W&M Bray School Lab

08/24/2026

📣 BRAY SCHOOL STORIES: Records and Research with Virginia Untold: The African American Narrative 📣

🗓 Monday, August 31st at 6:00 PM; virtual event

Join us in one week, when W&M Bray School Lab genealogist Elizabeth Drembus turns a spotlight on the records and the work of the Library of Virginia, specifically the library’s ongoing project “Virginia Untold: The African American Narrative.”

Elizabeth welcomes Lydia Neuroth, Project Manager of “Virginia Untold” and Elle Kim, Part-time Project Archivist (and former Bray School Lab intern) as they discuss this incredible project and share their ongoing work to digitize records that document some of the lived experiences of enslaved and free Black and multiracial people in the Library of Virginia’s collections.

These records are an extremely valuable source of information for family historians and have provided important evidence for the Bray School Lab’s genealogical research of the students who attended the Williamsburg Bray School. All are welcome!

👉 Register here: https://go.wm.edu/4hZXDp

08/05/2026

📣 Recording of July’s Bray School Stories is up on our YouTube channel!

On July 27th, W&M student and Sharpe Action Research intern, Bailey Kim, shared insights from her research into the play and entertainment habits of Williamsburg Bray School students. Participants were excited to hear what she had uncovered, and offered their insights and suggestions to guide and enhance her research. What an incredible collaboration! Thank you to all who participated!

👉 Checkout the recording here: https://go.wm.edu/cCF7tl

08/03/2026

📣 BRAY SCHOOL STORIES: Records and Research with Virginia Untold: The African American Narrative 📣

🗓 Monday, August 31st at 6:00 PM; virtual event

This month, W&M Bray School Lab genealogist Elizabeth Drembus turns a spotlight on the records and the work of the Library of Virginia, specifically the library’s ongoing project “Virginia Untold: The African American Narrative.” Elizabeth welcomes Lydia Neuroth, Project Manager of “Virginia Untold” and Elle Kim, Part-time Project Archivist (and former Bray School Lab intern) as they discuss this incredible project and share their ongoing work to digitize records that document some of the lived experiences of enslaved and free Black and multiracial people in the Library of Virginia’s collections.

These records are an extremely valuable source of information for family historians and have provided important evidence for the Bray School Lab’s genealogical research of the students who attended the Williamsburg Bray School. All are welcome!

👉 Register here: https://go.wm.edu/4hZXDp

07/27/2026

A WEEK FROM TODAY!
MEMORIALIZING THE ENSLAVED OF ARLINGTON: HONORING TWO
Sunday, Aug 2 @ 12 noon
St. Ann Catholic Church, 5300 10th St, North

The Arlington Historical Society and the Black Heritage Museum of Arlington invite you to the unveiling of “Stumbling Stones.” These bronze markers commemorate the lives of the enslaved people who helped build our county (and our country). The markers are placed in the sidewalk at the last known location where these enslaved people lived. Memorializing the Enslaved in Arlington’s research has revealed over 2,750 enslaved people and identified 1,045 by name.

Please join us for the Dedication Ceremony honoring two once enslaved individuals:
Lidia: Born ca. 1810
Henry Speaks: Born ca. 1827
LEARN MORE: https://arlhist.org/event/memorializing-the-enslave-dedication-ceremony-honoring-two-once-enslaved-people/

07/23/2026

the recording of June’s Bray School Stories is up on our YouTube channel!

On June 29th, the Lab was excited to share about our latest project – Mapping the Literacy of Enslaved Virginians, 1619-1865.

While conducting research on the history and legacies of the Williamsburg Bray School and its students, Bray School Lab staff and students have continued to find primary source evidence to suggest that education—marked in this case by literacy, or the ability to read, at minimum—was delivered earlier and more widely across Virginia. Elizabeth welcomed Dr. Maureen Elgersman Lee (director of the Bray School Lab) and Dr. Shannon White (associate director of the Center for Geospatial Analysis) to discuss the project.

👉Checkout the recording here: https://go.wm.edu/LKzhYc

07/20/2026

Exciting opportunity from our friends at Descendants of Enslaved Communities at the University of Virginia!

07/20/2026

📣 BRAY SCHOOL STORIES: Bray at Play 📣

🗓️ Monday, July 27th at 6:00 PM; virtual event

👉 Register here: https://go.wm.edu/x0nx19

Next Monday, Elizabeth turns the session over to W&M student and Sharpe Action Research intern, Bailey Kim, who will share insights from her research into the play and entertainment habits of Williamsburg Bray School students. Free and open to the public; registration is required. Please join us. All are welcome!

07/19/2026

What a joyful celebration of faith, resilience and community for the frame raising of the African Baptist Meeting House!

07/16/2026

the recording of June’s Bray School Stories is up on our YouTube channel!

On June 29th, the Lab was excited to share about our latest project – Mapping the Literacy of Enslaved Virginians, 1619-1865.

While conducting research on the history and legacies of the Williamsburg Bray School and its students, Bray School Lab staff and students have continued to find primary source evidence to suggest that education—marked in this case by literacy, or the ability to read, at minimum—was delivered earlier and more widely across Virginia. Elizabeth welcomed Dr. Maureen Elgersman Lee (director of the Bray School Lab) and Dr. Shannon White (associate director of the Center for Geospatial Analysis) to discuss the project.

👉Checkout the recording here: https://go.wm.edu/LKzhYc

07/15/2026

Excited to share news about an upcoming event from our friends at Oatlands-National Trust Site!

Join us on July 25 at Oatlands-National Trust Site for Seeing Our Humanity, the signature event of the America 250: Justice for All series, featuring Academy Award-nominated actor and humanitarian Djimon Hounsou and Brent Leggs in his first public speaking engagement as president and CEO of the National Trust.

Bringing together descendants, scholars, musicians, preservationists, and community members, this special afternoon invites reflection, dialogue, and connection through conversations on memory, memorialization, reconciliation, and our shared future. The program also includes a performance by Washington Revels ensemble Jubilee Voices.

Presented as part of America 250: Justice for All, a descendant-centered series led by four National Trust Historic Sites in Virginia, Seeing Our Humanity commemorates the nation’s 250th anniversary by engaging with histories of enslavement and the ongoing work of telling a fuller American story.

Admission is free with advance registration. Learn more and reserve your seat: https://ow.ly/syru50ZlikI

Djimon Hounsou Foundation