Richmond’s Jackson Ward history highlighted in new Library of Virginia exhibit

Jun 17, 2025 - 12:25

0 0

Richmond’s Jackson Ward history highlighted in new Library of Virginia exhibit

RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) -- A new exhibit highlighting the history of Richmond's Jackson Ward neighborhood is opening at the Library of Virginia.

The "House to Highway: Reclaiming a Community History" exhibition will open on July 14, at the Library of Virginia. The new exhibition, presented by The JXN Project, highlights the rich history of Jackson Ward, as well as the exploration of the life Abraham Peyton Skipwith -- the first Black homeowner in the neighborhood.

"House to Highway: Reclaiming a Community History" will be open for viewing Monday through Saturday from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. until Feb. 20, 2026.

According to the Library of Virginia, the exhibition will include maps, photos and archive records that shine a light on Skipwith's journey from enslavement to becoming a successful businessman and owner of one of the oldest documented homes in Richmond -- the Skipwith-Roper Cottage.

In the 1950s, the last residents of the cottage were forced to move during the construction of the Richmond-Petersburg Turnpike, which also displaced over a thousand families, taking away schools and business in the Jackson Ward neighborhood.

“House to Highway: Reclaiming a Community History” exhibition on Jackson Ward's history (Library of Virginia)

“It began with a simple question — ‘Who is the Jackson in Jackson Ward?’ In October 2020, this inquiry led me to the Library of Virginia and little did I know, but those seven words would help to unearth some of the hidden histories of the nation’s first historically registered Black urban neighborhood,” said Moon. “Now, four years later, ‘House to Highway: Reclaiming a Community History’ serves as an opportunity to share the untold story of Abraham Peyton Skipwith as ‘The Founding Father of Jackson Ward.’ Through this exhibition, Skipwith’s life, lineage and legacy as the first known Black homeowner in Jackson Ward will be used to tell the Black American experience as part of the commemorative activities for the 250th anniversary of the singing of the Declaration of Independence — and my hope is that the exhibition will help to encourage future community collaborations as so many more untold stories are waiting to be found in the Library.” Dr. Sesha Joi Moon, co-founder and executive producer of The JXN Project