Civil Rights
Movements, leaders, victories and the continuing fight for equality.
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THE BHP WIRE —
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Explore the people, places, events, achievements, struggles and stories that shaped our journey.
Movements, leaders, victories and the continuing fight for equality.
Innovation, patents, science, technology and world-changing contributions.
Pioneers, champions, Negro Leagues, records, activism and excellence.
Meet the people whose lives, choices and achievements shaped the journey.
Black towns, communities, institutions and places where history happened.
Moments that changed communities, movements, institutions and the nation.
Wilmington, North Carolina once had a thriving Black middle class and an elected interracial government. In 1898 white supremacists used violence to overthrow that government, kill Black residents and drive many others from the city.
MORE →Reflects the personal views, recollections, and perspective of the author, Mike Davis.
This is a personal recollection on the Move fire on May 13, 1985
Arlington County, or simply Arlington, is a county in the U.S. state of Virginia. The county, which is located in the Washington metropolitan area and the broader Northern Virginia region, is positioned directly across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C., the national capital, on the river's southwestern bank. The smallest self-governing county in the United States by area, Arlington County has both suburban and urbanized districts. Its urban areas are located in proximity to several Washington Metro stations and lines. Arlington's seat of government is located in the Court House neighborhood, which hosts many of its administrative offices and the county courthouse. Arlington was originally inhabited by the Nacotchtank people prior to the establishment of the Colony of Virginia in 1606. English colonists began settling in Arlington by the 1670s; the area was designated as part of Fairfax County in 1742. The colonial-era economy was mostly based in tobacco agriculture operated with enslaved labor and indentured servants on large plantations. Following the end of the Revolutionary War, Arlington's planters and yeoman farmers transitioned to other crops. Virginia ceded present-day Arlington to help form the District of Columbia, and beginning in 1801, the area was known as Alexandria County. It was eventually retroceded back to Virginia in 1847 as a result of pressure from Alexandria, which was the county's primary commercial center. During the Civil War, Arlington formed part of the Union's defenses of Washington, which devastated its landscape and economy. Virginia's Reconstruction-era Constitution of 1870, in addition to administratively separating Arlington from Alexandria, empowered its black community to participate in local and state elections, which changed the political dynamics of the county until local conservative Southern Democrats succeeded in reestablishing white supremacy by the 1880s. This facilitated the institution of Jim Crow laws and racial segregation in Arlington by the early 20th century. Developers and local politicians further ingrained these practices in Arlington as it experienced a boom in suburbanization with its expanding interurban trolley network starting in the 1880s and a continued influx of federal employees into the 1950s. Despite opposition from Virginia's massive resistance campaign and other groups, Arlington became the first county in Virginia to desegregate its schools in 1959, and its businesses in 1960, after a series of sit-in protests. Arlington's modern economic development has been greatly influenced by multiple Metrorail lines, which through deliberate planning starting in the 1960s, have become the center of its urban corridors. Many federal government agencies and complexes, including the Pentagon, which houses the headquarters of the United States Department of Defense, are based in Arlington. Government contractors that serve these organizations and others in the Washington metropolitan area, such as Boeing and RTX Corporation, are also located in the county. While the public sector is a primary driver of Arlington's economy, tech firms with private sector operations, including Amazon, have established regional headquarters or offices in Arlington's business districts over the past several decades. Institutions of higher education with main or satellite campuses in the county include George Mason University, Marymount University, the University of Virginia, and Virginia Tech. Arlington is also known as the location of Arlington National Cemetery, a military cemetery established in 1864 where more than 400,000 members of the U.S. Armed Forces are buried. Sites at the cemetery such as the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier attract thousands of visitors annually. Other prominent military memorials located in Arlington include the Marine Corps War Memorial and Air Force Memorial.
Court House, also known as Courthouse, is a neighborhood in northern Arlington County, Virginia that serves as Arlington's seat of government. It is generally bounded by Arlington Boulevard, N Rhodes Street, Courthouse Road, Key Boulevard, and N Danville Street, and is located along an urban corridor that follows the Orange and Silver Metro lines. The site of Fort Woodbury during the Civil War, Court House began in the late 19th century as a small community that surrounded Arlington County's first courthouse built outside of Alexandria, Virginia. Population growth in Arlington in the first half of the 20th century prompted greater residential and commercial development, which was further spurred by the opening of the Court House Metro station in 1979. Court House, like other neighborhoods in the Rosslyn-Ballston corridor, has since become mixed-use and transit-oriented.
Yorktown High School is a public high school located in Arlington County, Virginia, United States. There are around 240 teachers and 2100 students as of 2019. In 2022–23 school year, there were 2,577 students. Yorktown's attendance area makes up the northern third of Arlington County. Yorktown is an accredited high school based on Virginia's Standards of Learning (SOL) examinations, and is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. The school was ranked among the top 100 schools in the nation by Newsweek in 2008.
This is a list of neighborhoods in Arlington County, Virginia. Under Virginia law, towns may be incorporated within counties; however, the state does not permit the creation of any new incorporated towns within a county that has a population density greater than 1,000 persons per square mile. As such, Arlington has no incorporated towns within its borders, but a number of neighborhoods within Arlington are commonly referred to by name as if they were distinct towns.
Before the 1921 destruction of Tulsa’s Greenwood District, Black residents had created a remarkable center of business and community life. The district included stores, professional offices, entertainment venues and homes owned by Black citizens. Understanding Greenwood means learning what was built—not only what was burned.
MORE →Madam C.J. Walker
