LoCoHistory

Attend a free lecture on local African-American Cemeteries by Dr. Lynn Rainville at the Jefferson-Madison Regional Library Sunday, February 5th at 2pm in the McIntire Room (third floor, central branch of the library). Professor Rainville will discuss her research into historic, black burial grounds and the associated mortuary beliefs and funerary patterns. Come learn more about these “outdoor museums” of African-American beliefs and family connections.

Prior to the talk, explore a related website designed by Prof. Rainville that includes information about dozens of historic, black cemeteries in Albemarle and Amherst Counties. Below is an excerpt from a walking tour of Charlottesville’s historic Daughters of Zion Cemetery (located minutes away from the Downtown Mall). Clicking on the image will take you to a virtual tour but please get out to see the real thing!

Upcoming event, January 25th, 2012, Noon: “The Enduring Legacy of Henry Martin and Other Enslaved Laborers at U.Va.” (in the Harrison Institute auditorium). Later that day, at 5:30 p.m., a second event will be held to honor Mr. Martin as part of U.Va.’s commemoration of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (in the Rotunda Dome Room). Several scholars will discuss the lives and contributions of Mr. Martin and other formerly enslaved people at UVA during the lunchtime lecture.

Mr. Martin was born into slavery at Monticello on the day that Thomas Jefferson died: July 4, 1826. He was later sold to the Carr family, but eventually earned his freedom. In 1847 he was hired (as a free man) to be the bell ringer for the University of Virginia. Waking at 4am to begin work and tending to the bells throughout the day, he worked until his retirement in 1909. He died in 1915 at age 89. To read more about his life and the upcoming event, visit an external link to a UVA press release about Henry Martin and the upcoming events.

Join University of Virginia students (Memorial For Enslaved Laborers Committee) as they discuss their efforts to create a more appropriate Memorial to commemorate the enslaved laborers who constructed the University and lived on grounds during the antebellum period. An open discussion will beheld November 2nd from 7:30 to 8:30pm in Clark 107. The discussion will include a history of the project, a dialogue about its design, and comments by a guest speaker, Professor Claudrena Harold (Associate Professor, History).

A related effort is “Ucare:” University and Community Action for Racial Equality. This project is dedicated to “helping the University of Virginia and the Charlottesville communities work together to understand the University role in slavery, racial segregation, and discrimination and to find ways to address and repair that legacy, particularly as they relate to present day disparities.”

Both groups are working on better ways to commemorate the enslaved African Americans who lived and worked at the University during the antebellum period. The photos here illustrate the current, inadequate memorial (which lies under foot in a corner of the brick pathway that surrounds the Rotunda) and two top-place finishers in a recent competition to design a better memorial.

I’ve posted in the past about the Kitty Foster site at UVA. Recently, the University of Virginia dedicated a new park at the former site of Catherine Foster’s house and family burial ground.  Foster’s home was part of an antebellum community adjacent to the University named “Canada,” probably a reference to the Free Black population who lived there (slaves were emancipated in 1843 in Canada). Catherine “Kitty” Foster was a Free Black woman who purchased land for a house in 1833. Kitty was born around 1790 and later worked as a laundress for UVA faculty and students. When she died in 1863, the land was subdivided among her descendants and remained in the family until about 1906 when the property was sold to white developers.

Archaeological investigations at the house site have uncovered ceramic sherds, glass shards, animal bones, nails, and a cobblestone path that relate to the everyday activities conducted here. Rivanna Archaeological Services produced a comprehensive report on these findings and the historical context of the Foster family in a report titled, “The Foster Family-Venable Lane Site: Report of Archaeological Investigations.”

In 1993 a coffin was located at the site during the construction of a parking lot. After an initial archaeological survey in the 1990s, Rivanna Archaeological Services returned in 2002 and 2005 (read more about their findings in 2005) to locate additional unmarked graves, totaling 32 individuals (read the story here). Because of their proximity to the house, these remains are believed to be relatives of Kitty Foster. After locating the burials, the human remains were recovered and left undisturbed (the photo illustrates a re-landscaping effort to indicate the location of the unmarked burials).

