CVHR members are active in many projects and organizations researching, preserving, and promoting the history of Central Virginia. Visit the sites below to learn more information.
Albemarle 1940
This interactive map shows property ownership for Albemarle County in the early 1940s. Property parcels are symbolized according to the race of the owner, enabling the user to easily visualize African American communities, many of which had roots going back to the 1870s and which no longer exist today. This data is remarkable because it shows a detailed, comprehensive, view of property ownership and historical communities prior to the rapid development that began after World War II. Link
CVHR Members: Bob Vernon, Erik Irtenkauf
Bleak House VisualEyes
Bleak House was part of an antebellum plantation that spanned almost 700 acres near Earlysville. This visualization explores the lives and movements of the enslaved individuals who built, lived, and worked on the plantation. Link
CVHR Member: Alice Cannon
Charlottesville Lives
This site contains an extensive collection of newspaper articles and obituaries found in the Charlottesville Daily Progress from 1893 – 1964. These articles offer a unique window into life in central Virginia during the early 20th century. A curated list of online history resources for Charlottesville and Albemarle County is also included. Link
CVHR Member: Jane C. Smith
Historical Albemarle and Charlottesville Web Map
An interactive map containing numerous layers for understanding the history of Albemarle County and Charlottesville. Includes historical roads, buildings, maps, aerial photos, and more. Link
CVHR Member: Erik Irtenkauf
The Preservers of the Daughters of Zion Cemetery
The Daughters of Zion Cemetery (DOZC) is an African-American cemetery in Charlottesville, Virginia with over 600 known burials and an unknown number of unidentified burials. The Preservers work to protect and restore the cemetery and research those who are buried there. Link
CVHR Members: Edwina St. Rose, Jane C. Smith, Dede Smith, Steve Thompson
Reginald D. Butler Local History Archive
This digital archive contains approximately 65,000 images of primary historical sources for Albemarle and neighboring counties. It includes deed books, will books, unrecorded deeds, and numerous other collections. Link
CVHR Members: Bob Vernon, Worthy Martin
Virginia Emigrants to Liberia
This website, from the UVA Institute for Advanced Technology in the Humanities, facilitates grassroots-level research on Black Virginians who emigrated to the west coast of Africa under the auspices of the American Colonization Society, and together established the colony of Liberia. Link
CVHR Members: Deborah Lee, Worthy Martin