Education at LVA

Did you know that Virginia’s first railroad began operating in June 1831 in Chesterfield County? It used gravity and mules for locomotion to haul coal from the Midlothian coal fields. Do you teach about Virginia’s economic history? Learn more about the importance of coal and railroads in our online classroom resource Document Bank of Virginia: https://www.lva.virginia.gov/collections/educator-resources/dbva/items/show/91

Image: ariel photograph showing coal terminal and piers of the Norfolk and Western Railway, Virginia New York World's Fair Commission Photographs, Visual Studies Collection, Library of Virginia.

140 years ago, Congress submitted to the states the proposed Fourteenth Amendment, which granted citizenship to the formerly enslaved inhabitants of the United States. The amendment also forbade states from denying any person "the equal protection of the laws," which in the 20th century served as the basis for civil rights legislation and judicial rulings that outlawed racial discrimination. Ratification was completed on July 9, 1868, but Virginia did not ratify the amendment until 1869. Do you teach about the U.S. Constitution? Learn more about the Fourteenth Amendment in our online classroom resource Shaping the Constitution: https://www.lva.virginia.gov/collections/educator-resources/online-classroom/stc/entries/fourteenth-amendment-to-the-united-states-constitution-1868

Image: excerpt showing Section 1 from the Joint Resolution Proposing An Amendment to the Constitution of the United States, July 21, 1868, Appendix Stat. 709

Education & Outreach staff are participating in Gunston Hall’s celebration of the 250th anniversary of the Virginia Declaration of Rights. Stop by our LVA On the Go vehicle and learn more about our resources.



https://www.lva.virginia.gov/collections/educator-resources/dbva/items/show/184

Virginia's Fifth Revolutionary Convention unanimously adopted a Declaration of Rights on June 12, 1776. Originally drafted by Fairfax County delegate George Mason, the Virginia Declaration of Rights was one of the most influential documents of the American Revolution. James Madison drew on it when framing the Bill of Rights to the U.S. Constitution as did French revolutionaries when they adopted their Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen in 1789. Do you teach about America's founding documents? Learn more in our online classroom resource Shaping the Constitution: https://www.lva.virginia.gov/collections/educator-resources/online-classroom/stc



Images: copy of an oil portrait of George Mason by John Hesselius and the handwritten first page of the Virginia Declaration of Rights prepared by Mason most likely in 1778 to demonstrate for a friend his role in drafting the document. This "Copy" contains some variants from the original first draft. Library of Virginia.

On June 10, 1963, police in Danville attacked hundreds of Black citizens who were holding a peaceful prayer vigil outside the jail where residents who had picketed against discrimination and segregation were imprisoned. Dozens of participants were beaten with fire hoses and clubs and many were severely injured. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. denounced the police as "brutal" and among the most violent in the South. Do you teach about the civil rights movement? Learn more about Bloody Monday in our lesson plan on Civil Rights Protests in Danville: https://www.lva.virginia.gov/collections/educator-resources/dbva/items/show/21

Image: State Historic Marker documenting Bloody Monday in front of the Danville Courthouse.

June 9 is International Archives Day! The Library of Virginia is the state archives of Virginia and holds the world's largest collection of materials related to the Commonwealth's history, culture, and government. We love sharing our resources with teachers and students! Find ways to bring Virginia documents into your classroom at our Educator Resources page: https://www.lva.virginia.gov/collections/educator-resources

Attention Northern Virginia area educators! LVA On the Go will be participating in Gunston Hall's 250th anniversary celebration of the Virginia Declaration of Rights on Saturday, June 13. Come learn about Library of Virginia resources while enjoying musical and theater performances, hands-on activities, and tours of George Mason's home.

Learn more about the event here: https://gunstonhall.org/event/declaration-day/2026-06-13/

Learn more about the Virginia Declaration of Rights in our online classroom resource Document Bank of Virginia: https://www.lva.virginia.gov/collections/educator-resources/dbva/items/show/184



Images: (left) Library of Virginia's On the Go vehicle with Gunston Hall in the background and (right) two people, one in historical costume, interacting with Library of Virginia staff at a table with informational materials.

On June 7, 1776, Virginia delegate Richard Henry Lee introduced a resolution before the Continental Congress that "these united colonies are and of right ought to be free and independent states." Congress postponed debate to allow delegates who were under instructions not to consent to independence to seek new instructions. Congress also appointed a committee of five men to compose a declaration that would explain and justify the need for independence, which was drafted by Thomas Jefferson. Congress approved Lee’s resolution on July 2 and adopted the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. Do you teach about America's founding documents? Learn more in our online classroom resource Shaping the Constitution: https://www.lva.virginia.gov/collections/educator-resources/online-classroom/stc/entries/declaration-of-independence-july-4-1776

Learn more about Richard Henry Lee: https://www.lva.virginia.gov/collections/educator-resources/online-classroom/stc/people/richard-henry-lee-(1733-1794)



Image: 20th century copy by Anne Fletcher of a profile portrait of Richard Henry Lee by Charles Willson Peale, State Art Collection, Library of Virginia

Allied forces began landing on the beaches of Normandy on June 6, 1944, in the offensive that pushed the N***s out of France and ultimately ended World War II in Europe. Do you teach about the Second World War? Learn more about D-Day in our online classroom resource Document Bank of Virginia: https://www.lva.virginia.gov/collections/educator-resources/dbva/items/show/95

Images: two photographs showing John Wilkes in his army uniform in Personal War Service Record of Virginia's War Dead, Virginia World War II History Commission, Accession 24805, Library of Virginia.

On June 4, 1781, British cavalry under Lieutenant Colonel Banastre Tarleton raided Charlottesville, the temporary meeting site of the General Assembly. Members had been warned by Captain Jack Jouett who rode all night from Cuckoo Tavern in Louisa County to spread the alarm, and the assembly adjourned to Staunton. Jouett also wanted Governor Thomas Jefferson who barely escaped capture. Do you teach about the American Revolution? Learn more about the story of Jack Jouett's ride in our online classroom resource Document Bank of Virginia: https://www.lva.virginia.gov/collections/educator-resources/dbva/items/show/346



Image: Illustration of men in 18th-century attire, gathered in a room with a central figure in a high-backed chair and one man gesturing, published in Mary Tucker Magill's History of Virginia: For the Use of Schools (1888).