SIFTING THROUGH HISTORY
A North Carolina archaeological dig unearths new knowledge about early 20th-century Black education
Story and photos By Lynn Roberson
“With this work, we’re able to help make space for people to tell their stories and correct the incorrect stories we hear.”
– Camille Richardson
Growing up in Mississippi, Camille Richardson witnessed the telling and retelling of the tragic story of a family member who perished when the Ku Klux Klan firebombed his home.
“While saving his family from the fire, he didn’t make it out,” Richardson said. “My mother first told me the story when I was very young. That’s one thing that has always remained with me.”
While the heartbreaking tale is a significant piece of family lore, Richardson noticed that such histories went largely untold in predominantly white schools.
“We didn’t hear about the horrible things that had happened to people,” Richardson said. “My mom told me, ‘We’re not listened to. We tell our stories, but they are not heard.’”
PRESERVING LINCOLN COUNTY’S ROSENWALD SCHOOL
Now, as a UNC Charlotte master’s student in anthropology, Richardson is listening, while centering a master’s thesis in archaeological and historical research with the Mount Vernon Rosenwald School near Charlotte. Rosenwald Schools were built almost a century ago to educate African American children in rural communities and are regarded as the most important effort to advance Black education in the early 20th century. While 5,000 were built, the National Trust for Historic Preservation estimates only about 500 survive today.
The Lincoln County school opened its doors in 1925 on the site of a previous school for African American children. A nonprofit organization formed in 2015 to restore the school as a community center. Wanting help in documenting more of the school’s past, the nonprofit’s leaders connected with UNC Charlotte bioarchaeologist Sara Juengst.
Juengst, Richardson and other Charlotte students, alumni and faculty have literally dug into history on the site. They have painstakingly scraped, inch-by-inch, through layers of red clay dirt in strategic spots around the school and brought the artifacts to a Charlotte anthropology lab to clean, catalog and research.
“In the archaeological record, children aren’t really written about too often,” Richardson said. We don’t hear about their experiences and the impact social or other factors have on them, particularly African American children. Work like this can give us a view into items they were using and what their lives looked like when they were at the school.”
FOR THE RECORD: FORMER SCHOOL ATTENDEES TELL THEIR STORIES
Richardson has interviewed school alumni, recording their remembrances for research purposes and to share with the restoration champions as oral histories. At first glance, the artifacts could appear insignificant. A longer look, coupled with observations by the school’s alumni, reveal their substance.
Even pieces of broken soda bottles, with faded lettering from brand names, conjured memories for school alumni. They told the Charlotte student researchers that the soda bottles could not have been theirs because they were too poor to bring soda for lunch. Some soda brands were considered by some to be off limits to African Americans, meaning storekeepers sold them only to white people, they recalled.
The team found crushed metal ends of pencils with desiccated erasers. A broken marble and a smashed car made of clay hinted at children’s imaginative games. Nails, shards of window glass and clay bricks likely made on site revealed construction practices.
“It’s because these items are not what might be considered important artifacts that they have significance,” Juengst said. “These are the types of items nobody thinks about. That’s the reality of everyday life. To some extent, it’s the mundane nature of our finds that make them more interesting and significant.”
While digging, Rosenwald alumnus David Patterson described games children played, lessons they learned and chores they completed, such as keeping the stove stoked on cold winter days to heat the two-room school. Patterson and other alumni guided the team on where to dig, remembering where they most often played and the location of the pit where they buried their trash.
The work underway is intended to illuminate the school’s history and contribute to efforts to bring some sort of historical designation for the school, which is owned by Mount Vernon Missionary Baptist Church.
“We would like to renovate this building completely and restore it to its original condition,” said Ola Mae Foster, a leader in the effort. “We think it’s going to be a rebirth for the community.”
Joe Patterson, another Rosenwald alumnus, would welcome the revival. “From the time I was growing up here, the community has lost over 40 families,” he said. “They left for different reasons. This is part of the past that we could make connections to.
REBUILDING COMMUNITIES
Richardson’s interest in the Rosenwald School effort was natural as it links with a focus on disparities in education and housing. Richardson works as the program and development fellow with Rebuilding Together of Greater Charlotte, a nonprofit focused on neighborhood-based home repairs.
“Camille’s upbeat attitude, person-first approach and genuine care for the homeowners we serve has been evident since they stepped foot into our office,” said Kim Savage ’20, ’21 MPA, development and communications manager for Rebuilding Together. “Camille has made it much easier for our clients to access our services and has comforted many of them through the home repair process.”
For Juengst, the Mount Vernon partnership offers a way for students to gain archaeological experience. Her research usually is conducted in South America, and she strives to have opportunities for students to join her on those trips to gain research experience.
“Tons of students cannot travel to South America for six weeks or for three months over the summer,” she said. “They may not have the money or even the desire. I believe you shouldn’t have to go abroad to do archaeology, so I’ve had my eyes open for a local project. This project is appealing because it has future opportunities for students who are interested in community building, grant writing or other aspects of this work.”
