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Belmead, the Powhatan County mansion that was once home to St. Emma Military Academy for Boys, now is boarded up. Nuns who manage the property have moved to a smaller building as leaders of their religious order, Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament, review bids to purchase the historic 2,200-acre property.

Belmead, the Powhatan County mansion that was once home to St. Emma Military Academy for Boys, now is boarded up. Nuns who manage the property …

Published on April 13, 2017

CITYSCAPE // The highlight of the three-hour program: The announcement of the find of another box of documents. This latest box, like the other 15,000 documents now preserved and digitized, was found in the attic of the Stallings family’s vacant St. Luke Building in Gilpin Court. The four-story building was once the headquarters of the Independent Order of St. Luke that Mrs. Walker ran for much of her life.

CITYSCAPE // The highlight of the three-hour program: The announcement of the find of another box of documents. This latest box, like the other 15,000 …

Published on March 17, 2017

2017 Strong Men & Women honored //Seven high achievers were honored at the 2017 Strong Men & Women in Virginia History program Feb. 1 at a Downtown hotel. Gov. Terry McAuliffe, center, celebrates with the honorees during the annual event that Dominion Resources and the Library of Virginia co-sponsor to honor African-American standouts. From left, the honorees are: Capt. William E. “Bill” Bailey of Accomack, a decorated military pilot; Virginia Court of Appeals Judge Mary Janipher Bennett Malveaux of Henrico County, the court’s first African-American female member; Dr. Margaret Ellen Mayo Tolbert of Suffolk, influential biochemist and author; and Charles Johnson III, who accepted the award on behalf of his late grandfather, sociologist Charles Spurgeon Johnson of Bristol, the first African-American president of Fisk University. Also, Optician David Lambert, representing his late father, Dr. Benjamin J. Lambert III of Richmond, a former state senator and optometrist who played a major role in civic affairs; Jeffrey Moten, who honored the memory of his late wife, Stephanie Therese Rochon-Moten of Richmond, award-winning television reporter and news anchor; and Zakia Al-Amin, who stood in for her grandfather, pioneering Virginia pharmacist Leonard “Doc” Muse of Arlington, who owned and operated Green Valley Pharmacy for 65 years.

2017 Strong Men & Women honored //Seven high achievers were honored at the 2017 Strong Men & Women in Virginia History program Feb. 1 at …

Published on February 10, 2017

Cityscape // Clement Britt Richmond Fire Capt. Robert Maass leads members of Engine Co. No. 13 and Mayor Levar Stoney, second from right, in ceremoniously pushing their new truck into the station Saturday, although the vehicle actually was being driven slowly in reverse. Location: 411 Commerce Road. The new truck was put into service during the “housing ceremony.” It is one of nine the city Fire Department has ordered since 2012 under a replacement program initiated under former Mayor Dwight C. Jones. This is the first new truck to arrive since April 2016. The city’s goal is to replace over time the trucks that the city’s 19 engine companies deploy to reduce the cost of keeping outdated equipment in service.

Cityscape // Clement Britt Richmond Fire Capt. Robert Maass leads members of Engine Co. No. 13 and Mayor Levar Stoney, second from right, in ceremoniously …

Published on February 10, 2017

About 1,500 people gather in support of the Muslim community at last Sunday’s unity event at the Islamic Center of Virginia in Bon Air in response to President Trump’s executive order banning immigrants of seven Muslim-majority countries from entering the United States.

About 1,500 people gather in support of the Muslim community at last Sunday’s unity event at the Islamic Center of Virginia in Bon Air in …

Published on February 10, 2017

The yearly event, sponsored by the Baptist Ministers’ Conference of Richmond and Vicinity, is a part of a Richmond tradition celebrating the 1863 Emancipation Proclamation that freed enslaved persons in the Confederate states, including those in Virginia. Richmond was once a major marketplace for the buying and selling of enslaved persons. The speakers and the music moved many in the audience.

