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Time Period
16,000 BCE to 1622 CE
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At the time of the great northern glaciers, Native Americans followed the game they hunted to Virginia. Ten thousand years later, as the cold of the Ice Age gave way to a warmer, drier climate, they relied also on foraging and farming. After about 900 CE they settled into villages that united into chiefdoms. In 1607, in pursuit of opportunity in a new world, English settlers intruded into an eastern Virginia chiefdom of thirty-two tribes (15,000 to 20,000 people). Its leader then was Wahunsenacawh, whom the new settlers called by his title, Powhatan.
Time Period
1861 to 1876
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If Virginians were instrumental in creating the Union in 1776, they were also pivotal in breaking it apart eighty-five years later. Most Virginians rejected secession until they were called upon to provide troops after the Confederate attack on Fort Sumter. The far northwestern counties refused to secede and instead formed West Virginia. Virginia became the bloodiest battleground of the war. At its conclusion, slavery was ended and black males could vote, but the daily lives and standard of living of African Americans changed little. Virginia was put under military rule for three years.
Time Period
1877 to 1924
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After the Civil War, Virginia remained largely rural, but Virginians embraced economic development and the new technologies that were revolutionizing everyday life. At the same time, however, they resisted political and social change––especially racial and gender equality. Living standards improved and income rose, but the political system became less democratic and society was rigidly segregated by race. “The New South” brought economic renewal but little reform. The Virginia legislature rejected a woman’s right to vote in 1919, and it passed a regressive Racial Integrity Act in 1924.
Time Period
1925 to Today
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A century of foreign wars expanded the presence of both the federal government in Northern Virginia and the military in the Hampton Roads area. Growth in those regions helped transform the state from a rural to a primarily urban one, from a poor to a relatively affluent one, and from a state with few non-natives to one with many. Only painstakingly, however, have minorities gained equality. Since 1960, the population has doubled. The largest employer now is the government, next is agriculture, which adds billions of dollars to the state’s economy.
Exhibition
A Better Life for Their Children
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From 1912-37, the Rosenwald schools program built thousands of schools, shops, and teacher’s homes across 15 Southern...
Exhibition
A Landscape Saved
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This exhibition celebrated the efforts in preservation and horticulture made by the Garden Club of Virginia during its...
Exhibition
A Material World
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Featuring 43 iconic images from the archives of the Richmond Times-Dispatch and accompanied by historical objects that...
Article Set - Chapter
Acknowledgements
An American Turning Point: The Civil War in Virginia is a signature program of the Virginia Sesquicentennial of the American
Exhibition
Agents of Change
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Organized in conjunction with the statewide Women’s Suffrage Centennial, this exhibition featured artifacts from the...
Article Set - Chapter
An Eyewitness Account of Stonewall Jackson's Wounding
On the second day of the battle of Chancellorsville, May 2, 1863, the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia experienced its
Exhibition
Apollo: When We Went to the Moon
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Through objects and artifacts from the U.S. Space & Rocket Center’s archives, this exhibition explored the social and...
Exhibition
Artists4ERA
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Artists4ERA is part of ongoing efforts to ensure that the ERA becomes the 28th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution...
Article Set - Chapter
Beginnings of Black Education
Few black Virginians received a formal education until public schools were widely established during Reconstruction. Public
Article Set - Chapter
Brown I and Brown II
In 1950 the NAACP decided that it would no longer file lawsuits seeking equal educational facilities, but only those that
Exhibition
Coming Out, Affecting Change
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For centuries, social and legal discrimination forced most lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ+)...
Article Set - Chapter
Conclusion
Throughout the twentieth century and during the past decade, apologists for John Brown have turned out imagery and
Article Set - Chapter
Danville
The most violent episode of the civil rights movement in Virginia occurred in Danville during the summer of 1963—at about the
Exhibition
Determined
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This exhibition examined the long history of black Americans in North America as they have fought for freedom, equal...
Article Set - Chapter
Elections from 1832 to 1872
This section contains information and memorabilia on the elections from 1832 to 1872. Scroll down the page to learn more
Article Set - Chapter
Elections from 1876 to 1920
This section contains information and memorabilia on the elections from 1876 to 1920. Scroll down the page to learn more