The more recent dedication ceremony included a newly constructed “shadow catcher” designed by Walter Hood and Cheryl Barton. This metal structure casts a shadow over the location of the cemetery and symbolizes an abstract outline of the house and its chimney.

>>For more information about the dedication ceremony, click here.

>>To read an article about the planned site in The C-ville, click here.

>>To here an interview with Dr. Gertrude Fraser (UVA vice provost for faculty recruitment and retention ) about the Kitty Foster Site, click here.

>>The site is listed on the Virginia Foundation for the Humanities African American Heritage website.

I have recently posted an unpublished manuscript by a local historian, Gayle M. Schulman. Read below for background on her work and a link to download the article….

In 1996, local historian Gayle Schulman came across a series of letters written in 1866 by Isabella Gibbons, a newly freed slave who taught in the Charlottesville’s Freedman’s School. Ms. Schulman’s project to research the life of Gibbons and her family (part of which was published in the Magazine of Albemarle County History, Vol. 55) led her to other studies of local African American history.

During her research into the Gibbons family she learned that both Isabella and her husband, William Gibbons, had been owned for part of their lives by University of Virginia Professors. In 2003, Ms. Schulman began a systematic review of archives, manuscripts, census data, church membership lists, and birth and death records searching for clues to their lives as individuals and as members of a community. A portion of this research is illustrated in her manuscript titled “Slaves at the University of Virginia.” To download a copyrighted version of this 33-page article (pdf file), click here.

Walking down West Main Street takes you back in time, when Starr Hill referred to a neighborhood, not a brewery and when the Railroad was the main means of travel in and out of the city. If you keep your eyes peeled while walking you can spot century-old buildings, the structural remainders of those by-gone days. One beautiful example is a former church located on Commerce Street in the middle of the Starr Hill Neighborhood (bordering on the Vinegar Hill Neighborhood). This historic black church is surrounded by other structures associated with the African American community (e.g., the J.F. Bell Funeral Home, founded in 1917 and the Ebenezer Baptist Church, founded in 1892).

Church (2008)

Up until recently, the building was home to the Charlottesville Church of Christ. In 1990 the congregation moved to a new building on 5th Street. Earlier in the century a different, African American congregation used the building. According to Professor Emeritus K. Edward Lay, the church was founded in 1919 and called the Bethlehem Apostolic Church or the Bethel Baptist Church. The building was built several years later, in 1922, and featured a stuccoed building with a Corinthian Tetrastyle Portico and stained glass windows. Today the stucco has been replaced with wood and tiles.

The building’s classical facade was inspired by Greek and Roman architectural styles.

Maison Carreé in France (a Roman Temple)

Today, the capitals at the tops of the corinthian columns are colored gold (although this seems to be a newly added decorative feature). The green tile is also a newer addition (compare the 2008 photo to the historic one). A wide staircase leads to the narrow portico (or porch). This architectural style dates back to Roman times. One of the best preserved examples of a Roman Temple (and the impetus for the church facade) is the Maison Carrée in France. It was built over 2000 years ago (in 16 B.C.E.) and survived, in large part, because it was converted to a Christian church in 4th century. Today it is a museum.

In recognition and honor of Barack Obama’s recent victory, I wanted to turn to local achievements and highlight a few examples of African-American leadership in Charlottesville’s past. Obama’s historic victory rests on the struggle and hard work of centuries of African-Americans. At the national level we can point to the success of such diverse individuals as Booker T. Washington, Bille Holiday, W.E.B. DuBois, Zora Neale Hurston, and Martin Luther King, Jr. Here in Charlottesville we salute the contributions of lesser known, but locally significant citizens.

