The English 11 students got to take a trip to the Jefferson School on March 8th. The trip was to learn about Charlottesville’s African American history, including about the neighborhood of Vinegar Hill.
The junior English 11 classes were split into two groups. One group started going to different places in the downtown mall which had significance to where Vinegar Hill used to be as well as other important moments and places in local African American history. Such places included the Browns Laundromat and the Omni Hotel. The students learned about the historical significance of Vinegar Hill and had a glimpse into the past of what the Mall and what Vinegar Hill used to look like before the City of Charlottesville turned it over into the mall and put in stores.
The other group went into the Jefferson School and met up with a tour guide. There they talked about what it was like to live when Vinegar Hill was still a thriving neighborhood and before it was removed as a part of the Urban Renewal Plan. Such examples of the discussions included what attending the Jefferson School was like. One tour guide stated that many students at the time did not graduate high school. This was because many students had to go home and work as they did not have the means to stay in school and help their families get by. Another station included a talk from a descendant of one of Vinegar Hills residents. He owns a house along with his family which is in a spot where Vinegar Hill used to be.
Genesis Barbour says “My favorite part of the trip was walking around the downtown mall & learning about the historical importance of some places held. Mr. Deegan & Josselyn put incredible effort into this field trip, which showed! The ‘major’ thing I learned was Sally Hemings living in Charlottesville after Thomas Jefferson’s death. Her relatives did most of their banking at the downtown mall, which was pretty cool. One of our guides was a descendant of the Hemings so I thought it was nice he was telling his family story.”
“My favorite part of the trip was seeing all of what downtown could offer, the art, the jewelers, all of it. I did get to read some of the boards and learned more about slavery and such in Virginia. I probably would do it again” says Tonix Newton.
“My favorite part of the trip was the part where the students split off into smaller groups to have conversations with members of the community and hear stories from their community that they had never heard before. I mostly learned much of the new information while I was preparing for this unit. I have lived in Charlottesville my whole life and I had not heard about what happened to Vinegar Hill and the treatment of the Black American community of Charlottesville during the 20th century. I absolutely would do it again! I feel like I will learn something new every year we go on this trip, so I hope we can make this a regular field trip for English 11” said Ms. Ciucias, one of the two English 11 teachers.
The Jefferson Field Trip was massively a successful and educational trip that Mr. Degan, Mr. Josselyn, and everyone involved put so much effort into the trip.
