Encyclopedia Virginia – The UncommonWealth

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The First Civil Rights: Black Political Activism After Claiming Freedom

It is often assumed that after Congressional Reconstruction in Virginia ended in 1870, no Black men won election to political office in the state until…

Library of VirginiaFebruary 22, 2023

Digital Projects Public Libraries

Public Library Spotlight: A Preservation Partnership

This is a post in our new series highlighting the people and programs of the public libraries of Virginia. To view more posts about our…

Jessi BennettApril 13, 2020

“Irrespective of Race or Color”: African Americans and the Making of a New Virginia Constitution

On 17 April 1868, exactly seven years after a Virginia convention had voted to secede from the United States, another Virginia convention voted to approve…

John DealApril 17, 2019

The Remarkable Hodges Family of Princess Anne County and Norfolk

During the night of 23 April 1829, six African American men made a daring escape from the Norfolk County jail. One of them was William…

Brent TarterMarch 6, 2019

Archives Digital Projects

Kaine Email Project @LVA: Oliver Hill

This is the ninth in a series of posts spotlighting recently released email from Governor Tim Kaine’s administration. These posts are not meant to be comprehensive but to…

Roger ChristmanJune 22, 2015