The women detectives and sleuthing young ladies found in the Robbie Emily Dunn Collection of American Detective Fiction Collection and Girls Books in Series Collection of the Martha Blakeney Hodges Special Collections and University Archives share three things in common: a sharp intelligence to unravel the intricacies of the criminal mind, a fearless tenacity in engaging unknown dangers, and a time period appropriate wardrobe to blend into the varied environments into which their investigation leads them.

This collaborative exhibit features selections of books from Special Collections and matching period textiles and accessories generously loaned by Dr. James V. Carmichael.

The exhibit can be found in the three display cases next to the reference desk on the first floor of Jackson Library. The exhibited items will rotate every two weeks, from January 8th through March 1st, 2016.

What’s Cookin', Good Lookin'? Becoming a Domestic Goddess at Woman’s College

Student baking during a
Department of Home Economics class, 1947

As the State Normal and Industrial School was founded with the mission of producing teachers and educating women to assist in the recovery of the post Civil War South, classes needed to support the three concentrations of study: teaching, home economics, and business. The early administration of the school did not view these programs as mutually exclusive, insisting, “a model woman, as the mistress of a model home, ought to know something of business, and above all things, ought to be an intelligent teacher.” In the 1930s, what was then the Woman’s College of the University of North Carolina, provided the opportunity for students to earn valuable practical experience in household management by working in one of the campus’ Home Management Houses. By the 1940s, the Department of Home Economics offered seven specialized focuses of study, including course concentration in Foods and Nutrition, an invaluable area of knowledge as the United States implemented food rationing initiatives during World War II.

“What’s Cookin’, Good Lookin’?: Becoming a Domestic Goddess at the Woman’s College” features photographs and artifacts reflecting the Department of Home Economics curriculum, as well as excerpts from the Special Collections and University Archives’ Home Economics Pamphlets Collection. The exhibit can be viewed from September 25th - November 2nd, 2015.

New Exhibit on the History of Physical Education and Athletics at UNCG

A new exhibit in Jackson Library explores the history of physical education and athletics at UNCG, from the 1890s until today. Gym suits from the 1900s, 1930s, and 1950s; photographs of intramural and intercollegiate athletics teams; and much more are on display in the exhibit cases across from the Jackson Library Reference Desk.

 

The exhibit will be available for viewing until the end of June 2015. To learn more about these topics and the associated resources available in SCUA, please see our research guides on physical education and athletics.

What They Were Wearing While They Were Reading: 1930s

This collaborative exhibit highlights the 1930s featuring campus history, materials from Special Collections and University Archives, and period textiles generously loaned from Dr. James V. Carmichael. The exhibited items will rotate so visit often! Information from the rotating exhibits will be posted here periodically. 

1930s 

After the years of economic prosperity, the stock market crashed on October 29, 1929, and the resulting economic depression dominated the entire decade. During this Great Depression, millions of Americans lost their jobs, their savings, and their homes. While banks foreclosed on businesses and farms, families became homeless and unemployed. Many Americans took to the road and the rails, traveling from town to town in search of a job. Shantytowns, known as “Hoovervilles” after President Herbert Hoover, began to spring up on the outskirts of town. Created with scraps of cardboard, newspaper, and anything else that could be picked up on the street, these makeshift towns housed thousand of transient families.

Americans pinned their hopes on the winner of the 1932 presidential election, Franklin D. Roosevelt. Upon taking office, Roosevelt began to establish governmental programs known as the “New Deal,” to help Americans pull out of the economic crises. Programs such as the Agricultural Adjustment Administration targeted farmers while the Works Progress Administration helped unemployment by hiring people to work on civic building projects. While these New Deal programs helped ease the hardships of many Americans, the decade continued to be plagued with economic instability.

 It was the entrance of the United States into World War II after the bombing of Pearl Harbor in December of 1941 that ended the Great Depression.

What They Were Wearing While They Were Reading: 1930s 

February 7 - April 1, 2012 Main Lobby, Jackson Library