Featured Stories
Alligators: The Invasion of the Jefferson Hotel
The Jefferson Hotel was a popular destination for many tourists, along with some reptilian friends.
Camp Merriewood-Harrison
Many local organizations provided camp experiences to Richmond children over the decades, including Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, YMCA and YWCA, Weinstein Jewish Community Center, among others. This story focuses on a brief history of one specific local children’s camp – Camp Merriewood-Harrison.
Smallpox in Richmond
In Virginia, smallpox was introduced by Jamestown settlers, and by 1700, the disease had already killed 75% of the Indigenous population, nearly wiping out the once powerful Powhatan Nation.
Richmond’s Gibson Girl
Charles Gibson’s illustrated women were wasp-waisted, with a big, flounced hairstyle that implied a hasty solution amid a flurry of activities. She often appeared bored and superior to her suitors and her surroundings, even the mountains she scaled. And all this—from her disdain to her sporting records—the Gibson Girl doled out with absolute grace.
The Covenanters
Roving boys even formed gangs that warred with each other. In response, a local woman named Katherine Hawes founded a group in 1896 to harness all of this energy for the common good.
Richmond’s Women Mayors
Virginia has yet to elect a woman governor. The city of Richmond, however, has had two women mayors.
Moral Quarantine
In the early 19th century, Magdalen Societies began to appear in cities all over America. In 1874, the Magdalen Association of Richmond opened such a home on Spring Street, in Oregon Hill, in the 1819 Parsons House. Their stated mission was to provide “shelter and reformation for fallen women.”
Santiago’s Story
During the creation of Nuestras Historias: Latinos in Richmond, curator Wanda Hernández interviewed over 60 Latinos in the Richmond area. One of the individuals she interviewed was Santiago, who shed light on the complexities of immigration policy and how it impacts his day-to-day life.
North of the City
Made up of smaller neighborhoods including Ginter Park, Barton Heights, Hermitage Road, Highland Park and more; Richmond’s Northside is an area of growth and change that alludes to its ambitious past.