Tomorrow, Tues., April 18, 2023 at noon:
Local Baseball Legends
Baseball has been an important part of Wheeling’s sporting life since the end of the Civil War. This comprehensive program, presented by Steve Novotney and Sean Duffy, will feature an overview of Wheeling and Ohio Valley baseball from legendary players like John Glasscock, Moses Fleetwood Walker; Sol White; and Jesse Burkett to ; Maz; Gene Freese, and George Brett, and from historic teams like the Standards, to the Nailers, Stogies, and legendary stories like the Rooney brothers, Babe Ruth’s visit, to Fulton Field, and Bauer’s teams vs. the Homestead Grays.
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April 25, 2023: The Fifth Border State
Every history of West Virginia’s creation in 1863 explains the event in similar ways: at the start of the Civil War, political, social, cultural, and economic differences with eastern Virginia motivated the northwestern counties to resist secession from the Union and seek their independence from the rest of the state. In The Fifth Border State, Scott A. MacKenzie offers the first new interpretation of the topic in over a century—one that corrects earlier histories’ tendency to minimize support for slavery in the state’s founding. Employing previously unused sources and reexamining existing ones, MacKenzie argues that West Virginia experienced the Civil War in the same ways as the border states of Missouri, Kentucky, Maryland, and Delaware. Like these northernmost slave states, northwestern Virginia supported the institution of slavery out of proportion to the actual presence of enslavement there. The people who became West Virginians built a new state first to protect slavery, but radical Unionists and escaping slaves forced emancipation on the statehood movement. MacKenzie shows how conservatives and radicals clashed over Black freedom, correcting many myths about West Virginia’s origins and making The Fifth Border State an important addition to the literature in Appalachian and Civil War history.
Scott A. MacKenzie received his education at the University of Manitoba, Queens College of the City University of New York, the University of Calgary, and Auburn University. He lives in Winnipeg, Manitoba.
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*MAY & JUNE PROGRAMS ANNOUNCED*
May 2, 2023 at Noon: Iditarod Dog Mushing with Karen, Noggin, & Chloe
Karen Land—writer, public speaker, and three-time participant in the 1,049-mile Iditarod Sled Dog Race across Alaska—and her sled dogs will give us a fun interactive presentation. Karen loves providing “mushing” talks for enthusiastic library patrons. Dog mushing, a traditional mode of arctic transportation, is a unique subject that inspires discussion of diverse topics from climate change to literature (Gary Paulsen and Jack London) to the arts and physical education–the options for exploration are endless. Karen says her Alaskan husky Noggin, and corgi-mix Chloe are the stars of the show. She will bring her actual Iditarod dog sled, gear, and arctic clothing.
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May 9, 2023 at Noon: Celebrating 50 years at 52-16th Street!
The new $1.5 million Ohio County Public Library opened its doors for business on May 7, 1973, with a formal dedication on May 19. We will celebrate the 50th anniversary of that opening in grand style. Get ready to party like it’s 1973! Featuring the music of Vinyl Soul; 1970s food; trivia; memories, a photo booth, and a costume contest!
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May 16, 2023 Japan Outreach: Book Discussion of Mottainai Grandma
The word “Mottainai” is a Japanese adjective that describes how unfortunate it is for something to go to waste. It expresses a sense of guilt, regret, or sorrow felt for the act of wasting. The feeling connected to the word is deeply entrenched in the culture and the ways of thinking in Japan. Manami Kawazoe, Japan Outreach Initiative Coordinator at West Liberty University, will lead a discussion.
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May 23, 2023 Wheeling Reads Series: All Lies Begin with Truth with author Anthony Viola
All Lies Begin with Truth dramatizes the complexities of natural gas extraction, its legalities and impact on a small town’s economy, infrastructure, and surrounding environment, using three distinctive perspectives. Eris Carroll is a young and energetic activist negotiating her place in a world where societal rules and cultural norms cater to and support patriarchy. Lionel Boone’s past indifferences and mounting guilt over surviving a kettle bottom collapse taunts him daily. Cass Taylor’s cultural role in life was predetermined before her birth. She struggles with the realities of being trapped in small town USA and within the confines of a patriarchal culture. Her somber outlook on the town, her life, and the human spirit is often chilling as the realization becomes clear that as a civilized species, we are imprisoned, being all too dependent on energy and those corporations who provide it for us. Anthony J. Viola is a Professor of English at Marshall University where he teaches literature and creative writing. Note: This program will serve as the launch of the new Wheeling Reads: One Book, One Community initiative featuring Jennifer Haigh’s Heat and Light. Check the library’s website and social media for more information!
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May 30, 2023 Japan Outreach-Film Screening & Discussion of “My Neighbor Totoro”
Two young girls, 10-year-old Satsuki and her 4-year-old sister Mei, move into a house in the country with their father to be closer to their hospitalized mother. Satsuki and Mei discover that the nearby forest is inhabited by magical creatures called Totoros (pronounced toe-toe-ro). They soon befriend these Totoros, and have several magical adventures. Manami Kawazoe, Japan Outreach Initiative Coordinator at West Liberty University, will lead a discussion. Note: A free screening of the film will be held at OCPL on Friday, May 26 at 2 pm.
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June 6, 2023 Who’s in the Wheeling Hall of Fame with Dr. Javersak
Begun in 1977, the Wheeling Hall of Fame honors past and present residents “who had attained considerable distinction in some specific field and thus brought honor to their home city.” Its six categories include: Music and Fine Arts; Sports and Athletics; Business, Industry and Professions; Public Service; Education and Religion; and Philanthropy. The Wheeling Hall of Fame Board will induct a new class on June 10. But who is already enshrined? Dr. David Javersak returns to review the gallery of Wheeling All-Stars.
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June 13, 2023 Are You A Warwood Quiz Whiz? with Dr. Chuck Julian
As part of our Neighborhood Nostalgia Series and the Summer Reading theme of “Neighborhood of Stories,” Dr. Chuck Julian will present a master-level quiz in Warwood trivia from Loveland to Cork Town and everything in between. The new Spring edition of the Upper Ohio Valley Historical Review, featuring a history of Warwood by Dr. Julian, will be launched at this program.
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June 20: LIBRARY CLOSED for West Virginia Day
June 27, 2023 Abigail Adams, “Remember the Ladies”
To celebrate the spirit of Independence, we will welcome Abigail Adams to the Library. An active participant in our nation’s birth, Abigail Adams is well known for her advocacy of women’s rights, especially in education, and her opposition to slavery. As a valued confidant and advisor to her husband John Adams, the nation’s second president, Abigail cautioned him that the Founding Fathers should “remember the ladies” in the new laws they would write for our young country. Together, they were the first inhabitants of the White House. Mrs. Adams is portrayed by JoAnn Peterson for the WV Humanities Council’s History Alive program.