One such individual is Benjamin Tonsler (1854-1917), a teacher and principal at the Jefferson Graded School for almost three decades. Born enslaved, Tonsler attended the Hampton Institute before returning to Charlottesville. As reported on the African American Heritage program website, “He took personal risks in order to help many African-American students gain an education beyond the legal eighth grade during segregation, teaching advanced texts after school. Tonsler was also a friend of Booker T. Washington and played an important role in Charlottesville’s civil rights movement.” He is buried in the Daughter of Zion’s Cemetery (across from Oakwood) and the nearby Park is named after him. His ca. 1879 house, located at 327 6th Street SW, is listed on the Virginia Landmarks Register. Click on the link to read more about this house.

Another remarkable local resident was Mrs Rebecca McGinnis (1892-2000). Living to age 107, she was descended from an enslaved family that lived at the Chestnut Grove Plantation. She graduated from Hampton University, taught school in Charlottesville (1915-1960), and fought for civil rights. During her long life she witnessed many historic changes, one of which she describes here, “… when I was a youngster, black and white lived together. We didn’t have all the segregation like we had in the later years. After they passed what they called the Massenberg bill, that’s called the Jim Crow bill, then they moved all the blacks out from the whites and the whites from the blacks, because where I used to live, whites used to live right across the street from where we lived. Children used to play all together…But when they passed that Massenberg bill, that’s what it was called, forever it was called the Jim Crow law. ”

John Mays (1862-1923) founded the first African-American newspaper in Charlottesville: the Charlottesville Messenger. Born in slavery he triumphed despite limited educational opportunities in Jim Crow Virginia and dedicated his professional career to providing information to the black community through his paper (published in the 1910s and 1920s).

Other successful black business people include Mr. and Mrs Inge. George Inge arrived in Charlottesville in 1891, planning to teach school. After he discovered that the opportunities for black teachers were limited he opened a store at 333 West Main St. The Inge’s grocery closed in 1978 after 87 years in operation. The building still stands but was more recently known as “Awful Arthur’s Seafood” and, today, the “West Main” Restaurant. Mr. Inge was a successful grocer who supplied the city and university with fresh produce and seafood. His wife was famous for crafting hand-churned butter into elegant shapes. Their children carried this success to the next generation becoming teachers (5 sons and daughters), medical doctors (2 sons), scientists (1 son), and a realtor.

This brief list provides a small window into the contributions of the African American community. To read more about the accomplishments of the historic African American community in Charlottesville, take a look at Agnes Cross-White’s book titled, “Charlottesville: An African-American Community” (Arcadia Publishing 1998). Or stroll through one of Charlottesville’s historic black cemeteries to read about individuals lives as memorialized on gravestones.For example, view the on-line walking tour of the Daughter’s of Zion Cemetery.

For a local discussion of the election results please see the announcement below:

The Carter G. Woodson Institute invites you to attend the next installment of the Currents in Conversation series: “2008: An Election Post-Mortem”.
DATE AND TIME:  Thursday November 6, 2008 at 7:30pm
LOCATION:  108 Clark Hall

For more information, visit the Carter G. Woodson Institute website.

In the 1910s, Julius Rosenwald (1862-1932) donated money to help Booker T. Washington fund six African-American schools in Alabama. The project was a success and soon thereafter Rosenwald (born to a Jewish family that had immigrated from Germany and later, co-owner of the Sears & Roebuck company) created the “Julius Rosenwald Fund” for African-American schools in the south. The goal of the project was to build new and innovative school houses (using, in part, Sears & Roebuck building kits). Rosenwald included a caveat, the entire community had to contribute money and labor to build the school and furnish it. During the 15 years of the fund’s existence (1917-1932), the Rosenwald fund helped finance 4,977 new schools, 217 teachers’ homes, and 163 shop buildings. In some communities these schools were the first formal school house, in others they replaced dilapidated and unsafe structures. In each case, this program encouraged communities to contribute to the construction of their school.

