Our History Matters

01/16/2023

MLK's first visit to Danville, see any familiar names?

01/16/2023

Happy MLK Day!
On Thursday, July 11, 1963 Dr. King arrived in Danville ahead of a demonstration in defiance of a local injunction. " I have so many injunctions that I dont even look at them anymore", I was enjoined January 15, 1929, when I was born in the United States a Negro........in Danville he stayed with an intelligent, kindly, extroverted retired schoolteacher Mrs. Beatrice Hairston. "Oh, I feel more at home here than any place I've ever been except my own home," Martin said. Off went the shoes, the tie was loosened, and after a cup of her good coffee, he made his way to the refrigerator for some Southern fried chicken.
~Excerpt from King: A Biography by David Lewis

Dr. King would visit Danville four times total, to learn more about his stay and the Wade-Hairston family tour with Our History Matters

01/14/2023

VH's Encyclopedia VA new entry 🙌🙌 Does anyone in our local region have native ties? Saponi? Occaneechi?

01/08/2023

So upon a return to the slave cemetery, we discovered this grave marker stone with a horseshoe resting upon it. The horseshoe was a symbol that wards off evil spirits.

As we began 2023 we reflect on the beautiful blessings of 2022. We are grateful for the discovery of our roots. We thank all who were instrumental in uncovering our family’s truth; Karice Luck-Brimmer, The Washington Post and CBS 60 Minutes for sharing our story.

We are also thankful for each one of you who viewed, shared and followed our amazing family’s story. We have enjoyed your messages and your written letters and artistic gifts. Please continue to be a part of our story as we continue our work to be a light in our community and reach beyond as well. We have many exciting events planned for Sharswood 2023. Stay tuned… 2023

Happy New Year and blessings to you
~ Sharswood

12/25/2022

Happy Holidays!!! Tour! Discover! Learn! with Our History Matters and throw in a little genealogy too:)

12/10/2022

Over the last year, we’ve spotlighted several of the artifacts in our collection, telling the story of Danville’s history. We’ve drawn…

12/06/2022

12/02/2022

Tour! Discover! Learn! with Our History Matters to learn more about the Coles slaveholding family right here in Pittsylvania County~

The Virginia land still owned by the Coles family could yield billions in uranium. Does any of that wealth belong to the descendants of the enslaved? Coles, 84, is one of countless Americans who still benefit from the wealth accumulated by America’s 18th- and 19th-century slaveholders. wapo.st/3ufz048

12/02/2022

A few months back on the job, I was asked, " what is your first memory of hearing about the local Civil Rights Movement" Check out the story feature in Virginia Humanities VIEWS!!

12/02/2022

Today marks the anniversary of Wendell Scott's historic win in the Jacksonville 200. On Sunday, December 1, 1963, spectators witnessed Wendell Scott become the first Black man to win a NASCAR Series race - a feat that would take nearly 60 years to repeat.

In addition to being the first Black driver to complete and win a NASCAR race, he was also the first Black team owner. However, due to racism, Scott didn't receive his well-deserved trophy until August 28, 2021.

Today, we applaud Wendell Scott for being persistent on and off the track, paving the way for other drivers, and being an example of Black excellence.

Learn more about the Wendell Scott Foundation: https://www.wendellscott.org/

11/26/2022

Danville native 💪 living history!! We have to celebrate him locally, this is awesome 🙌🙌

Legendary Norfolk State figure Marty Miller will be inducted into the inaugural Hall of Fame class of the Virginia Baseball Coaches Association, the organization announced this week.

11/26/2022

Thankful! Thankful! Thank you God for an amazing year. Hope everyone enjoyed the love of family and food over the Thanksgiving holiday. God bless you all from Our History Matters!!!
Tour! Discover! Learn!

11/10/2022

Tour! Discover! Learn! with Our History Matters!! We are all over the place these days, enjoyed giving this talk last evening!

Black Indians NC and Diversity and Inclusion would like to invite you to this event on November 9th, 2022 at 6pm. The speaker will begin promptly at 6pm then we will dive into our ancestry.
This workshop will be interactive! Please bring your laptops or cell phones to look into your roots! Tomorrow! Everyone is welcome!

11/05/2022

139 years ago yesterday: After biracial rule took place in the majority-Black city of Danville, Virginia, white supremacists seized control of the local government, killing at least four Black Americans in what became known as the “Danville Massacre.” The biracial rule had promised schools for Black students, an asylum for Black residents who suffered from mental illness and “abolition of the whipping post.” White supremacists took matters into their hands, patrolling the streets with shotguns to keep Black Americans from voting. As a result of the terrorist campaign, only 31 of the 1,300 registered Black voters could cast a ballot. The majority report of the Senate Election Committee concluded that whites attacked first with guns, hoping to intimidate Black voters and to “produce such a feeling in the State as would induce white electors to join with their own race and escape the reproach to which they would be subjected if they fraternized with the ‘n-----s.’”

Tour! Discover! Learn! With Our History Matters and hear all about it!!!!!!

11/03/2022

Its a beautiful day for a Civil Rights tour on the trolley!!! Today the tour is being captured for a documentary. Stay tuned! Tour! Discover! Learn!


Lets go Danville 🙌🙌🙌

10/23/2022

The Dr. H P is none other than Dr. Harry Pemberton Williams born in Danville, VA on September 18, 1901. He worked at Dan River Mills to pay his way through medical school and settled in Martinsville. There are so many connections between Henry and Pittsylvania County, after all Henry was formed from Pittsylvania on December 31, 1776.

10/23/2022

“And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.” Galatians 6:9

10/23/2022

This weekend GWHS C/O 1972 had their 50th reunion, they enjoyed touring their hometown learning all of the things they were never taught about local history!!! There is a story here!! Tour! Discover! Learn!

10/06/2022

🗣 This year I will be presenting at the National Humanities Conference in LA 🙌

Of the 95,000 entries on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places, less than 8% are associated with women and people of color. This is largely due to the structural biases within the historic preservation field that have long privileged Eurocentric values, pedagogy, and practice. To redress this gross disparity, greater recognition must be given to cultural landscapes and traditional cultural properties (TCPs) – two cultural resource types common among communities of color, that both blur the line between public humanities and historic preservation. Such redress thus requires a close relationship between state humanities councils and state historic preservation offices (SHPO). But what does an effective partnership look like? How is it formed and sustained? And what good can it accomplish? Virginia Humanities and Virginia’s SHPO, the Virginia Department of Historic Resources (DHR), are longtime partners whose work has become increasingly more integrated in recent years due to calls for greater racial equity in Virginia’s heritage management. In this roundtable session, Karice Luck Brimmer (Virginia Humanities & Virginia Board of Historic Resources), Peter Hedlund (Virginia Humanities/Encyclopedia Virginia), Justin Reid (Virginia Humanities), and Tim Roberts (Virginia Department of Historic Resources) will present Virginia as a case study in formalized partnerships between state humanities councils and SHPOs. Blending genealogical research, digital humanities, architectural history, and archeology......

10/06/2022

Our History Matters is everywhere these days, whenever you get a chance please stop by the Fahi Museum (Fayette Area Historical Initiative) in Martinsville and check out the Martinsville 7 exhibit!!

09/17/2022

Representation matters 🙌🙌🙌

Videos of children watching the trailer for the new “Little Mermaid” movie have gone viral.

09/17/2022

"Addressing Difficult Family History" 150 online and in person seats, register today!!!!

For Archives Month, join us at the Library to explore how family histories are preserved by archival institutions throughout the commonwealth and how we encounter and interpret these histories today. What do yo...