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Center for Local History Blog

Dedicated to collecting, preserving and sharing the history of the community.

The Voting Rights Act of 1965: Remarks by Rev. Dr. DeLishia A. Davis

NAACP Arlington Branch president and pastor Dr. DeLishia A. Davis gave a powerful speech during the opening reception of the Virginia voting rights exhibition "From Barriers to Ballots."

The exhibitions were on display from Aug. 1 through Nov. 4, 2025, at the Bozman Government Center, Arlington Central Library, Arlington Historical Museum, Black Heritage Museum of Arlington and the City of Fairfax Regional Library.

This video was recorded on August 6, 2025, at Central Library for the 60th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. You can read the transcript of the speech below or stream it online.

The initial moments of the speech referenced Davis's grandfather, the late Rev. Robert D. Boykin of Wilmington, North Carolina. He passed away on January 23, 2025 at the age of 97. 

The transcript has been edited for length and clarity.

Photo of President Lyndon B. Johnson shaking hands with Martin Luther King, Jr., at the signing of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Photograph by Yoichi Okamoto. Courtesy of the Lyndon B. Johnson Library.

The 60th Anniversary of the Voting Rights Act of 1965

Good evening, friends, neighbors and beloved community,

Today, we gather to mark the 60th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act of 1965—one of the most significant victories of the Civil Rights Movement and a profound declaration of American democracy.

This legislation was not gifted to us. It was earned through sweat, sacrifice and sheer moral courage. It was won on the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, where people of every age and background stood against hatred and brutality to affirm the dignity of the vote.

Painting of “Bloody Sunday—Selma, 1965” by artist Ted Ellis. This painting was unveiled during the 50th Anniversary celebration of the March from Selma to Montgomery. From Wikimedia Commons.

The Vote is Precious. It is Almost Sacred.

As the late Congressman John Lewis, a hero of that bridge, once said: “The vote is precious. It is almost sacred. It is the most powerful nonviolent tool we have in a democratic society, and we must use it.”

The Voting Rights Act gave legal power to that sacred tool. But 60 years later, we find ourselves in a sobering moment—a time when voting rights are once again under attack, when voter suppression wears new clothes, and when equity remains a dream deferred for too many.

Let us be clear: To truly honor the Voting Rights Act is not just to remember it—it is to defend its purpose. Because the same forces of racism and injustice that required its passage still seek to silence and divide us today.

Pinback button reading “Black Folk Must Vote,” ca. 1965. Courtesy of the National Museum of African American History and Culture.

The Arc Bends Toward Justice.

As Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., reminded us,“The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.”

However, friends, it does not bend on its own. We must bend it. With action. With truth. With an unrelenting commitment to justice. We must fight for accessible, fair and inclusive elections. We must demand policies that affirm human dignity and racial equity. And we must do this work—together.

Photo of John Lewis, 1965. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division, LC-USZ62-121285

Make Good Trouble.

John Lewis also urged us to make “good trouble, necessary trouble.” So, we must. Because the dream of an anti-racist, just society is not a relic of the past—it is a calling for our present and a hope for our future.

Let us link arms like those who came before us. Let us vote, speak out, organize and refuse to be silent. Let us protect not just the laws of democracy, but the soul of it.

May we keep walking, keep marching, keep making good trouble and keep the promise of justice alive for generations to come.

Thank you.

(Song)

We shall overcome, we shall overcome, we shall overcome someday.

Deep in my heart, I do believe we shall overcome someday.

We’ll walk hand in hand, we’ll walk hand in hand, we’ll walk hand in hand someday

Deep in my heart, I do believe we shall overcome someday.

About Reverend Dr. DeLishia A. Davis

Reverend DeLishia A. Davis is the current president of the Arlington branch of the NAACP. She has been a Methodist pastor for nearly three decades and has served congregations in Ohio, Mississippi, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Virginia.  

In addition to her pastoral duties, Rev. Davis serves as the Chaplain of the National Council of Negro Women in Northern Virginia, providing spiritual guidance and support to empower women of color.  

As a board member for People for the American Way, Rev. Davis works to protect and expand the rights of all citizens. Beyond her advocacy work, Rev. Davis is also a dedicated English literature teacher. 

Arlington, VA Suffragist Mary Morris Lockwood

The Charlie Clark Center for Local History (CCCLH) sat down with Nancy Tate to talk about the origins of the women's suffrage movement and the historical marker for Arlington suffragist Mary Morris Lockwood (1871–1936).

Tate is a longtime member of the League of Women Voters of Arlington and Alexandria City and has served as the executive director of the League of Women Voters of the United States.

The marker is located next to the Arlington Science Focus Elementary School, at 1501 North Lincoln Street, across from Hayes Park, in Arlington, Virginia 22201.

This interview was recorded on May 30, 2025, at the Charlie Clark Center for Local History and is part of the VA voting rights exhibition "From Barriers to Ballots." You can read the transcript of the interview below or stream it online.

