Library of Virginia

The Library Board of the Virginia State Library was established on 1 July 1903 under the new State Constitution. Early board members were chosen by the State Board of Public Instruction. Armistead C. Gordon served as the first chairman of the State Library Board which consisted of five members with the State Librarian as ex officio Secretary of the Board. The Board now consists of fifteen members appointed by the Governor for a term of five years.

From the guide to the Correspondence of the Library Board, 1903-1970, (The Library of Virginia)

Carroll County relied on a book mobile run by its public school system for decades until it funded and built its own public library, completed in the fall of 1982. The Town of Galax administered a mini-library within one of its city offices, until it funded and built a larger, separate facility in the 1970's.

From the guide to the Records related to the Carroll County Public Library, 1911-1987, (The Library of Virginia)

Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826), after commissioning Charles-Louis Clerisseau (1721-1820) to execute finished drawings of his design for the Virginia State Capitol, hired Jean-Pierre Fouquet (1752-1829) to create a plaster of paris model to be sent to Virginia. The model was intended to be an aid to workmen at the building site.

Following its use as an instructional tool, the model became a historical artifact displayed for the majority of the 19th century in the Executive Mansion. In the 20th century, it was moved to the Rotunda in the newly expanded Capitol building. Because the model received regular additions of paint over the decades, many of the details were lost and there was a pronounced crackling on the surface.

In 1994, the Library of Virginia, in cooperation with Colonial Williamsburg Foundation and others, undertook an extensive analysis of the Fouquet model resulting in the thorough restoration and conservation of the original and the construction of a replica. The project revealed previously unknown information about the historic paint schemes of the Capitol, the 18th century model building process, and the history of the model itself. Ultimately, the project team decided that only limited restoration could be done to the original building model, so in order to illustrate the fine detail encapsulated under layers of paint, the group commissioned a replica. The reproduction was created using three-dimensional computer models attained from X-rays of the original.

Both Fouquet's original model and the replica will be displayed in the Virginia Capitol in 2007, following its extensive renovation and expansion.

From the guide to the Library of Virginia, Capitol Model Project Records, 1797-2002 (1994-2002), (The Library of Virginia)