News and Updates

We want to thank all of the supporters who have given financial support for the Brookvale May Day and historical highway marker dedication event scheduled for May 17, 2025 at 36 Primary School Circle, Lancaster, VA 22503.

Below are some options you can consider when selecting your financial support.

You can visit the Spirit Shop and chose a gift at your donation level. Some of the gifts are made with images the students from Lancaster Elementary School art classes created.

On each page on this website, top and bottom, are Donate buttons that will take you directly to the GoFundMe page that was created for this event. Your privacy is protected if you select that option.

If you don’t want to donate online, through the GoFundMe page or the Spirit Shop, you can go directly to any Atlantic Union Bank nationwide and donate to the Save Brookvale History account. The account is under the umbrella of A Pixie From Kilmarnock account because the committee producing the event is not part of a 501c3 non-profit organization.

You can also mail a check or money order to Save Brookvale History, P.O. Box 24003, Richmond, VA 23224.

We appreciate your support and look forward to your participation at the event this coming May.

Thank you.

Brookvale High School was the new modernized high school for the Black Lancaster County community; a brick building with indoor facilities, regular public school transportation for the surrounding areas; a standard to grow upon; the seeds sown by A. T. Wright High School planted in the rich soil of education.

Transplants from one fertile soil to another; strong, healthy roots to continue the growth of crops of young eager minds. The teachers, the administrators, and the staff of the Black public school systems were the caretakers of the crop of excellence that was the standard of Black education in all the counties of The Northern Neck of VA.

One of those caretakers, along with his wife, Bettye Jean Parker Thornton, was Mr. Frank Thornton.

Please read this excerpt from Richmond Magazine about one of Brookvale High School’s elite educators.
“With our increasing diversity, it is easy to forget how white suburban leaders not that long ago were creating systems that relegated Black citizens to second-class status. Unfortunately, white anger, fear and animosity still exist across our Richmond region in shaping public policy and political representation. We’ve been down that path before, and the only way out is to have more diverse and thoughtful voices like Frank Thornton representing us, not fewer.“

A LIVING LEGACY UNVEILED

Frank Junius Thornton, retired French Professor and Political Figure on February 7, 2025 at the 160th Founders Day at Virginia Union University in Richmond, VA, where his portrait was unveiled as an icon.

Watch on YOUTUBE    –   VUU TV Founders Day

Sept. 8, 1926 – Jan. 14, 2025

December 12, 2024

Dear Ms. Curry,

I am pleased to inform you that the Board of Historic Resources voted on December 12 to select the “Brookvale High School” marker proposal as one of the projects that will advance in the process toward becoming a state highway marker.

The actual text of the marker has not yet been approved. In the coming weeks, DHR staff will conduct a detailed fact check of the proposed marker text and will work with you to edit and finalize the draft that will be presented to our Marker Editorial Committee. Our objective will be to cover the most historically significant elements of the topic within the 700-character length limit. Our goal is to present the final text to the Virginia Board of Historic Resources for official approval on March 20, 2025.

Thank you for your interest in educating the public through the state highway marker program, and please don’t hesitate to let me know if you have any questions at this stage.

Best wishes,

Jennifer R. Loux, Ph.D.

Highway Marker Program Manager

March 4, 2025

Good morning, Pixie,

The Marker Editorial Committee met today and determined that the Brookvale High School highway marker text is eligible to be presented to the Virginia Board of Historic Resources for official approval at its meeting on Thursday, March 20.

Here is the text that the Editorial Committee approved. It has not changed since the last draft you reviewed:

Brookvale High School

Lancaster Co. opened Brookvale High School to serve Black students in 1959, five years after the U.S. Supreme Court declared public school segregation unconstitutional. The building replaced the old A. T. Wright High School. The Crusaders Political and Social Club, a civil rights organization, met here frequently. In 1969 the Brookvale Warriors won the last state baseball championship overseen by the Virginia Interscholastic Association, the league for Black schools. Lancaster Co. fully desegregated its schools in the fall of 1969, and the Brookvale building became an intermediate school. Brookvale’s last principal, Dr. Elton Smith, later became the first Black public school superintendent in VA.

The board meeting will be held at the 1000 Westover Building at Maymont (1000 Westover Road, Richmond, VA 23220). The building can be seen here: https://maymont.org/host-your-event/venues/1000-westover/

Attendance is not mandatory. If you wish to speak on behalf of your project, there will be two public comment periods on the agenda, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. You may participate in person or virtually via Microsoft Teams. Please note that making a public comment via Teams will require pre-registration. The agenda, a link to join the meeting, and instructions for participating in the meeting’s public comment periods will appear on this page as the date approaches:  https://www.dhr.virginia.gov/boards/

The meeting will begin at 10 am, but there are quite a few items on the agenda before highway markers will be considered. My presentation is scheduled to take place after the board’s lunch break, near the beginning of the meeting’s afternoon session, likely around 1 pm. The presentation will be brief, and the board generally votes on markers as a group rather than individually.

I will contact you by Friday, March 21, to share the results of the meeting.

Please don’t hesitate to let me know if you have any questions!

Best wishes,

Jen

March 4, 2025

Mr. Don G. Gill
Lancaster County Administrator

Dear Mr. Gill,
The Virginia Board of Historic Resources will be considering a new historical highway marker for
placement in Lancaster County at its meeting on March 20, 2025. I’m writing just to make you
aware of the project—no action is necessary on your part.
The applicant for the marker is Save Brookvale History, and the proposed location is 36 Primary
School Circle, which will require the approval of VDOT. The text is:

Brookvale High School
Lancaster Co. opened Brookvale High School to serve Black students in 1959, five years after the
U.S. Supreme Court declared public school segregation unconstitutional. The building replaced the
old A. T. Wright High School. The Crusaders Political and Social Club, a civil rights organization,
met here frequently. In 1969 the Brookvale Warriors won the last state baseball championship
overseen by the Virginia Interscholastic Association, the league for Black schools. Lancaster Co.
fully desegregated its schools in the fall of 1969, and the Brookvale building became an
intermediate school. Brookvale’s last principal, Dr. Elton Smith, later became the first Black public
school superintendent in VA.

The meeting will be held at the 1000 Westover Building at Maymont (1000 Westover Road,
Richmond, VA 23220), and it will also be streamed on the Microsoft Teams video conferencing
platform. The agenda, instructions for providing public comment, and a link to join the meeting will
appear on this page: https://www.dhr.virginia.gov/boards/

Please feel free to share this information with anyone who may have an interest.

Sincerely,
Jennifer R. Loux, Ph.D.
Highway Marker Program Manager
Jennifer.Loux@dhr.virginia.gov