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Biography/History:
Virgia Brocks, daughter of John Brocks, Sr., and Flora Brocks Moore, was born June 22, 1943, in Carpenter, Copiah County, Mississippi. The Brocks had five other children: Flora, Victoria, John Jr., Julius, and Robert. John Brocks, Sr. lost his job when the Carpenter sawmills shut down, and the family moved near Piney Woods, Rankin County, Mississippi. Virgia Brocks began attending the Piney Woods Country Life School at the age of thirteen. After her graduation, she attended Jackson State University, earning a bachelor’s degree in language arts in 1964. One year later, Brocks received a master’s degree in Library Science from Atlanta University (now Clark Atlanta University). She furthered her education by studying at Mount Holyoke College in South Hadley, Massachusetts, Fisk University in Nashville, Tennessee, and the Mississippi Baptist Seminary in Jackson. Virgia Brocks married Charles Shedd in 1973. Together they had two daughters; Victoria (b. ca. 1972), and Carla (b. ca. 1979).
Brocks-Shedd worked as assistant librarian at Tougaloo College’s Zenobia Colman Library from 1965 to 1983. She became head librarian in 1983, a position she held until 1991, when Brocks-Shedd became associate provost of Piney Woods Country Life School. Brocks-Shedd was a published writer and poet. Her works appeared in publications such as the Journal of Negro History, the Jackson Advocate, and Contributions of Black Women to America. She published two poetry collections entitled Southern Roads/City Pavements and We Must Rise. Brocks-Shedd’s work also appeared in Mississippi Woods, a poetry collection published in 1980.
Brocks-Shedd was involved in several organizations. She was a founding member of the Society of Mississippi Archivists, as well as a member of organizations such as the American Library Association, Mississippi Library Association, Mississippi Jazz Society, and the Mississippi Folklore Society. Brocks-Shedd also served as president of the Piney Woods International Alumni Association. Brocks-Shedd was a member of the artistic group the Daughters of Margaret, a group founded in Jackson to continue the work of Margaret Walker Alexander.
Virgia Brocks-Shedd died on December 4, 1992, of complications from cancer and was buried in the Piney Woods Country Life School Cemetery.
Scope and Content
The Virgia Brocks-Shedd Papers are composed of correspondence, Tougaloo College papers, financial records, personal papers, educational papers, her writings, organization documents, and audio-visual materials. The materials document her professional and artistic careers. As a writer, poet, actor, and educator, Brocks-Shedd was involved in several groups concerned with post-Civil Rights Movement cultural uplift, such as the artistic collective the Daughters of Margaret. Of particular interest are her poetry and writings, which reflect her joys, sorrows, anger, and introspective thoughts.
Series Identification:
This series contains incoming and outgoing correspondence between Virgia Brocks-Shedd, her friends, and family. Several notable people, including Margaret Walker Alexander, are included among her correspondents. Also included are numerous get well cards sent to Brocks-Shedd.
Box 3, Folders 21-65This series is composed of papers generated by campus organizations as well as the library. Brocks-Shedd was involved in several organizations, including Student Development Services, Lecture and Concert Series, and the All-African People’s Revolutionary Party. Of interest are the original grant proposals for the Tougaloo College Library and copies of Harambee, the newspaper of Tougaloo College.
Box 4, Folders 8-61The financial records contain medical and insurance documents, bills, and checking account information.
Box 3, Folders 1-20This series contains papers representing Brocks-Shedd’s personal life. They include her travel guides and mementos from Germany, her daughter Carla’s schoolwork, and family records. Of particular interest is the collection of several funeral programs of family and friends. The series also includes the program for Brocks-Shedd’s own funeral.
Box 1, Folders 1-32This series contains Brocks-Shedd’s educational materials. Her bachelor’s degree in English from Jackson State College, and her library degree from Atlanta University, as well as various school catalogs, school reports, and internships paperwork are included.
Box 1, Folders 33-41The writings of Virgia Brocks-Shedd contain manuscripts, articles, speeches, and poetry. Brocks-Shedd’s writing covered a variety of subjects, from her daughters to erotic poetry. She also wrote several tributes to acquaintances, including Margaret Walker Alexander and Ernst Borinski.
Box 1, Folders 42-51This series is composed of various materials documenting Brocks-Shedd’s membership in various organizations. Materials concerning professional groups, such as the Mississippi Library Commission, contain meeting minutes, while those of artistic groups, such as the Daughters of Margaret, contain programs, flyers, and poetry generated by the group. Of special interest are the playbill and character prop used by Brocks-Shedd in the Daughters of Margaret play, “For You Black Men.”
Box 5, Folders 4-36This series contains photographs, cassette tapes, notebooks, and catalogs, as well as miscellaneous records. Of interest is a photograph of a young Virgia Brocks-Shedd with Mississippi Civil Rights leader Fannie Lou Hamer.
Boxes 11-13Boxlist: