Somethings just have not changed.
Category Archives: history
Brookfield Group Home Story Has Oregon Hill Roots
Richmond BizSense carried this story today: Glen Allen nonprofit shuts down
Here is an excerpt:
Brookfield Group Home, a rehabilitative facility for teens and young women, shut down in June. The organization on Brook Road has been around since 1874, and until recently provided housing, counseling, transportation and other services to female youth with behavioral and emotional problems.
Executive director Tim Reading wrote in an email to BizSense that the nonprofit had ceased operations effective June 30. He would not comment further on why the nonprofit was closing or whether the residents would be transferred to another home.
How does this relate to Oregon Hill?
Neighbor Charles Pool has the local history:
Yes, there is a direct link between Brookfield and the Parsons House, which took some tracking down. Here is some info from my Parsons House report:
In 1874 the Magdalen Association established the Spring Street Home at the Parsons House as a home for rehabilitating “women of the street,” and later provided care for unwed mothers. In 1932 the Spring Street Home moved to the 90 acre “Brookfield Estate” off of Broad Street where the Richmond Hyatt is today. The Brookfield name was adopted and the agency continued to care for unwed mothers. The new president of the agency announced that, “We wanted to call it ‘Brookfield’ instead of the Spring Street Home to save the girls from any embarrassment in being in a ‘home.'” In 1968 Brookfield sold this valuable property at the I-64 interchange for $1,280,000 and moved to the location on Brook Road near the Henrico-Hanover boundary. Brookfield maintained the original motto of the Magdalen Association: “Ut Misercordiam Obtineant” (They Shall Obtain Mercy). In 1975 the mission of Brookfield changed from working with unwed mothers to helping adolescents of both sexes.
“Oregon Hill” by Gayla and Gene Mills
Note: Gayla Mills served as Oregon Hill Neighborhood Association president in the early 2000’s. The couple has since left the neighborhood but they are missed.
There Is A Wolf
A recent Style Magazine story on Coby Batty reminded me of a post that I have wanted to do for a while:
There is a wolf, she sees with golden eyes;
She follows me, she knows my lonely mind;
How many times she is singing in my dreams and she knows all my songs;
And if I am right, she will sing along…At Idlewood and Cherry late at night;
The moon is full, the Hill waits for the sun;
Ol’ Salome and haze settle along the yellow lines
Hollywood bones love to sing along…
Do You Remember The Band, Flat Stanley?
I did not discover the local band Flat Stanley until after they had already broken up, but I did enjoy their recorded music. This video has some great film footage of Richmond, including VCU and Monroe Park.
912 Idlewood
Yesterday’s flooding pictures on Idlewood brought to mind the structures that used to be along that stretch of road. Click here for a 1997 photo of 912 Idlewood on Flikr.
Here’s the caption:
This former storefront / house on the 900 block of Idlewood Avenue burned and was demolished in 1998. It sat at the alley immediately south of the 200 block of south Cherry Street. The community garden is located precisely where it and its neighbor at 914 sat. Oregon Hill, Richmond.
Poppa Joe’s Grill
Now Mamma Zu’s, but exact date of photo is unknown.
From the Richmond Counterculture – 1970 – 1990 Facebook photos…
Rifle Volleys In Hollywood Cemetery on Saturday
From Hollywood Cemetery:
The Stuart-Mosby Historical Society will hold a memorial service for General JEB Stuart at his gravesite in Hollywod Cemetery on Saturday, May 14, 2011.
The service is scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. and end between noon and 12:30 p.m.
There will be rifle volleys fired as a part of the service.
Accidentally shot, 1864
From The Daily Dispatch: May 9, 1864:
Accidentally shot.
–A gentleman from Oregon Hill, while assembling for militia drill Friday afternoon, accidentally lost his hold upon the musket which he was carrying, when it fell with the butt to the ground, the force of which discharged its contents, inflicting a serious wound in his arm. For the time being he is disqualified for service.