The transcript has been edited for length and clarity.

Image of Mary Morris Lockwood, weekly newspaper "The Suffragist," June 6, 1914, Library of VA.

Mary Morris Lockwood, Silent Sentinel

Mary Morris Lockwood lived in Arlington, VA, and was actively involved in the civic life of her community. She was also engaged in civic reforms. For instance, she helped found the library system of Arlington, St. Andrew's Episcopal Church and the Federation of Women's Clubs. She is particularly known as a very active suffragist.

Suffragists were women and men who worked very hard over a 72-year period to ensure equal voting rights for women.

And she did that living right here in Arlington. Both by setting up chapters of some of the suffrage groups in the state, raising money, lobbying her federal legislators from this district and marching in parades.

Parades were a common tactic to draw attention to the suffrage movement. Lockwood marched, for instance, in the very well-known 1913 march down Pennsylvania Avenue when thousands of women from around the country came to DC to show support for women’s right to vote.

She's particularly significant because she was one of the so-called Silent Sentinels, the women who stood in front of the White House every day for a year in 1917, holding banners saying: "Mr. President, how long must women wait for liberty?"

This photograph shows picketers marching from the National Women’s Party headquarters to their posts in front of the White House in 1917. Courtesy of the National Museum of American History.

A Letter from Mother

They were trying of course to influence President Woodrow Wilson to support a constitutional amendment to provide voting rights to women. It took him a while, but he ultimately urged Congress to pass it. And in 1919 Congress finally did that, sending it on to the state legislatures to ratify.

The 19th Amendment to the Constitution was ratified in 1920, guaranteeing that the right to vote could not be denied on the basis of sex. **

But it was a hard-fought fight right to the end, because the amendment only passed by one vote in the legislature of the last state, Tennessee.  And that only happened when one young male legislator flipped his vote after receiving a letter from his mother urging him to do that.

You can't get better drama than this story of women finally getting into the Constitution!

The Suffragist, June 14, 1919. The Suffragist was created in 1913 by Alice Paul and the Congressional Union for Woman Suffrage (later the National Woman’s Party) to spread women’s political news and garner public support for a suffrage amendment. Courtesy of the National Museum of American History.

It Took Many People

As a side note to that, these roadside markers are meant to honor and commemorate the many, many people who worked for over 72 years for women’s suffrage. Mary Lockwood was only one of the many who had become invisible over the years. As part of the 2020 centennial of the 19th Amendment, a wide range of efforts were undertaken to highlight the work of these suffragists.

And it's significant to know that there were active suffragists in Virginia, because the Virginia General Assembly was completely against women voting. They fought it to the very end.

Women like Mary Lockwood, who were going around the state and trying to educate people and get support, may be even more heroic than other suffragists around the country because they were facing so much hostility.

Sign, ca. 1920, designed to be placed in the window of a home so that all who passed would know that the woman within had exercised her right under the 19th Amendment and registered to vote. Courtesy of the National Museum of American History.

Organizing for Women’s Suffrage

The organized efforts to get the vote started in 1848. It took until the late 1800s, when some of the state legislatures, particularly in the Western states, began to allow women to vote. How they did that varied. Some of them allowed women to vote on every race up to president. Some said only the school board race, some said everything except the school board race. I guess in the West it was easier to see the equal contributions that women were making.

Regardless of the differences between states, it took multiple suffrage campaigns in every state to achieve voting rights for women.  It took petitions. It took marches. Sometimes it was legal action. Sometimes women such as Susan B. Anthony went to vote, knowing it was illegal, just to highlight the injustice of being arrested or fined for exercising their voice as citizens.

Women's suffrage postcard, 1915. A popular anti-suffrage argument claimed that entering the supposedly masculine world of politics would take away from women’s femininity. This postcard directly refutes that argument by giving examples of other tasks women commonly performed that were not considered feminine but were not thought to take away from their "womanliness." Courtesy of the National Museum of American History.

By the 1900s, More Momentum Was Building for the Women’s Vote

The women's rights movement started as part of the abolitionist movement. Over the years different groups evolved, and the movement splintered somewhat. There's a lot of complexity to this story, which we don't have time to go into here.

By the time you get into the 1910s, momentum was building. By 1918, women were already voting for president in a number of states. Senators and congressmen who had been elected from those states started making Congress more receptive to the suffrage arguments.

And during World War I, when so many women were doing so such much to support the war, it became harder, even for President Wilson, to ignore their exclusion from the body politic. In fact, he used this rationale in urging Congress to pass the amendment.

Photo of the historical marker for suffragist Mary Morris Lockwood, located at 1501 North Lincoln Street, across Hayes Park in Arlington, VA.
Photo of the historical marker for suffragist Mary Morris Lockwood, located at 1501 North Lincoln Street, across from Hayes Park in Arlington, VA.

