News Archives
RECENT & RELEVENT A.C.O.R.N. NEWS
GOLDEN HAMMER WINNERS HONORED AT A.C.O.R.N.'S
8TH ANNUAL AWARDS CEREMONY AT ORCHARD HOUSE
A.C.O.R.N. was pleased to honor the recipients of the Golden Hammer at its 8th annual award ceremony at Orchard House School on Thursday October 4th. Click here to read the article from the October 8th edition of the Richmond Times~Dispatch. The large, third-floor auditorium of Orchard House drew a diverse crowd-- from architects and developers, to contractors and neighborhoods residents-- all to honor those individuals who put forth their effort to renovate and revitalize Richmond's historic neighborhoods. Rachel Flynn, Director of Community Development for the City of Richmond, was the keynote speaker and enlivened the audience with her planning vision now underway for the future of Richmond. Click here for complete information on this vision. Mary Jane Hogue, Executive Director of Historic Richmond Foundation, emphasized the importance of groups' working together to ensure the preservation of Richmond's greatest asset-- it's Historic Resources. Click here to view the winners:
A.C.O.R.N. will accept nominations for the Golden Hammer Awards for the 2008 calendar year. If you know of a great renovation project currently underway that will be completed by August 31, 2008 and would like to nominate that property, send us a nomination form! Click here for the form and instructions.
RECONCILIATION STATUE UNVEILED
Photo: Maurice Duke
Nearly five thousand people gathered at the corner of 15th and East Main streets in Shockoe Bottom for the unveiling of Richmond's Reconciliation Statue. This statue is one stop on the trail that outlines the history of slave trade in Richmond. A.C.O.R.N.'s Executive Director, Jennie Dotts, is a member of the Slave Trail Commission that is working toward eventual completion of the entire Slave Trail from the Manchester Docks, through Shockoe Bottom and to the First African Baptist Church. A.C.O.R.N. has been involved in the development of the Slave Trail since saving the Emily Winfree Cottage from demolition several years ago. Discovery of the Winfree Cottage lead to the archaeological survey of the Lumpkin's jail complex-- a slave trading compound where thousands of slaves were held and sold in desperate conditions. Both the Winfree Cottage and Lumpkin's jail are planned stops on the completed Slave Trail. Click here to view photographs of the statue's unveiling and for more information on Lumpkin's jail, the Winfree Cottage and the Slave Trail. Click here for RTD Article on the moving ceremony that revealed Richmond's Reconciliation Statue. If you would like to receive a copy of the brochure of the complete Slave Trail, send us an email at info@richmondneighborhoods.org or call 422-2148 and we'll send you a copy.
A.C.O.R.N. HOSTS STUDENTS
A.C.O.R.N. hosted 4 fourth-grade classes from Mary Munford Elementary School for a tour of St. John's Church, The museum at Bellevue School, and the Hardgrove House located just across the street at 2300 East Grace Street. The intent of the tour was to show the students that Richmond's historic buildings are much more than bricks and mortar-- they tell stories. Read the article
Unearthing Richmond’s Slave History: As Part of Richmond's Slave Trail, the Lumpkin’s Jail Archaeological Survey Unearths Significant Findings
A.C.O.R.N., in partnership with the City of Richmond, the Slave Trail Commission and the Virginia Department of Historic Resources, has begun an archaeological survey on the site in Shockoe Bottom that once held Lumpkin's Jail, the largest and best-known slave pen and boarding house located in antebellum Richmond. Click Here to read about this history hunt in further detail.
SLAVE SCHOOL DISCOVERED ON MCV CAMPUS
Perhaps you've seen it as you curve around the exit ramp from I-95 south onto Broad Street. It is nestled behind the First African Baptist Church (now MCV's Randolph Minor Annex) and next to the new Massey Cancer Center. This small brick building appears to be some sort of storage shed, but Larry Lanberg, a VCU undergraduate student studying clinical laboratory science, recently started researching the structure. His efforts pointed toward the building's being used originally as a school to educate slaves-- perhaps as early as 1815. Mr. Lanberg, a history buff, has compiled a wealth of information about this humble building still standing on the MCV campus. Click Here to read his detailed account of the history of the little school house. Click Here for additional photographs (including interiors) of this little survivor. Click Here to read the Style Weekly Article.
Photo: Maurice Duke
HISTORIC DISTRICT BROCHURE AVAILABLE
The Council of Historic Richmond Foundation has produced a new Property Owner's Guide for buildings located in Old and Historic Districts located in the City of Richmond. If you would like a copy, please call 422-2148 or email us at info@richmondneighborhoods.org
VOTES ARE IN! A.C.O.R.N. CO-FOUNDER DAVID HERRING IS A SEMI-FINALIST IN THE NATIONAL VOLVO FOR LIFE AWARDS.
The Alliance to Conserve Old Richmond Neighborhoods is proud that its Properties and Programs Director, David Herring, who co-founded the nonprofit in 1998 finished a "top five semifinalist" in Virginia for the Fifth Anniversary "Volvo for Life" Award. Volvo searches nationally for everyday heroes and awards nearly $1 million to the top winners. This year Herring is among 255 nationwide semi-finalists-- narrowed fromthousands of entries from across the country-- for this prestigious award. Congratulations to David for being recognized for his contribution to Richmond!
A.C.O.R.N. 2006 GOLDEN HAMMER WINNERS ANNOUNCED
On Thursday, September 28th A.C.O.R.N. honored excellence in preservation and renovation throughout Richmond at the newly restored Bankuet Place, formerly the Mechanics and Merchants Bank in historic Manchester. Read the about the winners!
Read the Richmond.com article.
ARMORY REMAINS IN LIMBO
The sixth Request for Proposal (RFP) was rejected at the September meeting of City Council. This historic landmark in the Jackson Ward neighborhood will continue to sit empty while the fate of the building is debated. Click here for interior photographs and information about this very historic Armory.
RECENT ARCHIVE ON THIS TOPIC:
Richmond Free Press Article: 1-4-07
Richmond Times~Dispatch article: 9-16-0
Richmond Times~Dispatch article: 11-30-05
RICHMOND LANDMARK FALLS
Built in 1927, Cabaniss Hall-- the Italian Renaissance and Art Deco Gem on the MCV campus-- is currently being demolished. The building has been on A.C.O.R.N.’s Endangered Buildings list for two years, and we have been working diligently to save this and the other Endangered Buildings listed below. Unfortunately, VCU’s unwillingness to compromise as it expands its medical campus has resulted in the loss of another Richmond Landmark. Read More