The yearly event, sponsored by the Baptist Ministers’ Conference of Richmond and Vicinity, is a part of a Richmond tradition celebrating the 1863 Emancipation Proclamation …

Published on January 6, 2017

The first pedestrians stream across the newly opened T. Tyler Potterfield Memorial Bridge over the James River. Mayor Dwight C. Jones led the ribbon-cutting for the lighted bridge during the Grand Illumination on Friday. Richmond poured $11.3 million in state and city funds into the span open only to pedestrians and bikes. The new river crossing sits above a 1901 dam and links Brown’s Island on the North Side to an overlook on the South Side near the entry to the Manchester Bridge. Another $200,000 was spent on eight, 17-foot-tall metal rings that Denver artist Joshua Wiener created to adorn the South Side path to the 1,600-foot bridge. The bridge is named for a senior city planner who advocated for the bridge before his death in 2014. Construction began in October 2015 on the only current city structure named for a city employee.

The first pedestrians stream across the newly opened T. Tyler Potterfield Memorial Bridge over the James River. Mayor Dwight C. Jones led the ribbon-cutting for …

Published on December 10, 2016

From left, Yvonne Brandon, president of the Commonwealth Chapter of The Links Inc.; speaker Rosalyn M. Brock, chair of the national NAACP Board of Directors; Claudia Wall, event chair; and Virginia Union University Acting President Joseph F. Johnson take a moment at The Links chapter’s 9th Biennial Green and White Luncheon held Nov. 19 at a Downtown hotel.

From left, Yvonne Brandon, president of the Commonwealth Chapter of The Links Inc.; speaker Rosalyn M. Brock, chair of the national NAACP Board of Directors; …

Published on December 10, 2016

Cityscape // It’s almost done. This is a view of the new T. Tyler Potterfield Memorial Bridge that pedestrians and cyclists can use to cross the James River. No motorized vehicles are allowed. The bridge links Brown’s Island near 5th Street in Downtown to the Manchester Climbing Wall, part of the floodwall, in South Side. It is named for the late city planner who once led the effort to create the bridge. The project took two years of planning and a year of construction. It includes improvements to the land area on the south bank to make the bridge more accessible. More than $11.5 million has been spent on the development, according to the city, including more than $9 million in city taxpayer funds and $2.5 million from a state grant. Part of the structure, now reinforced and improved, dates to 1901 and sat atop a dam that was built at the time to provide water to generate electricity at a long-defunct power plant on 12th Street. A few years ago, the old power plant was transformed into apartments.

Cityscape // It’s almost done. This is a view of the new T. Tyler Potterfield Memorial Bridge that pedestrians and cyclists can use to cross …

Published on October 31, 2016

Links host history makers at VUU // Members of the James River Valley Chapter of The Links Inc. pose with their distinguished guests, seated from left, Kym Grinnage, vice president and general manager of WWBT/NBC12; Dr. Louis W. Sullivan, founding dean of the Morehouse School of Medicine and a former U.S. secretary of health and human services under President George H.W. Bush; former Gov. L. Douglas Wilder, the nation’s first African-American elected governor; and Dr. Joseph F. Johnson, acting president of Virginia Union University. The women’s service organization hosted a community forum Oct. 10 at VUU featuring Dr. Sullivan and Gov. Wilder. The two talked about their latest books, with 200 copies purchased and donated for distribution to local high school and college students.

Links host history makers at VUU // Members of the James River Valley Chapter of The Links Inc. pose with their distinguished guests, seated from …

Published on October 22, 2016

Joe Stewart, center, listens intently as Georgetown University lays out its plans to deal with its links to slavery. His forebears were among the enslaved people the Jesuit-run university sold in 1838 to pay off debts.

Joe Stewart, center, listens intently as Georgetown University lays out its plans to deal with its links to slavery. His forebears were among the enslaved …

Published on September 9, 2016

Family, folklore and food were highlighted last Saturday at the 26th Annual Down Home Family Reunion organized by the Elegba Folklore Society. Festivalgoers enjoyed performances by musical groups, including headliners The Intruders, and browsed tables in the cultural marketplace filled with wares and information linking West African and African-American history and traditions. Left, Congressman Robert C. “Bobby” Scott, who represents the 3rd District that formerly included Richmond, pauses to talk with a festivalgoer.

Family, folklore and food were highlighted last Saturday at the 26th Annual Down Home Family Reunion organized by the Elegba Folklore Society. Festivalgoers enjoyed performances …

Published on August 26, 2016

Linking with Cuba // Gladys Abella, right, with the Martin Luther King Center in Havana, Cuba, is assisted by translator Claudia De La Cruz of the IFCO/Pastors for Peace as she discusses life in Cuba under the U.S. trade and travel embargo. She spoke during a July 7 meeting at Wesley Memorial United Methodist Church in the East End that focused on links between Cuba and Africans. Her visit was organized by the African Awareness Association.

