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SUMMER 2021
NEWSLETTER
VOL. 4, NO. 1
NEW EXHIBIT
The John D. Rockefeller Jr. Library is pleased to announce
the opening of a new exhibit, Hollywood Comes to Williamsburg: A Century of Movie and Media Productions.
Curated by library staff Jenna Simpson, Tracey Gulden,
Donna Cooke, and Marianne Martin, the exhibit traces the
history of both movies and television programs filmed in
Williamsburg by outside production companies as well as
the in-house films, filmstrips, sound recordings, and Electronic Field Trips created by Colonial Williamsburg’s audiovisual staff. Among the interesting objects on display are
scripts and flyers, still photographs, Dr. Goodwin’s scrapbook, an Arriflex IIa film camera, an Emmy award won by
Colonial Williamsburg Productions, a jawbone used as an
instrument in the Colonial Williamsburg production Music
of Williamsburg, and Williamsburg: The Story of a Patriot
paper dolls. Guests can also view segments from Colonial
Williamsburg’s Archival Film series, such as A Glorious System of Things, Search for a Century, and Williamsburg Restored via a monitor in the exhibit space.
IN THIS ISSUE
New Exhibit:
p. 1-3
Captain Peach Records:
p. 4-5
World War II Scrapbook :
p. 6-9
Arboretum Photography Project:
p. 10-12
Donor Appreciation Weekend:
p. 13-15
Library Endowment:
p. 16
Conservation Concerns:
p. 17-18
Donna Cooke and Tracey Gulden open the exhibit.
Photo by Wayne Reynolds.
1
�NEW EXHIBIT
(continued)
Hollywood Come to Williamsburg exhibit cases.
Photo by Wayne Reynolds.
When the Covid-19 pandemic began in late March 2020, the exhibit committee regrouped to determine how to continue preparing for the exhibition remotely. Committee members planned, researched, wrote text and label content, and worked
virtually with a graphic designer from their home offices. As the pandemic safety guidelines relaxed, the team met with the Art
Museums of Colonial Williamsburg staff for installation of a large wall panel featuring a short film chronology highlighting some
of the most important milestones in film productions set in Williamsburg and began physical installation of objects in cases.
Tracey Gulden oversaw the printing of the many still photos displayed alongside objects. Several staff members from the Art
Museums of Colonial Williamsburg, including Jan Gilliam, David Mellors, Jim Armbruster, and Colleen Kennedy, helped with
printing oversize exhibit graphics and title rails, fabricating object mounts, and hanging large wall panels. Judy Marx, a volunteer
in Media Collections, contributed her expertise by scanning and color correcting many images used in graphics. Melinda Evans of
Designs by Me created the eye-catching movie themed title poster, introductory panel, and film chronology.
The exhibit officially launched on July 27, 2021, via a virtual presentation given by Jenna Simpson and Marianne Martin
as a special event in partnership with the Williamsburg Regional Library. At the conclusion of the presentation, Donna Cooke and
Tracey Gulden performed a virtual ribbon cutting ceremony to open the exhibit to the public. A recording of the presentation
may be viewed online via the Williamsburg Regional Library’s YouTube channel .
2
�NEW EXHIBIT
(continued)
Exhibit case and timeline for Hollywood Comes to Williamsburg.
Photo by Wayne Reynolds.
Hollywood Comes to Williamsburg: A Century of Movie and Media Productions is free and open to the public during library hours from Monday – Friday, 9am – 5pm, through December 2022. Within the next few months, an online version will be
launched that will include a smaller sub-set of items illustrating the span of movie and media production in Williamsburg over the
past one hundred years.
3
�CAPTAIN SAMUEL J. E. PEACH JR RECORDS
Winthrop Rockefeller presenting Captain Peach, Head of Security, with his silver
bowl in honor of his twenty-five years of service at Colonial Williamsburg, circa
1968
Photo by Jane Isley
4
On May 25th, the Library received a donation of records related to Captain Samuel
J. E. Peach, Jr., first chief of security and
safety, who began work at Colonial Williamsburg in 1943. Kept by his wife Nadine in scrapbooks over his thirty-year
career, the records contain correspondence, newspaper clippings, and photographs and cover subjects related to Captain Peach’s job, including property protection and recovery, security arrangements for film productions, and VIP visitors. Also included are personal tributes
from fellow employees on the occasions of
his service anniversaries and his retirement in 1973. In a Daily Press newspaper
article about him dated September 14,
1958, Captain Peach said that the records
of his lost and stolen property cases range
from “hubcaps to hams” and that “We are
a little proud of the fact that we usually
get our man. It’s a matter of work and
patience usually.” When asked in another
newspaper interview after he’d been on
the job for fourteen years about any interest in retirement, he said “No, sir. I’m not
in any hurry to retire. I like this job fine
because it gives me a chance to help people instead of get them in trouble.” The
donation was made by Captain Peach’s
granddaughter Shannon Davis and his son
John Peach, and we are grateful for their
generosity in gifting this personal collection to the Library. We were also pleased
to meet the family of a long-time employee and hear personal stories about growing up in Williamsburg and about Captain
Peach himself. The Peach records will be a
permanent part of the Corporate Archives
and will be available for research by appointment once they are arranged and
processed. (Accession 2021-023)
�CAPTAIN SAMUEL J. E. PEACH JR RECORDS
(continued)
Shannon Davis and John Peach with their donation of records of Captain Samuel J. E. Peach, Jr.,
first chief of safety and security at Colonial Williamsburg, in front of the Robert Brackman portrait
of John D. Rockefeller Jr., May 25, 2021.
