are also consulting with academics on how to use lessons learned from this exercise to
argue against segregation in other countries.
2017 was a very busy year. Thanks to a donor who provided us a high end scanner, we
have made significant progress scanning school records and anticipate completing that
project by mid-2018. We also began identifying which textbooks were used in “colored”
and white schools, briefed many communities in Loudoun and have begun an analysis
of the impact of segregated education on African-Americans. In addition, we
interviewed many people who either taught or studied in the “colored” schools and have
made much progress identifying where the schools were, which is not always clear from
the records. This includes doing an expedition in order to find the ruins of the old
Bluemont Colored School. We had to use an army compass for that exercise.
We need to buy more archival boxes for old records and books. In addition, we are
examining all of the old schools, which requires a lot of gas. Records directly related to
“colored” schools in Loudoun are in the archives of Swarthmore in Pennsylvania, the
Library of Virginia and at Virginia State University. We plan to do each of those trips,
operating under US government per diem rules. We also need to continue digital
preservation of all of the records so that if a fire ever happened, this history will never be
lost. Finally, our plan is invest in software called Past Perfect that will allow anyone
remote access to all of our documents.
Your donation will be deeply felt. I hope you will be able to assist us.