Mrs. Mellon's library is at the heart of the Oak Spring Garden Foundation, driving much of the research conducted by Oak Spring's residents and fellows, and providing resources and materials that help inform the foundation's gardens and programming. Its collection comprises over 19,000 objects, including 10,000 reference books, 2,000 rare books, over 200 unpublished manuscripts, and various other works of art and decorative objects. The collection is guided by Mrs. Mellon's personal interests in plants, gardens, and landscapes, and as she once wrote, "these books about the outdoors live not in dusty darkness, but behind simple, pale oak doors, easily opened to the world they tell about."

In this episode, we bring you inside the Oak Spring Garden Library for a conversation with Tony Willis, Oak Spring's Head Librarian, and Carter Hulinsky, Oak Spring's Metadata Librarian and Special Collections Cataloger. Tony grew up locally and has been working at the library since 1980, when he was brought on as an assistant during the initial development of the library building. Carter has worked in the library since 2023, but first came to Oak Spring in 2022 as a participant in one of the library's short courses. Together they speak with Chris Stafford about the history of Oak Spring's incredible collection and how the foundation is working today to activate its materials among researchers on-site and to the broader public through online outreach.

Host: Chris Stafford

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