Lynn Roberson is director of communications for the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences.
SIFTING THROUGH HISTORY
Story and photos By Lynn Roberson
“With this work, we’re able to help make space for people to tell their stories and correct the incorrect stories we hear.”
– Camille Richardson
Growing up in Mississippi, Camille Richardson witnessed the telling and retelling of the tragic story of a family member who perished when the Ku Klux Klan firebombed his home.
“While saving his family from the fire, he didn’t make it out,” Richardson said. “My mother first told me the story when I was very young. That’s one thing that has always remained with me.”
While the heartbreaking tale is a significant piece of family lore, Richardson noticed that such histories went largely untold in predominantly white schools.
“We didn’t hear about the horrible things that had happened to people,” Richardson said. “My mom told me, ‘We’re not listened to. We tell our stories, but they are not heard.’”
PRESERVING LINCOLN COUNTY’S ROSENWALD SCHOOL
Now, as a UNC Charlotte master’s student in anthropology, Richardson is listening, while centering a master’s thesis in archaeological and historical research with the Mount Vernon Rosenwald School near Charlotte. Rosenwald Schools were built almost a century ago to educate African American children in rural communities and are regarded as the most important effort to advance Black education in the early 20th century. While 5,000 were built, the National Trust for Historic Preservation estimates only about 500 survive today.
The Lincoln County school opened its doors in 1925 on the site of a previous school for African American children. A nonprofit organization formed in 2015 to restore the school as a community center. Wanting help in documenting more of the school’s past, the nonprofit’s leaders connected with UNC Charlotte bioarchaeologist Sara Juengst.
Juengst, Richardson and other Charlotte students, alumni and faculty have literally dug into history on the site. They have painstakingly scraped, inch-by-inch, through layers of red clay dirt in strategic spots around the school and brought the artifacts to a Charlotte anthropology lab to clean, catalog and research.
“In the archaeological record, children aren’t really written about too often,” Richardson said. We don’t hear about their experiences and the impact social or other factors have on them, particularly African American children. Work like this can give us a view into items they were using and what their lives looked like when they were at the school.”
FOR THE RECORD: FORMER SCHOOL ATTENDEES TELL THEIR STORIES
Richardson has interviewed school alumni, recording their remembrances for research purposes and to share with the restoration champions as oral histories. At first glance, the artifacts could appear insignificant. A longer look, coupled with observations by the school’s alumni, reveal their substance.
Even pieces of broken soda bottles, with faded lettering from brand names, conjured memories for school alumni. They told the Charlotte student researchers that the soda bottles could not have been theirs because they were too poor to bring soda for lunch. Some soda brands were considered by some to be off limits to African Americans, meaning storekeepers sold them only to white people, they recalled.
The team found crushed metal ends of pencils with desiccated erasers. A broken marble and a smashed car made of clay hinted at children’s imaginative games. Nails, shards of window glass and clay bricks likely made on site revealed construction practices.
“It’s because these items are not what might be considered important artifacts that they have significance,” Juengst said. “These are the types of items nobody thinks about. That’s the reality of everyday life. To some extent, it’s the mundane nature of our finds that make them more interesting and significant.”
While digging, Rosenwald alumnus David Patterson described games children played, lessons they learned and chores they completed, such as keeping the stove stoked on cold winter days to heat the two-room school. Patterson and other alumni guided the team on where to dig, remembering where they most often played and the location of the pit where they buried their trash.
The work underway is intended to illuminate the school’s history and contribute to efforts to bring some sort of historical designation for the school, which is owned by Mount Vernon Missionary Baptist Church.
“We would like to renovate this building completely and restore it to its original condition,” said Ola Mae Foster, a leader in the effort. “We think it’s going to be a rebirth for the community.”
Joe Patterson, another Rosenwald alumnus, would welcome the revival. “From the time I was growing up here, the community has lost over 40 families,” he said. “They left for different reasons. This is part of the past that we could make connections to.
REBUILDING COMMUNITIES
Richardson’s interest in the Rosenwald School effort was natural as it links with a focus on disparities in education and housing. Richardson works as the program and development fellow with Rebuilding Together of Greater Charlotte, a nonprofit focused on neighborhood-based home repairs.
“Camille’s upbeat attitude, person-first approach and genuine care for the homeowners we serve has been evident since they stepped foot into our office,” said Kim Savage ’20, ’21 MPA, development and communications manager for Rebuilding Together. “Camille has made it much easier for our clients to access our services and has comforted many of them through the home repair process.”
For Juengst, the Mount Vernon partnership offers a way for students to gain archaeological experience. Her research usually is conducted in South America, and she strives to have opportunities for students to join her on those trips to gain research experience.
“Tons of students cannot travel to South America for six weeks or for three months over the summer,” she said. “They may not have the money or even the desire. I believe you shouldn’t have to go abroad to do archaeology, so I’ve had my eyes open for a local project. This project is appealing because it has future opportunities for students who are interested in community building, grant writing or other aspects of this work.”
Lynn Roberson is director of communications for the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences.
