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Fries Exhibit located in Special Collections and University Archives

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Category: academics Video duration: Fries Exhibit located in Special Collections and University Archives

Last year, the University Libraries’ Special Collections and University Archives department received a $68,722 grant to preserve and make accessible decades of materials that tell the complex story of Fries, Virginia, and its textile mill.

The grant from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission, the grants-making arm of the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, will fund a one-year archivist position to process the collection, organize community events, and promote the town’s history through outreach and exhibits.

Exhibit items are no longer on display but may be viewed by request at Special Collections and University Archives, located on the first floor of Newman Library.  

Read the full story:  https://vtnews.vt.edu/articles/2018/08/univlib-fries.html

[00:00:00] >> The Mill opened in 1903. They specialized in cotton and cotton blends fabrics. Originally they did more fine garment fabrics, later on they specialized more in industrial heavy duty, with very sturdy fabrics. But they closed down in '88 as a result of globalizing pressure and a lack of maintained infrastructure within the Mill. [00:00:30] It's a matter of community and seeing different aspects of the place that you live from a perspective that you probably haven't experienced before. Just kind of getting that alternate perspective, getting that historical perspective. Aside from the collection just being cool, I think it's valuable to see, you know, how other people lived their lives. [00:00:50] It {the exhibit] is fully processed and available for researchers, the finding is published, so you are going to take a look at it and we hope to see you soon!