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The Virginia Star was a weekly newspaper that originated in Richmond, Virginia. The first issue was published and distributed on Saturday, September 8, 1877, and the paper dissolved in 1888.[1] The editors of the maiden issue were Otway Mahalath (O.M.) Steward, Peter H (P.H.) Woolfolk, and R.A. Green M.D. This was the state's oldest and best-established black newspaper.
Publication History[edit]
R.A. Green[2] a successful physician, is mentioned as an editor alongside Steward and Woolfolk in the first few issues, however after Volume II in 1878, the editors are referred to as Steward, Woolfolk & Co. Additionally, the street address of The Star News and Job Office is printed as Nos. 211 & 213 North Sixth Street, Richmond, VA. After Volume VI in 1882, we see this address change to No. 313 North Fifth Street, Richmond, VA. Annual subscriptions began at $1.50 and soon increased to $2 for weekly Saturday papers.[3]
Content and History[edit]
The Virginia Star was published in the interests of African Americans in southern Virginia during the 19th century. This independent news press along with its competitor, the Criterion, provided the majority of Black Richmond’s voice to the public masses. In the early 1880s, Black activists led the Readjuster Movement, which “split the traditionally unified white camp and handed the balance of power to the black electorate.” Their efforts held leverage in the struggle for socio-economic improvement. O.M. Steward founded the Virginia Star in 1877. While juggling jobs such as a sign painter and teacher, he served as the "editor, manager, solicitor, mailing clerk, compositor, proofreader, office boy, and general supervisor"[4] of the paper. He is said to have been an advocate of “race pride” thus as black activists increasingly integrated the Readjuster party, he assumed leadership of local Readjuster clubs and turned his paper into an open advocate of the Readjuster party as the answer to black problems. Individual advancement became their primary criterion by which to assess the collective self-improvement of “the race.[5]” Editors like Steward lent their oratorical and literary skills to the movement. Their pieces challenged traditional patterns of social relationships between races, and rather molded a narrative among the Black population in favor of the liberal movement.
Steward's long time partner was Peter H. Woolfolk. Woolfolk worked as a teacher (1865-78) and eventually became a primary editor on the paper. He was a prominent Richmond man who was an incorporator in the company Mount Alto Mining and Land Company of Virginia.[6] He then was elected Grand Worthy Secretary of the Grand Fountain in 1881.[7]
| Founder(s) | Otway Mahalath (O.M.) Steward |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Otway Mahalath (O.M.) Steward |
| Editor | Otway M. (O.M.) Steward; R.A. Green M.D., Peter H (P.H.) Woolfolk. |
| Language | English |
| City | Richmond, Virginia |
| Country | United States of America |
| ISSN | 2835-897x |
| OCLC number | 9973874 |
Preservation History[edit]
There are currently 12 volumes accessible through the Library of Congress site for review. Several initiatives are seeking to rescue and recover African American newspaper companies; especially in Virginia, through the Library of Virginia for instance.
- ^ "To Preserve our Common Heritage". www.lva.virginia.gov. Retrieved 2024-04-30.
- ^ Franklin, Vincent P.; Anderson, James D. (1978). New Perspectives on Black Educational History. G. K. Hall. ISBN 978-0-8161-8114-8.
- ^ "The Virginia Star (Richmond, Va.) 1877-18??". Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA. Retrieved 2024-04-30.
- ^ Alexander, Ann Field (2002-10-29). Race Man: The Rise and Fall of the "Fighting Editor," John Mitchell Jr. University of Virginia Press. ISBN 978-0-8139-2439-7.
- ^ Rachleff, Peter J. (1984). Black Labor in Richmond, 1865-1890. University of Illinois Press. ISBN 978-0-252-06026-7.
- ^ Taylor, Alrutheus Ambush (1926). The Negro in the Reconstruction of Virginia. Association for the Study of Negro Life and History. ISBN 978-0-598-64745-0.
- ^ Burrell, William Patrick; Johnson, D. E. (1909). Twenty-five Years History of the Grand Fountain of the United Order of True Reformers, 1881-1905. Grand Fountain, United Order of True Reformers.