How two decades of community organizing grew into a vision for land ownership, education, and self-determination. The first time I met Duron Chavis, he wasn't talking about farmland. He was talking about culture. It was the early 2000s, and Happily Natural Day was...
Editor's Note: We're sharing this essay from community content partner Jon Baliles of RVA 5x5. If you enjoy his work and want more in-depth coverage of Richmond politics and history, consider subscribing to RVA 5x5 on Substack. The views expressed are those of the author. As the 250th Independence Day weekend winds down, we take a peek back at...
There is a spotlight still mounted in the rafters of 528 N. 2nd Street. It has been there since 1914. It has outlasted segregation, fire, the highway that cut Jackson Ward in two, and decades of silence. On the nights when the Hippodrome Theater fills up, that light falls on the stage the same way it fell on Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, and a...
Editor's Note: Reminder, the sculptures are located on private property and are not open for general visitation. Access is available only through scheduled guided tours, with Labor Day weekend currently expected to be the final tour on the calendar. Tour information is available HERE. On an industrial property outside Williamsburg, forty-two...
I recently bought my first bicycle in more than a decade. Like most people, I started my search online, comparing models, reading reviews, and trying to figure out what kind of rider I actually wanted to be. Eventually I visited several local bike shops before settling on a new Fairdale. A few weeks later, I received an email from Joel Alford...
Imagine pulling into a suburban shopping center to buy a toaster and finding a department store that appeared to be falling apart with corners breaking away, walls peeling open like a giant cardboard box, or facades seemingly collapsing under their own weight. For thousands of shoppers in the 1970s and 1980s, it was simply a trip to Best...
Did you know that at one point Pepsi was the 6th largest navel power in the world, or that there is supposedly a box of dicks in the Vatican Museum? These were just some of the surprising history stories I heard at the first meeting of the RVA Tipsy History Club, which launched under the name RVA Drunk History Club before a recent rebrand. The...
Editor's Note: RVA Magazine is partnering with the Virginia Museum of History & Culture on coverage related to America's 250th anniversary, including Richmond SailFest and the upcoming IllumiNation. Also, filmmaker Justin Black of Headwaters Down is sailing aboard the Pride of Baltimore II as it makes its way from Norfolk to Richmond. Follow...
Editor's Note: This is a companion piece to our preview of Songs of Truth, the new musical inspired by the life of Sojourner Truth. This essay from Christian Detres takes a closer look at the woman behind the legend and the enduring relevance of her story. Sojourner Truth is an integral personality to the concept of “American spirit.” She is more...
Christmas Eve, 1928. Richmond is cold and the city is dressed for the holiday. On West Cary Street, a crowd gathers outside a building that wasn't there six months ago; a French Empire facade rising up in the middle of a neighborhood that had no idea it was about to become something. The first film that night was Waterfront, a First National...
