Category Archives: history

Valentine Exhibit Review

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In Disciples of Vulcan, the Valentine Richmond History Center attempts to illustrate the long history of Oregon Hill in pictures and words. For residents of neighborhood, the beautiful old photographs on display are certain to leave an impression as some combination of recognition, pride, and loss washes over you. Black-and-white images tell the story of the Hill’s growth from its beginnings as a hardworking immigrant enclave to the diverse community that it is now, protecting is roots defiantly in the face of big changes.

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Visitors to the exhibit have a chance to see several long-gone but often-referenced places, such as the penitentiary and the older section of Oregon Hill on the other side of Belvidere. Placards trace the general history of the neighborhood from its start in the early 1800s to the present day, referencing everything from its original demographics to recent conflicts with VCU. A collection of ephemera includes advertisements for neighborhood businesses, a menu from the Chuck Wagon, and flyers for community events.

Although the exhibit is small and can be seen in about half an hour, everyone but the most seasoned neighborhood historians is sure to learn some new facts about Oregon Hill. Disciples of Vulcan could go from great to amazing if more in-depth information were to be added, such as more details about why the neighborhood remained relatively unchanged for as long as it did, race relations, boy gangs, bread riots, and personal stories about life in the area. As it is, the exhibit it a must-see for all Oregon Hill residents and enthusiasts, and will be invaluable in establishing a sense of identity as newer transplants become members of this longstanding community.

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The Valentine Richmond History Center is open Tuesday – Saturday 10am – 5pm, and Sunday 12pm – 5pm. Admission is normally $8, but Sundays are Pay What You Can Day. The museum is located at 1015 E. Clay Street.

tess m. dixon

* alwaysmidnight.etsy.com
* parasolparty.wordpress.com
* midnightsocietyrva.com

Once An Oregon Hill Resident: Ida Mae Thompson

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I have mentioned Oregon Hill’s activist history before, but then I was tipped off about this online entry:

Ida Mae Thompson (1866–1947)

Ida Mae Thompson was an important figure in Virginia’s woman suffrage movement, not for her political work but for her recordkeeping. First as a member of the Equal Suffrage League, the organization that led the effort to win women the right to vote, and then as a member of the League of Women Voters, Thompson collected and preserved the movement’s history.

……

Thompson and her English-born mother moved to Richmond in 1886 to live with Thompson’s brother, Otis, a telegraph operator. The family lived in a rented frame house in the working-class neighborhood of Oregon Hill, on South Cherry Street near Hollywood Cemetery, just down the street from the first free circulating library in Richmond.

…..
(Go to top link for full entry)

Valentine Museum Chronicles Architecture & People Of Oregon Hill

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Valentine History Center:
Opening May 14th : Disciples of Vulcan: Examining the Oregon Hill Community

“Bordered by Cary and Belvidere Streets to the north and east and Oregon Hill Parkway and Hollywood Cemetery to the south and west, Oregon Hill was settled in the 1840s by Irish and Welsh ironworkers and continues to thrive as a tight-knit working class neighborhood. Using images from the History Center photograph collection, the exhibition will trace the development of the neighborhood’s residents, businesses, institutions and preservation challenges.”

photograph of 614-618 China Street.

photograph of 614-618 China Street.

Part of Grace Arents’ Legacy- Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden

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Every Richmonder worth a salt should know who Grace Arents is.

http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GSln=Arents&GSfn=Grace&GSbyrel=in&GSdyrel=in&GSob=n&GRid=7014698&

http://www.rbc.edu/library/SpecialCollections/Women_history_resources/vfwposter2004.pdf

http://www.nps.gov/history/Nr/travel/richmond/OregonHillHD.html

One of the most important groups of buildings is the St. Andrews’s complex at South Laurel Street and Idlewood Avenue. Richmond philanthropist and social reformer Miss Grace Arents funded and supervised construction of the St. Andrew’s Church Complex (243 South Laurel) of 1901-1903, to the designs of the Indiana architect A. H. Ellwood. The complex also includes a parochial school from 1901 and St. Andrew’s Hall at 711 Idlewood Avenue from 1904.

