Latest news with #TomHiggins
Yahoo
27-06-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Archaeologists Excavated One of America's Oldest Schools—and Found a Secret Cellar
Here's what you'll learn when you read this story: The Williamsburg Bray School is one of the oldest schools in the United States to educate Black students. Archeologists discovered remains of the school on the William & Mary campus in Virginia. Finds include the foundation of the school, a previously-undocumented cellar, and more than two centuries worth of buried artifacts. Few schools can say they're older than the countries in which they reside, but the Williamsburg Bray School holds that distinct honor. The Bray School was also one of the oldest schools in the United States dedicated to educating Black Americans. From 1760 to 1774, head teacher Ann Wager taught both free and enslaved students lessons from the Anglican Church. While the Bray School may seem revolutionary for its time, its history was actually much darker. The school was founded for the flawed purpose of convincing enslaved children to accept their circumstances. Today, the school serves as a key chapter in the history of Black education, yet historians know little about the students who actually attended. Luckily, researchers just discovered a few more pieces of the puzzle: the near-complete foundation of the Bray School and an undocumented cellar filled with centuries worth of artifacts. The remains fall on the College of William & Mary's (W&M) campus in Virginia; excavations were led by the school's Center for Archeological Research. According to a press release from W&M, the remnants of the cellar are sizable, measuring 36 feet by 18 feet. Tom Higgins, an archeologist for the Center, explained in the release that the cellar likely had multiple levels and was dug soon after the original foundation was laid. These recent excavations revealed the bottom of the cellar to be nearly 18 inches higher than previous research found. 'The discovery of this cellar is thrilling,' W&M President Katherine Rowe said in the release. 'The roots of our city and university entwine here. Every layer of history that it reveals gives us new insights into our early republic, from the Williamsburg Bray School through the generations that followed, up through the early 20th century.' Perhaps even more valuable than the cellar itself is the historic treasure archeologists found while digging. The artifacts discovered at the site provide a rich story spanning from the 18th to the mid-20th century. The newly found broken pottery shards, slate pencil pieces, buttons, and jewelry painted a picture of everyday life at the Bray School. According to the release, one of the team's favorite discoveries was part of a broken glass depicting the Roman goddess of wisdom, Minerva. One researcher at the center, Michele L. Brumfield, explained that the glass may have come from one of the school girls furnishing her dorm room, though the researchers say they're hesitant to draw any conclusions because 'it's early days.' Now that these once-lost stories have come to light, some of the artifacts will be displayed as a permanent installation in W&M's Gates Hall. Other treasures will be lent to The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation and exhibited at the Colin G. and Nancy N. Campbell Archaeology Center once it opens in 2026. In the meantime, there's still much more to be done at the site. 'This is exciting,' Maureen Elgersman Lee, director of the W&M Bray School Lab, said in the press release. 'What else are we about to learn? We are not done understanding the history of the Williamsburg Bray School, the history of Black education. We are not done learning the history of this area, and we are certainly not done learning the history of this country.' You Might Also Like The Do's and Don'ts of Using Painter's Tape The Best Portable BBQ Grills for Cooking Anywhere Can a Smart Watch Prolong Your Life?
