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Library of Virginia adds lynching site
Researchers who study lynchings in Virginia have a new database to work with. The Lynching and Racial Violence Collection went online in May. It is a collaboration of the Library of Virginia and Gianluca De Fazio, an associate professor of justice studies at James Madison University. The collection spans 1866-1932 and includes court records and
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Can a white man talk about the Black experience?
During a talk at Germanna Community College in February, a student asked me a question I have long considered. She wanted to know if I as a white man had the standing to talk about the prejudice experienced by Black people. I answered, yes, I believe I do. I realize that as a white man
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Thank you, Mr. Baxley
I was saddened to learn last week of the passing of Henry Baxley Jr. Mr. Baxley died at his home in the Marshall area of Fauquier County. He was 88. His funeral will be held this afternoon. His obituary, posted at Fauquier Now, is here. I will always be grateful to Henry for the help
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New evidence of a change in how Thompson case is seen
I was delighted to learn recently that an essay I wrote has been published on a website I’ve long admired. The website, Racial Terror: Lynching in Virginia, 1877-1927, is the creation of Gianluca DeFazio, an assistant professor in the Justice Studies Department at James Madison University in Harrisonburg. The site is a comprehensive, easy-to-use database,
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Talks resume with stops in Lovettsville, Warrenton, Fairfax
I’ll be on the road again soon with book talks in Loudoun, Fauquier and Fairfax counties. Please join me. The first stop will be this Sunday, Aug. 12, at 2 p.m., when I’ll be the guest of the Lovettsville Historical Society for its monthly history lecture series. The talk will be at St. James United
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Fauquier inscriptions pictured at new lynching memorial
Wanda Foust was looking at titles on Amazon.com when she found my book, The Last Lynching in Northern Virginia. “I had never heard about this case, so it certainly sparked my interest,” she wrote in an email. Soon she was reading this blog and saw the appeal I made for photos from the new lynching memorial
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A surprise invitation from the Fauquier History Museum
When a friend learned that I had been invited to appear at the Fauquier History Museum at the Old Jail, he wrote to say, “That is long overdue!” I appreciated his email and shared in his frustration. But my reaction to the invitation was more complicated. I was grateful, for sure. I’m happy to travel
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Thompson’s name included on new lynching memorial
The caller on Sunday night said that I should turn on the TV and watch 60 Minutes. “Their second segment is about lynching,” she said. The caller was Martha Powers, who in February invited me to speak to her group in Fairfax County, the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at George Mason University. I told Martha
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Family learns of grandad’s role in Thompson story
Pam Androsky remembers the day she was riding with her father on Fiery Run Road in northern Fauquier County. When they passed what was then the Borden Farm and is today the Marriott Ranch, he pointed to the mountain and said, “That’s where they found a colored man hanging from an apple tree.” George Kenney
Author & Lecturer
Jim Hall 