History Reinvented: The Stairs to Nowhere
In this new season of History Reinvented we’ll uncover stories of Pine Camp.
In the late 19th century, the 160 acres along the northern border of the city of Richmond was known as the City Farm or City Jail Farm. Later on, Richmonders who were battling contagious diseases, including smallpox and tuberculosis, were isolated on the property.
But because this was the post Civil War South and the height of the Jim Crow era, only white patients were treated until eventually a separate house was built for the city’s Black population. When vaccinations were finally able to stem the diseases, the land and buildings began to take on new life. And while the whites only building remained, the Black ward was torn down.
It’s here where mysteries are being uncovered and the history of those patients and the land itself is being rediscovered. And it’s here where the land is taking on a new life which will allow new stories to emerge.
History Reinvented: The Stairs to Nowhere
Mystery Stairs
On this episode of History Reinvented – Pine Camp, the stairs to nowhere, VCU professor Marie Vergamini and her students, who’ve been studying and digging into the history of Pine Camp, literally, take me to where they found the stairs to nowhere.
Once covered in a huge mess of debris, the team dug up the bits and pieces of the stairwell, which looks almost like some weird outdoor giant bath tub or a coffin with stairs.
History Reinvented is created solely by me, Ian Stewart. I’m a freelance journalist, and a longtime, former public radio reporter. I’ve got no sponsors at this time–so, if you’d like to sponsor this podcast series, let me know. I’d love to do other deep dives into the history of Richmond or surrounding areas.
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