Photo courtesy of Shannon Davis
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�NEW ACQUISITION: THE JAMES LEE AND ETHEL M. FISHER FAMILY ARCHIVES
Faculty of the Officer’s Training School, Camp Peary, 1944.
Page 3.
The Rockefeller Library is pleased to announce a significant addition to its holdings on World War II era Williamsburg, The
James Lee and Ethel M. Fisher Family Archives, a gift of Eric T. and Elizabeth Fisher Davis. Consisting of a scrapbook and
fifty-one associated black and white photographs, the archives document the wartime experiences of Dr. James Lee Fisher,
who served as a Navy medical doctor during World War II, and his wife, Ethel, who accompanied him to his first post at
Camp Peary, where she served in the Red Cross Unit. Mr. and Mrs. Davis also kindly provided a copy of the section of Dr.
Fisher’s reminiscences which pertains to his wartime service. This narrative helps to bring the events pictured in the scrapbook and associated photos to life and also illuminates the character and personality of Dr. Fisher .
6
�NEW ACQUISITION
(continued)
“Ethel came down to Williamsburg, and for 9 months we lived at the Williamsburg Inn,”.
Page 4.
Dr. Fisher departed for active duty as Lt Commander in the Medical Division of the United States Navy on December
18, 1942. His first assignment brought him to the United States Naval Construction Training Center at Camp Peary, home of
the “Seabees,” and located near Williamsburg, Virginia. Dr. Fisher’s wife, Ethel, joined him in Williamsburg in 1943 and they
lived for nine months in officer’s quarters at the Williamsburg Inn. Photos within the scrapbook of the Fishers interacting with
other couples billeted at the Inn illustrate the Inn’s important role in bolstering morale by providing a place for a peaceful interlude of rest and relaxation on weekends where the military could gather for refreshments, swimming, and entertainment.
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�NEW ACQUISITION
(continued)
In September 1943, the Fishers moved to a cabin on the banks of
the York River on the Camp Peary
base. Ethel Fisher took part in the
Red Cross Unit overseen by Mrs.
Ware, wife of Captain James G. Ware,
the Commanding Officer at Camp
Peary. A series of group portraits,
along with informal scenes of the Red
Cross Unit members cutting and rolling bandages, highlight women’s contributions to wartime work in the
Williamsburg area. Social life on base
at Camp Peary, ranging from picnics,
baseball games, parties, and dances,
is captured in a series of photos of
the officers, soldiers, and families.
Mr. and Mrs. Fisher’s side trips to
Norfolk, Newport News, Yorktown,
and Richmond are also represented
in the album.
In April 1944, Dr. Fisher left Camp
Peary for a new assignment at the
United States Naval Construction
Center at Camp Endicott, Rhode Island. From there he received orders
to transfer to Seattle for training to
take on the role of Senior Medical
Officer of the U.S.S. Gage, a ship that
formed part of the Attack Transport
of the Amphibious Corps, 5th Fleet.
By January 1945, the U.S.S. Gage set
sail for the South Pacific, where Dr.
Fisher and the crew witnessed the
devastation in the Philippines, participated in such maneuvers as the Okinawa landing invasion, and assisted
with various efforts in Occupied Japan, whether transporting troops,
medical supplies, or medical staff to
Group portrait of members of the Red Cross Unit at Camp Peary near Williamsburg,
Virginia, 1943. Front row, left to right: Mrs. Magee, Mrs. Ware, Mrs. Archambeault,
Ethel Fisher. Back row, left to right: Mrs. Long, Mrs. Walker, Mrs. Edgar, Mrs. Mattingly, Mrs. Fox, Mrs. Morrison, Mrs. Sargeant, Mrs. Meadenhall, Mrs. Hoover, and Mrs.
Radar.