Linking with Cuba // Gladys Abella, right, with the Martin Luther King Center in Havana, Cuba, is assisted by translator Claudia De La Cruz of …

Published on July 22, 2016

Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press More than 100 people march to the Virginia Supreme Court building following Tuesday’s rally in Capitol Square supporting Gov. Terry McAuliffe’s order restoring voting rights to more than 200,000 felons.

Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press More than 100 people march to the Virginia Supreme Court building following Tuesday’s rally in Capitol Square supporting Gov. Terry McAuliffe’s …

Published on July 22, 2016

Rep. Katherine Clark of Massachusetts tweeted a photo from the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday showing the sit-in demanding common sense gun control legislation to keep suspected terrorists from buying guns and tightening background checks. Sitting on the floor in the center is Rep. John Lewis of Georgia, who led the historic action.

Rep. Katherine Clark of Massachusetts tweeted a photo from the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday showing the sit-in demanding common sense …

Published on June 24, 2016

Links to history // Dr. Jill Bussey Harris, second from right, president of the Richmond Chapter of The Links Inc., presents a $100,000 check to officials from the Black History Museum & Cultural Center of Virginia. Accepting the donation, to be made by the women’s service organization over five years, are, from left, museum director Tasha Chambers; Dr. Monroe Harris, chairman of the museum’s campaign fund and husband of Dr. Bussey Harris; and Marilyn H. West, chair of the museum’s board. The presentation took place June 9 at the museum, where the chapter held its year-end celebration hosting a dinner for 15 girls at Franklin Military Academy involved in the chapter’s Focused Motivated Achievers program. In its third year, the program seeks to follow the eighth-graders through high school.

Links to history // Dr. Jill Bussey Harris, second from right, president of the Richmond Chapter of The Links Inc., presents a $100,000 check to …

Published on June 17, 2016

It’s still incomplete. But in a few months, the metal beams these men are sitting on will become a bridge that will allow Richmonders to cross the James River on bike or foot. It will be the T. Tyler Potterfield Memorial Bridge, named for a respected, but now deceased city planner. The workers are from Winchester-based Howard Shockey & Sons Inc., which is building the span that is to open in August. The pedestrian bridge will link Brown’s Island in Downtown to a recreation area on the south side of the river. Estimated cost: $11.5 million, including $9 million in city funds and $2.5 million in state funds. The bridge, which sits above the remnants of a former power company dam, is part of the city’s effort to make the riverfront more accessible.

It’s still incomplete. But in a few months, the metal beams these men are sitting on will become a bridge that will allow Richmonders to …

Published on May 27, 2016

Rallying to save Belmead// An intent crowd listens as volunteer Rodney Jackson rallies support last Saturday to keep the Pennsylvania-based Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament from selling their 2,265-acre Belmead property in Powhatan County. The SBS once operated two Catholic boarding schools for African-American students on the site. Mr. Jackson stands in front of the Belmead mansion, the former home of St. Emma Military Academy for Boys. The other school was St. Francis de Sales School for Girls. About 200 people attended the rally, but the prospects are regarded as slim that the SBS leadership will change course. Already, the SBS essentially has dissolved the nonprofit FrancisEmma Inc. that managed the property for the Catholic order of nuns for the past 12 years.

Rallying to save Belmead// An intent crowd listens as volunteer Rodney Jackson rallies support last Saturday to keep the Pennsylvania-based Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament …

Published on May 20, 2016

The Thompson and Benson Pharmacy enjoyed a large white clientele and carried an extraordinarily large inventory of stock. One of the owners, Dr. John M. Benson, made history in 1895 when he became the first African-American to pass the Virginia Pharmacy boards, a certification test.

The Thompson and Benson Pharmacy enjoyed a large white clientele and carried an extraordinarily large inventory of stock. One of the owners, Dr. John M. …

Published on May 6, 2016

View of the home of the Rev. William Washington Browne, founder of the Grand Fountain of the United Order of True Reformers. Location: 105 W. Jackson St. in Jackson Ward. The house also was the original location of the order’s savings bank, which opened April 3, 1889.

View of the home of the Rev. William Washington Browne, founder of the Grand Fountain of the United Order of True Reformers. Location: 105 W. …

Published on May 6, 2016