Black History Month Richmond Resources

RICHMOND HISTORY TIMELINE

Explore events from Richmond’s past connected to Black history through objects, documents and images from the Valentine’s collection.

Timeline of Richmond history. A picture appears on the left and a decription on the right. Picture of Henry "box" Brown monument on left and on the right 1849 Henry "box" Brown mailed himself to freedom. — Richmond History Timeline

Lesson Plan

A sample lesson plan using the timeline to celebrate Black History Month.

Jump to stories: 1619 | 1800 | 1815 | 1831 | 1841 | 1844 | 1849 | 1850 | 1854 | 1863 | 1871 | 1884 1888 | 1891 | 1893 | 1895 | 1896 | 1897 | 1898 | 1899 | 1902 | 1903 | 1904 | 1908 | 1914 | 1918 | 1920 1939 | 1947 | 1948 | 1956 | 1960 | 1968 | 1972 | 1973 | 1976 | 1977 | 1978 | 1980 | 1981 | 1988 | 1990 1994 1996 | 1998 | 2004 | 2008 | 2017 | 2019 | 2021

COLLECTIONS IN THE CLASSROOM

Downloadable interpreted primary source packets

FEATURED STORIES

Short readings on Richmond history topics

Postcard of troops entering a burning Richmond with two American flags. It reads

Black Troops at New Market

Did you know that when fleeing Confederates set fire to Richmond’s warehouse district and evacuated the capital in 1865, the U.S. Colored Troops were some of the first Union soldiers to arrive?

Three men in white suits and two children at the dedication of the Bill

Bill "Bojangles" Robinson: Richmond History Maker

Bill “Bojangles” Robinson – a dancer, a philanthropist, a star, a Richmonder.

A Black woman, a white girl, and a Black boy in the foreground with the Arthur Ashe Monument in the background.

Arthur Ashe: Richmond History Maker

Arthur Ashe – a professional tennis player, an activist, a Richmonder.

Pen and ink drawing of Maggie L. Walker from the chest up. She is looking to the side and has one hand under her chin.

Maggie L. Walker: Richmond History Maker

Maggie L. Walker – a mother, a leader, a civil rights activist, an entrepreneur, a Richmonder.

Lillian Payne stands in the center wearing a black dress. Two Black woman are to her right and another Black woman and a Black man are to her left. All are looking in her direction.

Lillian Payne and the Independent Order of St. Luke

“Who is so helpless as the negro woman? Who is so circumscribed and hemmed in—in the race of life, in the struggle for bread, meat, and clothing—as the negro woman?”

The marching band of St. Emma Industrial & Agricultural Institute at Belmead Plantation, Powhatan County near Richmond; image of a group of young Black men in band uniforms posing in front of the main school (house) building; the students hold instruments; band leader, in dark uniform, sits in center of group; drum on left inscribed,

Boarding Schools for Black Students Offered a Unique Education for more than 70 years

More than 12,000 African American and Native American students from across the country attended St. Emma Industrial and Agricultural Institute (est. 1895) for young men and St. Francis de Sales (est. 1899) for young women until both schools closed in the early 1970s.