JMU Special Collections Material in the Local News

Posted July 18, 2023 in JMU Libraries News, Special Collections News

Screenshot of the video displaying a portion of a diary entry by Henry Smals.

A June 25, 1881 diary entry written by Henry Smals, whose collection of diaries is housed in JMU Special Collections, was featured in a recent news story by WHSV meteorologist Aubrey Urbanowicz.

Tiffany Cole, Special Collections Archivist, identified Smals’s entry after Urbanowicz requested research assistance. WHSV’s story, which relies heavily on historic newspaper accounts, photographs, and other primary sources, explores the destructive June 1881 tornado that touched down in Port Republic.

Read more about the Port Republic Tornado or watch the story featuring Special Collections material.