News from Special Collections & University Archives

This post was written by Caitlin Ervin ’28, Special Collections & University Archives Student Worker

Dr. Venus R. Jones: One of the Few, Precursor to Many 

This Thursday, March 26^th, guest speaker, author and historian Mary Ellen Curtin will present on the legacy of Barbara Jordan as part of the Great Lives lecture series. Jordan was a Texas-born politician, orator, and educator who made history with a number of firsts over the course of her political career: the first Black person elected to the Texas Senate since 1883, the first Black woman ever elected to the Texas Senate, and the first Black Texan ever elected to the U.S. Congress. 

In honor of this lecture, Special Collections and University Archives is proud to present a short piece on the career and legacy of Dr. Venus Jones ‘68, an alum who accomplished a number of her own firsts both during and after her time at Mary Washington, leaving a lasting impact on the college. 

Career 

Mary Washington was not Jones’ first choice for college. She had initially applied to the University of Virginia, however, the administration at the time refused to admit a woman to their pre-med program and instead suggested that she apply to its sister school, Mary Washington. Within three years of her admittance, Jones became the first Black graduate from MWC in May 1968 with a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry. She then went on to attend the University of Virginia’s medical program as one of only six women, and the only Black woman. During her time at UVA, she was involved with the Community Health Project, which provided free medical care to the community, while also doing her clinical rotations. She graduated from UVA in 1972 and spent the next few years on the west coast interning with a local indigenous population in Phoenix, Arizona, and completing her medical residency at the Children’s Hospital in San Francisco. She then returned to Virginia to complete an additional three-year residency in neurology at UVA, followed by a fellowship specializing in epilepsy. 

After completing her medical training, Dr. Jones enlisted in the U.S. Air Force with the intention of working professionally before opening her own private practice. By 1981, she had become the Chief of Neurology at the Malcolm Grow Medical Center at Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland and was one of only three Air Force neurologists stationed on the east coast. She also served as a consultant to the Surgeon General of the Air Force. She continued her career as Chief of Neurology at two other Air Force hospitals and ultimately retired with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel after serving nearly twenty years. In 1998, she moved to Clarksdale, Mississippi and fulfilled the dream of opening her own clinic, the Delta Neurology Clinic, which she operated until her death on May 17, 2001, at the age of 53. 

Commentary on Race at MWC 

On February 19, 1968, three months before Jones graduated, an article titled “The Negro On Campus” was published in the weekly student newspaper, The Bullet. In the article, Jones, alongside Chris Hall ‘69, Dottie Holmes ‘71, Anita Whitehead ‘71, and Orita Whitehead (known as MWC’s “Big Five”) detailed their experiences as the only Black students on a majority-white campus. In the article, Jones is quoted as saying that “On this Campus, nothing has changed because there aren’t enough Negroes to make a change in attitude.” She also called out MWC for not advertising itself to potential Black students like other colleges had, such as UVA and the University of Richmond. The women viewed this as MWC not taking the issue of integration or potential of Black students seriously. 

It was first-year Dottie Holmes who brought up discrepancies in student housing, with she and the Whitehead sisters sharing one dorm room. Jones and Hall had experienced the same when they were freshman roommates in 1965, and the two, while genuinely friends, had to make a point of having different social routines so as to not always be grouped together while living on campus. This issue of equitable housing assignments was not addressed by Chancellor Grellet Simpson until January 1969, nearly a year later. 

Legacy 

Throughout Dr. Venus Jones’ academic and professional careers, she was constantly one of the few due to her status as Black, a woman, or both in environments that were overwhelming run by white men. In fact, Jones said that while attending medical school at UVA, she faced more adversity for being a woman, than she did for being Black. However, her race was a defining part of her experience at Mary Washington College, which coincided with many other firsts for the school. This includes the first Black residential student, Kay Savage, who attended MWC from 1964-1966, and the first Black faculty member, Johnny P. Johnson, who was a part-time instructor for art education beginning in 1968. While these individuals may not have faced as much blatant racism while on campus as they may have a few decades prior, they still consistently dealt with microaggressions from other students, separation from Black communities, and an administration that was slow-to-react to their needs. 

