combating their deadliest enemy—nature. To survive, soldiers forged informal networks of health care based on prewar civilian experience and adopted a universal set of self-care habits, and they periodically had to adjust their ideas of manliness, class values, and race to the circumstances at hand.

Establishing Religious Freedom: Jefferson's Statute in Virginia by Thomas E. Buckley Aug 06, 2014

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On July 24 at noon, Thomas E. Buckley delivered a Banner Lecture entitled "Establishing Religious Freedom: Jefferson's Statute in Virginia." The significance of the Virginia Statute for Establishing Religious Freedom goes far beyond the borders of the Old Dominion. Its influence ultimately extended to the Supreme Court’s interpretation of the separation of church and state. In his latest book, Thomas Buckley tells the story of the statute, beginning with its background in the struggles of colonial dissenters against an oppressive Church of England. Displacing an established church by instituting religious freedom, the Virginia statute provided the most substantial guarantees of religious liberty of any state in the new nation. The effort to implement Jefferson’s statute has even broader significance in its anticipation of the conflict that would occupy the whole country after the Supreme Court nationalized the religion clause of the First Amendment in the 1940s. Thomas E. Buckley, professor in residence in the department of history of Loyola Marymount University, is the author of several books on Virginia’s religious history, including Church and State in Revolutionary Virginia, 1776–1787 and Establishing Religious Freedom: Jefferson's Statute in Virginia.

From a Richmond Streetcar: Life through the Lens of Harris Stilson Jul 16, 2014

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On July 10, Kitty Snow delivererd a Banner Lecture entitled "From a Richmond Streetcar: Life through the Lens of Harris Stilson." Streetcar motorman Harris Stilson spent countless hours using his camera to capture Richmond and its everyday citizens nearly 100 years ago, giving us a priceless look at the city’s many slices of life. This lecture, presented by Kitty Snow, Harry’s great-granddaughter, will reveal the city’s past as told through Harry’s prolific images and her thoughtful narration.

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