Alexandria’s Shiloh Baptist Church is among more than 30 historically Black churches to receive a new grant aimed at preserving and restoring their buildings.
The church at 1401 Jamieson Avenue has received $360,000 from the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund as part of its Preserving Black Churches grant program. Recipients were announced last week.
Audrey Davis, the first director of the African American History Division in the Office of Historic Alexandria, is at the forefront of preserving and showcasing the city’s Black history.
Black History Month has brought music, historical discussions and exhibits, displays of student art and so much more to Alexandria this month, commemorating a vast history spanning hundreds of years, from the 18th century to the Civil Rights Movement and present day.
Various events will honor Black history in Alexandria as this February marks the 100th anniversary of Black History Month being nationally observed.
Founded in 1926 by historian Carter G. Woodson, Black History Month is an observance to preserve and honor Black history as a month-long celebration. Alexandria has its own rich Black and African American history, dating back to 18th century free Black communities to the 19th century slave trading operations and Civil War, to the 1939 library sit-in protest and 2020 protests after George Floyd’s death.
From historical tours and adult field trips to trivia nights, several events coming to Alexandria this winter will commemorate the 250th anniversary of the United States.
The various roles Alexandria played in the forging of the U.S. will be told in events across the city. The events are compiled in a list by the American Revolution 250 Commission, or VA250, which was established by the General Assembly in 2020.
The Freedom House Museum reopened last Thursday following over a year of exterior renovations to restore the building’s pre-Civil War facade.
Alexandria leaders cut the ribbon on the renovations during a ceremony Saturday afternoon, where Mayor Alyia Gaskins said the museum — formerly a site where slave traders trafficked tens of thousands of enslaved peoples — serves as a declaration that the city will not forget its history.
The Freedom House Museum will reopen to the public Nov. 6 following the completion of exterior rehabilitation work that restored the building’s pre-Civil War appearance, the city announced Monday.
The Office of Historic Alexandria will hold a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Nov. 8 at 1 p.m. at the museum, located at 1315 Duke Street. Experts will be available from 1-3 p.m. that day to discuss details of the renovation work.
Alexandria is fundraising for one of its historic crown jewels, which is undergoing renovation.
The Office of Historic Alexandria is conducting a historical discussion and fundraiser on Sunday, July 20, at the Morrison House Hotel (116 S. Alfred Street) to benefit the Freedom House restoration project. The event features a historic discussion on the former slave pen with actor William T. Newman and town crier Ben Fiore-Walker, as well as readings from the Alexandria-based mystery novel “Spite House” by John Wasowicz.
The Office of Historic Alexandria wants your help with a national study on how museums impact society. It’s one of 40 institutions chosen for the Museum Social Impact in Practice (MSIIP) study, and it needs at least 150 people to visit three museums and share their thoughts.
This study, backed by the American Alliance of Museums and funded by the Institute of Museum and Library Services, runs until July. If you participate and complete the survey, you’ll get a special gift, an invite to hear about the results in November and free membership to the ALXHistoryLovers Society.