In the nearly 60 years since the publication of the 1968 Bullet article about the Big Five, the Mary Washington campus has intentionally evolved to be more welcoming and inclusive, though not without criticism from students, both Black and white alike. Perhaps the most significant social changes originated with the founding of the Afro-American Association by students. Dottie Holmes ‘71, one of the Big Five, helped establish the Afro-American Association in 1970 and served as its first president. In the early 1970s, the club was a frequent contributor to The Bullet, writing about social and political injustices faced by Black women. They also organized the first Black Culture Week, held in February of each year. Black Culture Week has since expanded into the Black History Month Celebration, now organized by the James Farmer Multicultural Center. In 1987, the Afro-American Association changed its name to the Black Student Association, which it continues as today. 

Those interested in the work and legacy of Barbara Jordan should attend the Great Lives lecture by guest speaker Mary Ellen Curtin on her book, She Changed the Nation: Barbara Jordan’s Life and Legacy in Black Politics. It is hosted this Thursday, March 26^th, in Dodd Auditorium beginning at 7:30 pm. 

Want to learn more about Venus Jones during her time at Mary Washington? You can listen to the Venus Jones Oral History Collection from UMW Special Collections and University Archives’ Digital Collections. 

Additional information about Barbara Jordan from Circles: The Buffalo Women’s Journal of Law and Social Policy – HeinOnline.org. 

This post was written by Clementine Worshek ’28, Special Collections & University Archives Student Worker

The concept of the television was first mentioned in the Epaulet in 1941, a student-funded literary magazine. While the televisions were mainly used for announcements for students to communicate with professors, it was a large leap in technological innovation, making it easier for students to receive information from the comfort of their own dorm. This was huge at the time, with the student writing: “No one will have to walk from building to building, for each student will be equipped with a set of wings by means of which she may rise and be on her way.” The future of televisions would shift in the following ten years, and a large part of that was thanks to Desi Arnaz.  

Desi Arnaz was a multi-talented force in the entertainment industry. While he is most well-known for his work on the television show I Love Lucy, his touch in the TV world expands beyond the popular sitcom as an actor, tv producer, and musician. He initially found fame through the formation of his own band, introducing the conga line to dance to Miami, which became a huge hit. In fact, he is featured in an advertisement in Mary Washington’s school newspaper The Bullet from 1947. The ad features him as a musician, writing that “His volatile Cuban rhythms have been sweeping the country”.  

While being a great musician, his contribution to the world of television is arguably what he is most known for. He was more than just the character Ricky in the hit 1951 sitcom I Love Lucy, but he revolutionized the sitcom as a genre. He created the “three-camera method” in terms of setting up multiple cameras on a television set at the same time, along with a studio audience. His goal was to find an easier and more interactive way to test their material in front of actual people. While this is considered the standard now, this was revolutionary at the time. Along with his work behind the camera, Arnaz’s character on-screen broke boundaries, as he represented a Cuban character in a sitcom that wasn’t aimed at making his identity the butt of the joke. His portrayal of his character at this time was significant, and an important piece of Latino-American representation in television.  

Additionally, Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball’s production studio Desilu helped produce the original Star Trek series. Mary Washington has a final draft from the tenth episode of season two of the original series titled ‘Journey to Babel’, made in 1967. Though Arnaz left the studio by 1962, his contribution into creating a space in the company where they could take risks in new areas of television are significant. Without their production company, we would not have the Star Trek series we know today. 

Overall, Desi Arnaz’s influence in the entertainment industry is spread far and wide, and we have him to thank for the many innovations to TV production and creation over the years.

