32 Hokie Stone Rocks

Access and use

Location of collection:
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Special Collections, University Libraries (0434)
Newman Library
Virginia Tech
P.O. Box 90001
560 Drillfield Drive
Blacksburg, VA 24062-9001
Contact for questions and access:
Phone: (540) 231-6308
Fax: (540) 231-3694
Restrictions:

The collection is open for research.

Terms of access:

The copyright status of this collection is unknown. Copyright restrictions may apply. Contact Special Collections and University Archives for assistance in determining the use of these materials.

Reproduction or digitization of materials for personal or research use can be requested using our reproduction/digitization form: http://bit.ly/scuareproduction.

Reproduction or digitization of materials for publication or exhibit use can be requested using our publication/exhibition form: http://bit.ly/scuapublication. Please contact Special Collections and University Archives (specref@vt.edu or 540-231-6308) if you need assistance with forms or to submit a completed form.

Preferred citation:

Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: 32 Hokie Stone Rocks, Artifact-008, Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.

Summary

Extent:
1.5 Cubic Feet 3 boxes
Abstract:
This collection contains 32 Hokie Stone Rocks, each painted with names of April 16, 2007, victims.
Language:
Materials in this collection are in English.
Preferred citation:

Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: 32 Hokie Stone Rocks, Artifact-008, Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Va.

Background

Scope and content:

This collection contains 32 Hokie Stone Rocks, each painted with names of April 16, 2007, victims of the Virginia Tech shooting.

Biographical / historical:

On the morning of April 16, 2007, 32 members of the Virginia Tech community were shot and killed in West Ambler Johnston Residence Hall and Norris Hall. The gunman, Seung-Hui Cho, then turned the gun on himself.

We continue to remember the 32 victims:

Ross A. Alameddine

Christopher James Bishop

Brian R. Bluhm

Ryan Christopher "Stack" Clark

Austin Michelle Cloyd

Jocelyne Couture-Nowak

Daniel Alejandro Perez Cueva

Kevin P. Granata

Matthew Gregory Gwaltney

Caitlin Millar Hammaren

Jeremy Michael Herbstritt

Rachael Elizabeth Hill

Emily Jane Hilscher

Jarrett Lee Lane

Matthew Joseph La Porte

Henry J. Lee Liviu

Librescu G.V. Loganathan

Partahi Mamora Halomoan Lumbantoruan

Lauren Ashley McCain

Daniel Patrick O'Neil

Juan Ramon Ortiz-Ortiz

Minal Hiralal Panchal

Erin Nicole Peterson

Michael Steven Pohle, Jr.

Julia Kathleen Pryde

Mary Karen Read

Reema Joseph Samaha

Waleed Mohamed Shaalan

Leslie Geraldine Sherman

Maxine Shelly Turner

Nicole Regina White

The night of April 16, 2007, Hokies United, a student-organized response group, set up a memorial shrine with a semicircle of stones on the Drillfield in front of Burruss Hall, the university's administration building. The next day students placed large plywood boards, painted white, on the Drillfield for people to sign and leave expressions of grief, support, etc. Other spontaneous shrines appeared on campus and in the community.

The events of April 16, 2007, received intense media coverage, and people around the world responded. Virginia Tech received over 90,000 condolence items from all 50 states and 80 countries. These items included banners, posters, books of condolences, sound materials, various media materials, poetry, correspondence, resolutions, textiles, memorabilia, ephemera, and handcrafted items, including the handpainted stones of this collection. Thousands of these items were displayed for the university community through University Unions and Student Activities' Squires Student Union.

Items continued to be received for months and years afterwards, and families of those killed were offered the option of receiving many materials directly related to their loved ones from the Office of Recovery and Support, or having them placed in storage for later retrieval.

Acquisition information:
This collection was transferred to Special Collections and University Archives from the Industrial and Systems Engineering Department in 2021.
Processing information:

The processing, arrangement, and description of the was completed in June 2023.

Arrangement:

The stones are arranged into boxes according to the individual's last name.