Archive Digitizing, Archive Index Creation, and Research
The archives of the Fluvanna Historical Society contain thousands of documents from the county’s founding in 1777 to the present day that narrate the rich history of this community. Papers and photographs in our archives are being organized, digitized, and stored online. This not only makes the material more accessible to researchers, but it also ensures that if the records are somehow destroyed, the information they contain will not be lost. Our archive volunteers are also busy creating a new, more detailed index of our archival material, making it more readily available to researchers. The society receives research requests by mail, email, social media, and telephone; our archive volunteers respond to these requests, conducting research on behalf of people near and far.
Construction of Monacan Ati
The Fluvanna Historical Society is excited to begin construction on a Monacan habitation – an “ati” – at our Holland Page Place Museum. This dwelling place will give visitors to the museum an intriguing glimpse into the daily life of these first inhabitants of our area.
Volunteers are welcome to assist with this project.
We wish to thank Chief Kenneth Branham of the Monacan Nation as well as tribal historian Victoria Ferguson for their ongoing support of this project.
Digital Mapping Project with One Shared Story
Charlottesville-based One Shared Story is bringing their skill set and their passion to the table as we collaborate to shine a light on the history of African-Americans in our community. From protecting family cemeteries by registering their locations with the Virginia Department of Historic Resources, to holding community family research days where family papers and photos can be digitized for preservation and sharing, to the creation of “story maps” that use ESRI mapping technology to create fascinating and important narratives about this community, this collaboration is exciting, important, and heart-felt.
William Young Memorial Committee
We are working in concert with the Equal Justice Initiative to bring the historical marker and memorial to the lynching of William Young here to Fluvanna County.
In 1892, William Young was arrested and charged with the murder of Walter Glass, a 17-year-old White boy. The night before his first scheduled court appearance, Young was abducted from the Old Stone Jail and lynched just across the Rivanna River from the county seat.
Contemporary newspaper articles contain information that conflicts with the Coroner’s Inquest Report on the lynching, and with local oral tradition. Research is ongoing as we attempt to better understand this painful chapter in our past.
The William Young Memorial Committee will be hosting town hall meetings to discuss our local history of racial injustice; we will also hold events that celebrate the accomplishments of those who endured enslavement and life under Jim Crow.
Free Hill Cemetery and Oak Hill Cemetery: Archeological Survey and Research of Two Historic Black Cemeteries in Fluvanna
The Fluvanna Historical Society, supported by a grant from CACF, will be engaging Rivanna Archeology to conduct a surface survey of these two historic Black cemeteries in Fluvanna County. Columbia Baptist Church (Free Hill Cemetery) and West Bottom Church (Oak Hill Cemetery) are enthusiastically supporting us in these efforts to document and protect these historic cemeteries and to learn more about the people who rest there. We are collaborating with One Shared Story and UVA in this endeavor. Check back for updates on this newly-launched project!