Institutional History Museum and Galleries at Washington and Lee University

04/24/2026

The IHMG is pleased to share the recent University Chapel and Galleries project update, published online in The Columns. We're busy behind the scenes finalizing the exhibition elements and look forward to welcoming the campus and community back inside the Chapel soon.

Read the update:

Washington and Lee University is preparing to welcome visitors back to University Chapel this spring following an extensive renovation that has modernized its infrastructure, improved its safety an…

04/09/2026

Later today, April 9, we're hosting a book talk with Dr. James Welborn of Georgia College on his new publication: Dueling Cultures, Damnable Legacies. Join us at 5pm in Leyburn Library room 119!

04/01/2026

No fooling, there's a lot to look forward to this spring with IHMG. Catch up on what we've been up to and mark your calendars with this month's look ahead!

https://mailchi.mp/d85f34457cab/april2026

04/01/2026

Next week, we'll be joined by Dr. James Welborn of Georgia College & State University for a discussion of his recent publication: Dueling Cultures, Damnable Legacies. At the heart of the story is the dramatic altercation between Preston Smith Brooks and Charles Sumner on the Senate floor in 1856.

Join us for the free program at 5pm on April 9 in the Harte Center, room 119 in Leyburn Library.

Dueling Cultures, Damnable Legacies is available now from University of Virginia Press.

03/31/2026

Renovation work continues on the University Chapel! Ahead of spring events, the crew is making repairs to exterior brickwork, slate roof tiles, and the steeple. Use caution as you move around the building for the next few days.

03/26/2026

We’re still buzzing from last night’s Artisans of Rockbridge County program by Jeff Evans. We were honored to welcome several descendants of Matthew Kahle, the Rockbridge cabinet maker who carved the original Old George statue. We also extend our thanks to Kurt Russ, co-curator with Jeff Evans on the definitive study, “Safes of the Shenandoah Valley,” for joining us and lending his expertise to the conversation. Stay tuned for our next program!

03/25/2026

Join us tonight for a deeper look into the maker of Old George and the artisans of Rockbridge County with Jeff Evans. 5pm-5:30pm refreshments and mingling, program begins at 5:30pm. Mason-Taylor Room, Payne Hall

03/16/2026

Next week, we're excited to welcome Jeff Evans to campus to help us explore the maker of Old George, Matthew Kahle.

Join the Institutional History Museum and Galleries in welcoming Jeffrey S. Evans to campus for Artisans of Rockbridge County: Matthew Kahle on March 25, at 5:30pm. Open to the campus and community, this program will take a closer look at the maker of “Old George” and his local peers in the early 19th century.

This presentation is based on decades of research by Kurt L. Russ and later with Jeffrey S. Evans as The Virginia Safe Project. It will begin with an examination of the cabinet shop of Matthew S. Kahle (1800–1869) of Lexington, VA, and a survey of his work highlighted by his most important work, the larger-than-life-size sculpture of “Old George [Washington]” carved for Washington College, now Washington and Lee University, between 1842 and 1844.

A look at Kahle’s cabinetwork will include the iconic closet/pie safes produced in collaboration with tinsmith John Henson (act. 1819-after 1831) and their unique, politically charged punched-tin panels. In addition, Evans will delve into other Rockbridge County woodworkers and their products including Andrew Varner (1831-1910), who made furniture for Washington & Lee, Samuel Runkle Smith (1788-1869), an early partner of Matthew Kahle and an accomplished chairmaker who supplied chairs to Washinton College and VMI, and Thomas G. Chittum (1805-1857), who sold assorted furniture to VMI.

Guests are invited to join the department and speaker for light refreshments before the program in the Mason-Taylor Room, Payne Hall, beginning at 5 pm. Following the lecture in the Mason-Taylor Room, closing remarks and a Q&A session with Evans will include a visit to see “Old George” in person in the Washington Hall Galleries. Payne Hall and Washington Hall are connected, so attendees will not have far to travel.

Attendees are encouraged to RSVP in advance as space may be limited. RSVP now: https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=Igao0Zmp5UOOtnhzkF6Tnr3MDrkOFsVBlyoXkNSnbydUM0NMMUs1UTJEMjZHT0IzTkM5RjVJMklYSC4u

03/11/2026

Wishing our friends and partners at Washington and Lee University Library a very happy 250th birthday!

Image: The original interior of the Washington and Lee University Library rom WLU Special Collections, Leyburn Library. #250

03/03/2026

As artifacts come into the IHMG's collection, our Curator assigns each item a number and attaches (impermanently) identifiers for future tracking. For cotton shirts like this one from Advancement, twill tape, cotton thread, and a needle allow us to tack a label to the inside hem of the shirt.

Future staff and researchers will be able to match the item to the database record using this number.

03/02/2026

Join us this Wednesday evening at 5pm for the final installment of our American Revolution screening series: Voices & Visions of 1776. We'll be discussing the art and culture that emerged from the Revolution.

Panelists: Meaghan Walsh from the Art Museum and Galleries, Dr. Wendy Castenell from the WLU Art History Department, and Byron Faidley from WLU Library.

We'll be in Northen Auditorium at Leyburn Library. Hope you'll join us!
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Image: Textile piece entitled, "The Altar of Liberty", ca. 1785, Metropolitan Museum of Art. Public Domain.