Here in Albemarle County almost a dozen Rosenwald schools were built. They were built between 1921 and 1926. Today, only a handful remain standing. Most of the schools sat on several acres and cost between $2000 and $3000. Here in Albemarle, the Rosenwald fund contributed about 30% of the total cost, the African-American community about 20%, and the remainder was given by “whites” and “the public” (categories used by the fund in identifying donors). The schools were classified based on the number of teachers who taught in the building. In Greenwood they built a “two teacher” school (seen in the photo; Courtesy of the Fisk Collections). These schools continued to be used until desegregation.

If you attended a Rosenwald School or have more information about Albemarle County Rosenwald Schools (or others in central Virginia) please contribute a comment below or contact me directly (lynn[at]locohistory.org). Here in Albemarle several members of the community have begun a project to research the history of these schools.

Much of local history lies in front of our eyes, but goes unnoticed. This is not the case with the Taylor Family. The Martha Jefferson Neighborhood Association and Hospital combined to sponsor a marker that commemorates an African American family that has lived in the neighborhood for over 150 years. Quoting from the marker, “The land was originally part of a 25 acre parcel purchased in 1869 by Fairfax Taylor (1816-895). A former slave who bought his freedom and was the first black land owner in this area. Another member of the family, James T.S. Taylor (1840-1918) was active in politics and a delegate to the Virginia Constitutional Convention of 1867. Both were prominent members of the First Baptist Church and the community. As of this date [1993], their descendants live on family land in one of the three original Taylor houses.” The photo below illustrates one of the original Taylor homes. Unfortunately, the street is no longer called “Taylor.” Instead, the marker lies along Lexington avenue, just north of the Maplewood Cemetery.
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A couple years ago I visited an unmarked graveyard off Route 22. Today located on private property, adjacent to a 20th Century house, the fieldstones in the graveyard dated to an earlier period. The un-inscribed stones suggested an informal, family graveyard, most likely used by individuals who could not afford mass-produced markers. With no names or dates, I filed the cemetery away for later research (such as deed and census analysis to try to figure out who owned the land 100+ years ago).

More recently, I saw an intriguing advertisement for a house (MLS 437142) located only half-a-mile from the old graveyard. The description caught my attention: “Albert Johnson was a freed slave who obtained this property from the Meriwether and Randolph families. Construction started in 1882 with the western-most portion (one over one over one with access via rope ladders). The eastern portion was build in 1889.” I turned to UVA architectural historian emeritus, K. Edward Lay, to learn more. He had studied the house as part of his research into historic homes in Albemarle County (see his book for more information: The Architecture of Jefferson County). According to Professor Lay, Albert Johnson was a black carpenter living on land given to Blacks after Civil War. In the 1880 Census, Albert Johnson is listed as age 35 (born in slavery, around 1845), married to Amity Johnson (also 35) and living with their six children and one other boy (possibly a relative, Jesse Spencer, age 17).

Further inquiries with neighbors, Mrs. G. and Sara Lee Barnes, revealed that at some point between the first and second quarter of the 20th century the house was purchased by a white family named Dowell. For much of the 20th Century, Mrs. Dowell and her children lived very simply in the house. Mrs Dowell lived to be over one hundred years old. After her death, her daughter Lyndell stayed in the house for some years. After she was no longer able to take care of herself, the house was sold out of the family.

The kitchen contains logs said to have come from Monticello or possibly Shadwell (Mr Johnson once lived and worked at the former). A modern bathroom was tacked on at the rear of the house sometime in the 20th century (seen in the photo below). The beautiful oaks in the yard were planted by Mr. Johnson. So while the house lacks central heat or air, it retains the beauty of past craftsmanship (only slightly obscured by cheap paneling and carpeting). Ms Barnes commented that this was one of three homes in the immediate vicinity that were originally built by freed slaves for their families. One (or all) of these homes may have used the graveyard located nearby. Located off busy Route 22 in Keswick, this is the house that time forgot. Hopefully it will be bought and restored, rather than torn down.