Page 9
different Japanese cities to lend aid. Through photographs and commentary, the
second half of Dr. Fisher’s scrapbook covers all of the difficult and distressing events
he encountered during his tour in the South Pacific at the end of World War II. The
album thus offers a complete picture of what many military officials who spent time
at training bases near Williamsburg eventually faced as the war progressed and finally came to a close. Dr. Fisher returned home in late 1945 to his medical practice in
Youngstown, Ohio, noting at the close of his album “I wouldn’t have missed it for
anything, but I wouldn’t do it again.”
The scrapbook may be viewed here: James Lee and Ethel M. Fisher Family
Archives.
8
�NEW ACQUISTION
(continued)
“Social life on the base consisted of picnics, ball games, parties in the houses, and dances at the Officer’s Club.”
Page 10.
Members of the Red Cross Unit at Camp Peary near Williamsburg, Virginia rolling bandages, 1943. Front row, left to right:
Mrs. Fox, Mrs. Mattingly, Mrs. Morrison. Next table, left to right: Mrs. Edgar, Mrs. Rader, and Ethel Fisher, wife of Dr. James
Lee Fisher. In corner, Mrs. Long at the sewing machine and Mrs. Magee, and Mrs. Hoover behind her.
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�ARBORETUM PHOTOGRAPHY PROJECT
Did you know that in addition to
being a living history museum,
Colonial Williamsburg's 301-acre
campus is a Level 2 Arboretum
certified by ArbNet’s global Arboretum Accreditation Program?
The arboretum has over 100 species of trees and woody plants,
some of which are classified as
Virginia state champion and national champion trees. The Arboretum is cared for and documented by Colonial Williamsburg's
landscape department and its
dedicated volunteers.
Botanical detail from a Virginia Pine (Pinus virginiana) on South England Street
behind the Nicholas-Tyler Office.
Photo courtesy of Jerry McCoy.
Recently, Media Collections at the Rockefeller Library
has begun a project to document
these amazing specimens in our
own way through the work of
library volunteer photographer
Jerry McCoy. His work captures
the location and appearance of
these plants as they currently
stand, as well as illustrating botanical details. It is a useful record of this amazing, living Colonial
Williamsburg collection – as well
as a beautiful set of nature photography. As of late summer,
McCoy’s lens has captured nearly
60 species in the arboretum, and
there’s still (literally!) a lot of
ground to cover.
If you'd like to explore the Arboretum, you can learn more about it at https://www.colonialwilliamsburg.org/.../
arboretum-gardens/. The website even includes an interactive map to help you locate the specimens. If you have a
smartphone equipped with Google Maps, you can bring up the arboretum map and let your GPS guide you from tree to tree.
When you get to a specimen, use your phone to scan the QR code to learn more about the plant.
10
�ARBORETUM PHOTOGRAPHY PROJECT
(continued)
Leaf cluster and bud on a Sweetbay Magnolia (Magnolia virginiana) on Nicholson Street in front of the St. George Tucker House.
Photo courtesy of Jerry McCoy.
An Eastern Redbud (Cercis canadensis) at the Magazine guardhouse.
Photo courtesy of Jerry McCoy
11
�ARBORETUM PHOTOGRAPHY PROJECT
(continued)
Cornelian Cherry Dogwood (Cornus mas) on the west side of the Bryan House.
Photo courtesy of Jerry McCoy.
Paper Mulberry (Broussonetia papyrifera) in the small pasture behind Wetherburn's Tavern.
Photo courtesy of Jerry McCoy
12
�DONOR APPRECIATION WEEKEND
Representatives of the many departments of Colonial Williamsburg met with donors on
the grounds of Bassett Hall.
Photo courtesy of Wayne Reynolds.
Donors were welcomed back to Colonial Williamsburg on September 10-11, 2021. Approximately 500 donors from the CW Burgess, CW Associates, Raleigh Tavern and W.A.R. Goodwin societies will be onsite to enjoy a variety of events designed to thank
them for their generosity and celebrate how their gifts support Colonial Williamsburg initiatives. As part of the festivities,
attendees enjoyed a Garden Party at Bassett Hall, which included lunch, entertainment, and an opportunity to engage with Foundation staff. Rockefeller Library and Historical Research staff were out in force to welcome donors, discuss their important work
and how research helps supports the Foundation. We are very grateful for the many generous donors who support our work.
Kelly Brennan and Cathy Hellier representing the Historians at Bassett Hall.
Photo courtesy of Wayne Reynolds.
13
�DONOR APPRECIATION WEEKEND
(continued)
Marianne Martin representing Special Collections at the Bassett Hall event.
Photo courtesy of Wayne Reynolds.
Donna Cooke and Sarah Nerney representing Corporate Archives at the Bassett Hall
event.
Photo courtesy of Wayne Reynolds.
14
�DONOR APPRECIATION WEEKEND
(continued)
Tracey Gulden and Jenna Simpson representing Media Collections at the Bassett Hall event.
Photo courtesy of Wayne Reynolds.
