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Letter from the Founder:

Ralph Waldo Emerson stated, “life is a journey, not a destination.” And I get that. Life is, it seems, a process that involves a series of ongoing experiences. Interestingly, this has been the case with Hanover County Black Heritage Society. Our journey of experiences has taken us from a storefront building on Ashcake Road to the site at Virginia Street to the Bethany School at Montpelier, the Elks Home building on Henry Street, the Elmont Recreation Center on Cobbs Road and finally to the Henry Clay Inn here in the Center of the Universe. This journey has afforded us over twenty years of researching, collecting, and exhibiting information on contributions made by African Americans who have lived in Hanover County and/ or attended the segregated Hanover County Training School or John M. Gandy High School.

We have used the resources here at the Society to gather information on these current and former citizens of the County and made their accomplishments available to the community at large. We have opened our doors to those who wish to use our archives to do independent research. We have partnered with organizations such as the Hanover Historic Society, the Hanover Heritage Society, Randolph Macon College and other to further our mission. We encourage you to check your attics, garages, and outdoor sheds for memorabilia, artifacts, and documents that we might use to increase our holdings. We need to make this information available for future generations and your ongoing support is needed. Without you, HCBHS would not be in existence. Remember “the only way forward is onward.”

Sincerely,
Carolyn Tibbs Hemphill, Founder
The Hanover County Black Heritage Society