Miss Arents’ work extended throughout the neighborhood well beyond the Episcopal buildings. In 1904, she built the brick Colonial Revival style St. Andrew’s Houses at 912-914 Cumberland Street and 200 and 202 South Linden Street, which constitute one of the earliest examples of subsidized housing in Virginia. She also built a complex of buildings for the Instructive Visiting Nurses Association, dating from 1904 and 1923 at 213 and 219 South Cherry Street, the Noland and Baskervill designed Grace Arents Free Library at 224 South Cherry from 1908, and the 1911 Grace Arents Public School at 600 South Pine Street. Miss Arents also donated the Holly Street Playground on Holly west of Laurel Street, one of the oldest public playgrounds in the City of Richmond.

http://www.richmond.k12.va.us/indexnew/sub/history/arents.cfm

So on that note…

An update from Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden:

* There are still a few seats available for next week’s No Child
Left Inside: Restoring Nature to Early Childhood symposium (April 29th,
8a.m.-4 p.m.) We are excited to announce that Virginia’s First Lady,
Anne Holton, will provide opening remarks at the event. In addition,
you’ll see we’ve added Chip & Ashley Donahue, founders of Kids in the
Valley, Adventuring to the line-up. And, Tracy Kane, noted author and
illustrator of The Fairy Houses
Series(tm), will read from her
books and help families build fairy houses in the Children’s Garden
during our Homespun Fun for Families event.

* We’ve just opened a few remaining slots for the FREE Dinner in
the Garden for Teachers. If you are an educator interested in attending
please see directions below.

* If your organization would like to provide an educational
display at the No Child Left Inside: Restoring Nature to Early Childhood
symposium, please contact Adele MacLean for more details. Call Adele
MacLean at 262-9887 ext. 222 or email her at adelem@lewisginter.org.

Anniversary Year Symposium: No Child Left Inside: Restoring Nature to
Early Childhood
Wednesday, April 29, 8a.m.-4p.m.

For a PDF of the agenda (subject to change), click here.

Join the national dialogue about the critical relationship between
direct exposure to nature and healthy childhood development. Learn about
the physical, cognitive, emotional, social, and creative assets that
young children gain through outdoor experiences, and how direct,
authentic experiences in nature can be created for children wherever
they live, play, and learn.

This symposium is for everyone concerned about the healthy development
of today’s children, including early childhood professionals, teachers
and administrators, recreation leaders, pediatric healthcare providers,
parents and caregivers, urban planners, environmental educators,
architects, landscape architects and designers.

Featuring presentations by:
Jane Kirkland, author of the award-winning children’s nature series,
Take a Walk books
Robin Moore, Director of the Natural Learning Initiative and Professor
of Landscape Architecture, North Carolina State University

Plus Chip & Ashley Donahue, founders of Kids in the Valley, Adventuring
(KIVA)
$25 includes lunch; advance registration required; earns 5 training
hours.
Related Events:
Teacher Workshop: Dinner in the Garden for Teachers
Tuesday, April 28, 5-8:30 p.m.
Presented in cooperation with the Center for Life Sciences Education,
Virginia Commonwealth University Homespun Fun for Families
This symposium is the second in a four-part series marking the Garden’s
25th anniversary. These events are made possible with generous support
from the Robins Foundation.

Highlights of Hollywood

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The Valentine Richmond History Center’s Highlights of Hollywood walking tour will be April 1 from 10-11:30AM:

Learn about the cemetery’s history, artwork and symbolism, as well as the famous personalities buried there, including two U.S. Presidents, writer Ellen Glasgow, Confederate President Jefferson Davis and Generals George Pickett and J.E.B. Stuart.

Meet your guide at the rear of the stone structure on the left at the cemetery entrance at Cherry and Albemarle Streets. $10 (Pay your guide on the day of the tour. ) Members: $5

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City Council Turns Back on CAR (But Supports River Park Conservation)

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I have been watching this case unfold in our neighbors’ lap up in Church Hill.

Without commenting specifically on the developer or the proposed development (because we have seen what can possibly happen if we do), I will say that it sadly reaffirms what Oregon Hill neighbors have long suspected- voting to put our neighborhood under the Commission for Architectural Review will not protect Oregon Hill’s historical assets as long as City Council continues to live by its undeclared ‘Leave No Developer Behind Act’. We always knew that VCU is exempted from City code, but evidently so are others. In other words, our own City Council does not live by CAR’s decisions, so why should we?

As King, I have already declared my own version of historic preservation protection. I swear to do my best to defend the neighborhood from disrespectful development and I continue to ask my neighbors to join me in doing so. Of course, the door is still open if my neighbors do eventually decide they do want to become a “City Historic District”.

By the way, even though I already annexed Belle Island, I will honor City Council’s decision to support the James River Conservation Easement.