15
�BASIMA QATTAN BEZIRGAN MEMORIAL LIBRARY ENDOWMENT
In our Spring 2019 issue, we announced a generous gift creating
the Basima Qattan Bezirgan Memorial Endowment at Rockefeller
Library. Donors Brooke England and Paul Michel knew that establishing a fund to purchase new reference and circulating
books would be a fitting tribute to their dear friend, a women's
history author and librarian whose career included serving as
Middle East Cataloger and Arabic Specialist at the University of
Chicago and as Cataloger and Bibliographer at the General Libraries of the University of Texas at Austin.
We are now pleased to share some of the first purchases made with this endowment; these and future acquisitions will
deepen our collections and enrich the work of Colonial Williamsburg’s community of scholars. Though the fund is unrestricted,
many of the titles have a connection to women’s history, contributions, and concerns. Each bears a bookplate honoring Basima
Qattan Bezirgan’s memory.
Basima Qattan Bezirgan memorial
bookplate.
Ball, Erica L., et al., editors. As If She Were Free: A Collective Biography of Women and Emancipation in the Americas. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2020.
Cheek, Pamela. Heroines and Local Girls: The Transnational
Emergence of Women's Writing in the Long Eighteenth
Century. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press,
2019.
Fairfax, Edmund. The Styles of Eighteenth-Century Ballet.
Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press, 2003.
Flanders, Judith. A Place for Everything: The Curious History of Alphabetical Order. New York: Basic Books, 2020.
Holden, Vanessa M. Surviving Southampton: African American Women and Resistance in Nat Turner's Community.
Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 2021.
McEnroe, Sean F. A Troubled Marriage: Indigenous Elites of
the Colonial Americas. Albuquerque: University of New
Mexico Press, 2020.
Books purchased with funds from the Basima Qattan Bezirgan
Memorial Library Endowment.
Ridley, Glynis. The Discovery of Jeanne Baret: A Story of
Science, the High Seas, and the First Woman to Circumnavigate the Globe. New York: Broadway Paperbacks, 2011.
Smith, Bonnie G. Women in World History: 1450 to the
Present. London: Bloomsbury Academic, 2020.
16
�CONSERVATION CONCERNS
When institutions collect rare materials, they incur the twin obligations of caring for those materials and making them accessible to researchers. Both endeavors can be labor intensive and may require more assets to tackle the task than the institution
can bring to bear. Due to the nature of the materials housed at the John D. Rockefeller Jr. Library our conservation needs far
exceed the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation’s capacity to treat all our endangered materials onsite.
In the past few years, nearly two hundred issues of the Virginia Gazette have been delaminated in our own paper lab
within the Museum, Preservation, and Historic Resources division. Unfortunately, many thousands of items are still awaiting
delamination including letters, deeds, wills and bound volumes. Some of the bound volumes contain hundreds of sheets of
paper making them significant conservation projects.
In the past, the library has sent some materials to outside facilities for conservation. One such item is the Humphrey Harwood
account book. Harwood was a local builder in 18th-century Williamsburg whose account book documents the work he performed at various Williamsburg sites. Harwood’s account book was sent to the Northeast Document Conservation Center for
treatment and rebinding insuring its survival and usability far into the future. The account book of James Anderson also documents work done on 18th-century buildings in Williamsburg. Anderson was the local blacksmith, and his volumes also reside in
Special Collections. We would like to send Anderson’s volumes out for conservation so they will remain here to document his
work for generations to come. If you would like to help us fund this and similar conservation projects, please contact our Director, Carl Childs cchilds@cwf.org .
Entry from the James Anderson account book showing work done for Williamsburg builder Benjamin
Powell.
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�CONSERVATION CONCERNS
(continued)
Detail from the James Anderson account book showing work done for Williamsburg printer John Clarkson.
Detail from the James Anderson account book showing work done for Williamsburg store owner John Greenhow.
The John D. Rockefeller Jr. Library Newsletter is a publication of Colonial Williamsburg’s John D. Rockefeller Jr. Library.
Vice President, Education, Research, and Historic Interpretation
Beth Kelly
Executive Director, John D. Rockefeller Jr. Library
Carl Childs
Editor
Doug Mayo
Contributors
Carl Childs Donna Cooke, Marianne Martin, Doug Mayo
Sarah Nerney, Melissa Schutt, and Jenna Simpson
To learn how you can help or for assistance, please call 757-220-7249; 757-565-8510 or email us at rocklibrary@cwf.org.
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�
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Title
A name given to the resource
John D. Rockefeller Jr. Library Newsletter
Dublin Core
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Title
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John D. Rockefeller Jr Library newsletter. Volume 4, number 1, Summer 2021
Creator
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Colonial Williamsburg Foundation
Publisher
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Colonial Williamsburg Foundation
Date
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2021-09