The Life and Times of Elizabeth Van Lew
A Guest Post by Rachel Pater.
After 20 years in the Midwest and 10 years in the Wild West, my partner and I landed in Richmond, Virginia in 2016. Prior to moving here, I had little knowledge about the Civil War—even less about Richmond’s role in it.
Like many others, the way I can best access history is through narratives from or about people who lived through specific periods of time. Since moving here, my portal to Civil War times has been through the life of Elizabeth Van Lew, a Unionist Spy who lived in Church Hill.
Elizabeth’s story took a hold in me, and I knew I wanted to share it. And so, in collaboration with a few musicians and the Richmond Story House, we recorded an audio narrative of her story (hear a sample here). You can now take this 70-minute, 2-mile, downloadable walking tour on your own time, by yourself or with a group. The tour starts and ends at St. John’s Church in Church Hill.
Elizabeth’s Significance Then and Now
Following the fall of Richmond, Ulysses S. Grant said that Elizabeth Van Lew provided him with “the most valuable information received from Richmond during the war.” Her lessons continue to provide us with knowledge of our city’s participation in the slave trade and the Civil War, challenging participants to make connections between this history and the insidious forms of racism still alive in our city and world today.
Proceeds from the tour go directly to expanding our work in the Richmond City Justice Center, where we run weekly personal narrative workshops. Download the Van Lew Tour and see a slideshow here.
Rachel Pater is the Founder of Richmond Story House. Visit Richmond Story House for the tour, workshops, and also information on volunteering and donations.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Thanks for sharing in the spirit of learning about our collective American History by subscribing to the blog. Guest posts like this one are welcomed and encouraged––by academics, historians, authors, artists, and storytellers. Contact me for details.
For Karen-related author research tidbits, book news and events, subscribe to my e-publication, CHASING HISTORIES.