Robert C. Byrd Center for Congressional History and Education
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Exciting News from the Byrd Center Intern Program

3/29/2016

 
Every day, a group of dedicated Shepherd University students work with the staff at the Byrd Center in our archives and office. Our intern team is making excellent progress in preparing new sections of our collections for research and digitizing documents and photographs. The Byrd Center's internship program has welcomed over 14 students in the past ten years, many of whom have gone on to work in and pursue graduate degrees in public history and archives. We want to take this opportunity to share with you some of the most recent news from our intern program. 
In February, we welcomed two new students to the internship program. Stephen "Kyle" Staubs and Zachary Garver are both students in Shepherd University's History Program. Both Kyle and Zach began their internships by working on our digitization project with Senator Robert C. Byrd's extensive clipping scrapbooks collection. There are over 150 large scrapbooks containing press clippings, magazine articles, and other ephemera which provide a timeline view of Senator Byrd's life and career from his earliest days in the West Virginia State Legislature in the 1940s until his final years in the U.S. Senate. Zach and Kyle both worked on digitizing the physical scrapbooks, which can be a delicate process due to the age of the books and the rapid deterioration of newsprint. Using the center's flatbed scanner, Zach and Kyle scanned each page, sometimes multiple times to capture all of the articles affixed to them.
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Kyle places a page from one of the scrapbooks on the scanner screen for digitization.

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Research Reveals Remarkable Story Behind an Object in the Byrd Archives

3/22/2016

 
By Jody Brumage
​

When exploring the collections at the Byrd Center, we often discover remarkable stories by following the trail though the various boxes and folders of records. Sometimes, the simplest object can have a dramatic and significant background. This week, we would like to share one such object and its intriguing context as illuminated by the Robert C. Byrd Congressional Papers Collection.​
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The Uniform Time Act of 1966

3/15/2016

 
By Jody Brumage

​While searching for records in our collections for submission to the Association of Centers for the Study of Congress' The Great Society Congress digital exhibit last week, we uncovered documents detailing a unique legislative achievement for West Virginia's Congressman Harley O. Staggers, Sr. The discovery was very timely since the documents record Congressman Staggers' role in securing passage of the Uniform Time Act of 1966, establishing nation-wide standards for the observance of daylight-saving time. The act marked the first effort by Congress to address the complex issue which plagued several major U.S. industries and caused confusion for anyone traveling across the nation's time zones. 
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Congressman Staggers, Sr. at his chairman's desk in the House Interstate and Foreign Commerce Committee Room.

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Byrd Center Welcomes Visit from West Virginia Secretary of State Tennant

3/8/2016

 
On Friday, March 4, 2016, we welcomed West Virginia Secretary of State Natalie Tennant and her staff to the Byrd Center for lunch and a tour of the archives during her recent trip to the Eastern Panhandle. The Secretary and her staff were introduced to several new programs at the center including our upcoming traveling exhibit debuting at the Byrd Center in late April.

During our lunch meeting, the secretary shared her stories about the complex matter of filling West Virginia's U.S. Senate seat following the death of Senator Byrd in the summer of 2010 and how the state coped with the passing of its longtime champion in Congress. 
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(Left to Right) Dr. Jay Wyatt, Secretary Tennant, Dr. Ray Smock, and Jody Brumage

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West Virginians Lead the Fight to Prevent Air Pollution

3/1/2016

 
​By Jody Brumage
​Since the 1950s, Congress has debated and periodically enacted legislation to limit the causes and impact of air pollution in the United States. The first successful bill to address this issue was the Air Pollution Control Act, passed in 1955. A subsequent bill, the Clean Air Act of 1963, expanded the government’s efforts to control emissions and provided funding for the U.S. Public Health Service to conduct research. Four years later in 1967, Congress again debated a bill to further expand the government’s control over emissions, and the effort was led by two members of West Virginia’s congressional delegation: Senator Jennings Randolph and Representative Harley O. Staggers, Sr.
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Senator Jennings Randolph (left) and Congressman Harley O. Staggers, Sr. (right)

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    Welcome to the Byrd Center Blog! We share content here including research from our archival collections, articles from our director, and information on upcoming events. 

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213 North King Street
PO Box 5000
Shepherd University
Shepherdstown, WV 25443
(304) 876 - 5702

Our Mission:

The Byrd Center advances representative democracy by promoting a better understanding of the United States Congress and the Constitution through programs and research that engage citizens.
© 2021 Robert C. Byrd Center for
​Congressional History and Education
  • Home
  • About
    • Latest News
    • Statement on Systemic Racism
    • Leadership
    • Our Partners
    • Parking and Directions
  • Education
    • People Powered 2023 Program
    • Educational Resources
    • Teacher Institute
    • Internship Program
  • Research
    • Congressional Collections >
      • Robert C. Byrd Congressional Papers
      • Harley O. Staggers, Sr. Congressional Papers
      • Harley O. Staggers, Jr. Congressional Papers
      • Scot Falkner CAO Papers
    • Blog
    • Digital Collections
    • Oral History Project
    • Plan a Visit to the Archives
    • Collecting Policy
  • Events
    • Voices of the Community series
    • Summer Fundraiser 2023
    • Forum on Pollution
    • Formidable - author event
    • Voices of the Community
    • Constitution Day
    • Past Events
  • Support Us
    • Friends of the Byrd Center
    • Name a Seat
    • Annual Report
  • Reservations
  • Login