New York Post
25-06-2025
- General
- New York Post
Archaeologists unearth foundation of 1760s schoolhouse for black children near famed college
WILLIAMSBURG, Va. — Archaeologists in Virginia have unearthed the foundation of a building from the 1700s that once supported the nation's oldest surviving schoolhouse for black children, William & Mary announced Wednesday. The university in Williamsburg said the foundation is nearly completely intact. Archaeologists also uncovered a cellar that is layered with centuries of artifacts, including slate pencil fragments and jewelry. Advertisement 5 William & Mary College archaelogists excavating the foundation of a building that was once the nation's oldest schoolhouse for black children in the 1700s. William Mary/William Mary Center for Archaeological Research via AP 5 The Williamsburg Bray School taught mostly enslaved children in the 1760s. AP The schoolhouse was later used as a dormitory, housing some of the first generations of women to attend college in the US. 'The roots of our city and university entwine here,' said Katherine A. Rowe, William & Mary's president. 'Every layer of history that it reveals gives us new insights into our early republic, from the Williamsburg Bray School through the generations that followed, up through the early 20th century.' Advertisement The Williamsburg Bray School taught hundreds of mostly enslaved students in the 1760s. The school rationalized slavery within a religious framework. And yet becoming literate also gave them more agency, with students sharing what they learned with family members. Advertisement The schoolhouse then became a private home before it was incorporated into William & Mary's growing campus. 5 Buttons from clothing found during the excavation. William & Mary Center for Archaeological Research 5 Pieces of pottery and other remains discovered at the site of the schoolhouse. William & Mary Center for Archaeological Research The building was expanded for various purposes, including student housing, and later moved from its original location. Advertisement Historians identified the structure in 2020 through a scientific method that examines tree rings in lumber. It was then moved to the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, a living history museum that includes parts of the original city. The museum has restored the schoolhouse and is working to identify the students' descendants. Meanwhile, archaeologists with Colonial Williamsburg recently uncovered the foundation and cellar during a major project by William & Mary to renovate a university building, Gates Hall. The school's archaeologists are also involved. Tom Higgins of William & Mary's Center for Archaeological Research said the cellar is not lined with bricks and 'was probably dug soon after the foundations were laid.' Researchers have found handmade ceramics often associated with sites of enslavement and Indigenous communities, the university said. 5 According to the college, the schoolhouse's foundation was discovered completely intact. William & Mary Center for Archaeological Research There are also items that appear to be more recent, such as a shard of glass depicting Minerva, Roman goddess of wisdom, justice, war and the arts. Advertisement From 1924 to 1930, the building housed Methodist women attending William & Mary. 'We know that the girls at Brown Hall were furnishing their dorms,' said Michele Brumfield, senior researcher at the university's archaeological center. 'So maybe they were bringing in things like this.'
Washington Post
22-06-2025
- General
- Washington Post
Crews unearth relics of enslaved children's lives at site of 1760s school
Archaeologist Tom Higgins calls it one of the most unique projects he's worked on in 40 years. Underneath William & Mary's Gates Hall, which is undergoing renovation, archaeologists are donning hard hats, steel-toed boots and safety glasses to find what has long been hidden in its foundation: the remnants of the Williamsburg Bray School, which educated enslaved and freed Black children in the 1760s.
Fox News
19-06-2025
- General
- Fox News
Cellar unearthed beneath America's oldest Black schoolhouse reveals artifacts
Archaeologists at William & Mary University in Virginia unearthed a piece of American history tied to the oldest surviving schoolhouse for Black children. A near-complete foundation - including a chimney base - and cellar were excavated, The Associated Press (AP) reported. The building belongs to the Williamsburg Bray School, which taught mostly enslaved students in the 1760s using a religious framework to justify slavery. The Williamsburg Bray School was later transformed into a dormitory for some of the first women to attend college. William & Mary's Center for Archaeological Research, Tom Higgins, said the cellar "was probably dug soon after the foundations were laid" as it was not lined with bricks, reported AP. Artifacts found from the 18th century through the mid-20th century are not known to connect to the school. Recovered artifacts such as buttons and a slate pencil from the 18th century will be researched to determine their origins and connections. Katherine Rowe, William & Mary's president, said, "The roots of our city and university entwine here." "Every layer of history that it reveals gives us new insights into our early republic, from the Williamsburg Bray School through the generations that followed, up through the early 20th century," she added, according to AP. The structure was discovered in 2020 by historians and is being restored by the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation.
Fox News
19-06-2025
- General
- Fox News
Secret cellar unearthed beneath America's oldest Black schoolhouse reveals artifacts
Archaeologists at William & Mary University in Virginia unearthed a piece of American history tied to the oldest surviving schoolhouse for Black children. A secret cellar was found with many artifacts such as slate pencil fragments and jewelry, The Associated Press (AP) reported. The building belongs to the Williamsburg Bray School, which taught mostly enslaved students in the 1760s using a religious framework to justify slavery. The Williamsburg Bray School was later transformed into a dormitory for some of the first women to attend college. William & Mary's Center for Archaeological Research, Tom Higgins, said the cellar "was probably dug soon after the foundations were laid" as it was not lined with bricks, reported AP. Handmade ceramics associated with sites of enslavement and a shard of glass depicting Minerva, Roman goddess of wisdom, justice, war and the arts, were also found. Katherine Rowe, William & Mary's president, said, "The roots of our city and university entwine here." "Every layer of history that it reveals gives us new insights into our early republic, from the Williamsburg Bray School through the generations that followed, up through the early 20th century," she added, according to AP. The structure was discovered in 2020 by historians and is being restored by the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation.