Learn more about the Great Life of Desi Arnaz at Todd S. Purdum’s lecture on his book Desi Arnaz, The Man Who Invented Television March 10th.

This post was written by Caitlin Ervin ’28, Special Collections & University Archives Student worker

Jazz at MWC: From Appreciation to Performance 

On Thursday, February 19^th, guest speaker and author Larry Tye will present on the legacies of three pioneering jazz musicians – Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, and Count Basie – as part of the Great Lives lecture series.  

In honor of this lecture, Special Collections and University Archives is proud to present a short history of jazz music at Mary Washington College. 

Club Socials and Events 

Some of the earliest instances of jazz at Mary Washington come from when it was still named the State Normal School for Women. In the 1920s, campus organizations used jazz bands as musical entertainment at dances and social events. The first found employment of a jazz band was by the Kotillion Klub in January 1921, who organized a dance featuring the Marine Jazz Band. This trend continued through the 1950s, with the performing jazz band changing depending on the year. 

In the 1930s, the Junior and Senior Dance Clubs, also known as the Modern Dance Clubs, began featuring jazz as one of the musical styles in their performances. These were referred to early on as “Jazz-Ma-Tazz” and were performed with music specifically composed for the piece, often by Mr. Levin Houston, who taught music at the college. In 1944, the Modern Dance Club chose jazz as the theme of their annual dance program, named “American Primitive 1944.” 

Student News and Radio 

Much of student life at MWC was recorded in The Bullet, the student newspaper that preceded our own Weekly Ringer. Jazz music was frequently included in reviews and recommendations printed in columns such as “Round the Dial” (1939-40), “Platter Chatter” (1944-45, ‘48), and “Slip-ped Disc” (1948-49). These columns advertised the latest album releases for Mary Washington students and often featured the latest jazz recordings, including those of Raymond Scott, Stan Kenton, and Thelonius Monk. Similar music review columns continued into the 1980s. 

Another frequent column, “Radio Speaks” (1949-50), provided students with the schedule for WMWC, Mary Washington College’s own on-campus radio station, which still exists today. November 1949 saw the broadcast of the “Evolution of Jazz,” hosted Wednesday afternoons from 4:30-4:45, discussing the music history of the genre, and December 1949 saw the introduction of “Charlie’s Jazz Jamboree” from 3:00-3:15 on Fridays. 

Other articles published well into the late 1950s, detail which clubs, hotels, and theatres in Washington, D.C. and Richmond were hosting live jazz bands for students to see. 

Concerts 

In the 1960s and 1970s, jazz concerts became a favorite among students on campus, leading to their inclusion in the Concert Series hosted annually by MWC. One of the first of these events was a performance by the American Jazz Ensemble in February 1963. A decade later, the college upped the ante by hosting The World’s Greatest Jazz Band (the ensemble’s official name) in March 1973. In the run-up to the band’s performance, Mr. Levin Houston, associate professor of music, led a lecture for students in the Virginia Hall parlor on the history of jazz. Another notable favorite was the 1973-74 Concert Series’ inclusion of the Preservation Hall Jazz Band in February 1974. This band was unique because it was comprised almost entirely of elderly musicians in their 60s to 80s. February 1983 brought the Howard University Jazz Ensemble to campus not just for a concert series, but as part of Black Culture Month hosted by the MWC’s Afro-American Association. This marks perhaps the first time that a jazz band was invited by a college cultural club, rather than an arts or performance club. 

Education 

The first scholarly work from MWC to include jazz music can be found in Modern Canons, a collection of music compiled by MWC music professor Dr. Herman Reichenbach in 1947. Despite this early appearance, it took an additional 27 years before the college actually offered a class on jazz. The very first class, called “Evolution of Jazz,” was taught in the Spring semester of 1974 by Mr. Levin Houston – the very same professor that hosted the jazz history lecture in 1973 and composed jazz numbers for the Modern Dance Club in the 1940s.