Virginia Did Not Change its Own Constitution Until 1952

Just to get back to Virginia—and most of the Southern states—which, I must say were against women's voting rights because, of course, they were against Black voting rights. And why would they want Black women to vote when they were already trying to suppress the Black men? That was a block of states that was pretty hard to move.

The 19th Amendment passed in 1920. Women in some of the states had been voting since at least 1910. If every state had been left to handle the issue on its own, those of us who live in Virginia would have waited a whole lot longer to vote. Virginia did not change its own constitution until 1952.

It's quite a wonderful story and there are so many people who worked so hard to make women’s voting rights a reality. As I’ve said, many of their stories have not been told. Increasingly, there is an effort such as these roadside markers to tell those stories.

I’m happy to share such stories—like that of Mary Lockwood—with you.

**  It needs to be noted that the 19th Amendment did not enfranchise U.S. women who continued to be excluded from voting for reasons other than their sex. That included those who were not considered citizens (such as members of tribal organizations), those who were prevented by state Jim Crow laws, and those who lived in the District of Columbia.

About Nancy Tate

Nancy Tate is a longtime member of the Arlington League of Women Voters, now the League of Women Voters of Arlington and Alexandria City (LWV-AAC). She has served as president of the LWV-AAC and currently serves as chair of the history committee.

From 2000-2015, Tate served as the executive director of the National League of Women Voters, known as the League of Women Voters of the United States.

The League of Women Voters is a nonpartisan, grassroots organization working to protect and expand voting rights. It operates at all levels—federal, state and local—to ensure everyone is represented in our democracy.

Remembering Kitty Clark Stevenson

On June 4, 2025, Kitty Clark Stevenson, a native of Hall’s Hill and longtime community organizer, business owner and proud great-grandmother, passed away. Kitty’s friends describe her as a beloved storyteller and a brilliant public speaker who was never afraid to stand up for herself and her neighbors.

Kitty was born on August 1, 1949, to Jalorce M. Clark and Alfred W. Clark, Sr., the first Black firefighter to be paid by Arlington County. She attended Langston Elementary, Swanson Junior High and Washington-Lee High School (now Washington-Liberty). She was one of the first Black children to attend Swanson during integration.

Kitty discusses what it was like to grow up in Arlington County under segregation and the impacts of attending Swanson Junior High during integration.

In her professional life, Kitty built a legacy based on equal rights and public service. She was a human resources management professional for over 50 years and owned a consulting firm, ABLE’N Consulting, LLC. She worked for the Arlington County Personnel Department from 1983 until her retirement in 2000.

Kitty was Arlington’s first full-time Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Officer, also serving as Personnel EEO Specialist and Selective Placement Program Manager. She was a certified WINDMILLS trainer and trained people with disabilities, managers, employees and personnel specialists on disability awareness and sensitivity issues.

After her retirement, Kitty continued to challenge discrimination through community work. In 2007, she was appointed to the Arlington Human Rights Commission, chairing from 2011 to 2017.

Interview with Kitty Clark Stevenson in which she talks about her work with the Arlington Voting Office and the history of Fire Station No. 8.

Kitty also had a passion for voting. She started working with the Arlington County Department of Voter Registration and Elections in 2002, first as an election officer, then as an Assistant Registrar. She was chief of Precinct 101 in the Douglas Park neighborhood.

As a young woman, Kitty had been instructed by her dad to save her money for the poll tax. When she came of age, around 1970, she went to register to vote. In her memory of that day, she came to the central registrar’s office and waited patiently at the counter to be acknowledged. The Registrar ignored her, continuing to sort papers at the counter.

Eventually, a man entered behind Kitty and the Registrar welcomed him. The man indicated that Kitty had been there first and that she needed to be served. These small acts of indifference and kindness stayed with her and inspired her.

Kitty was committed to ensuring that each person she interacted with on behalf of the Office of Voter Registration felt seen. Gretchen Reinemeyer, Arlington County’s General Registrar, remembers how Kitty endeavored to make voting accessible to all, assisting voters in understanding the law and their options to successfully cast their ballot.
“While there are countless lessons I learned from Kitty over the years, perhaps the greatest was to make the font size larger! A small act of kindness to anyone over the age of 40 who left their readers at home,” said Reinemeyer.

Kitty’s favorite story from the precinct on election day was when a young man came running in and asked for a curbside ballot on behalf of his wife, who was in labor. As Chief Election Officer, Kitty went into a frenzy to gather the necessary paperwork and get the woman voted and on her way to the hospital. Delivering babies wasn’t covered in election officer training.

Kitty Clark Stevenson (left) and Marguarite Gooden (right) in front of the old Fire Station No. 8 building in 2016.

Kitty Clark Stevenson (left) and Marguarite Gooden (right) in front of the old Fire Station No. 8 building in 2016. From ARLnow.

In 2015, Kitty became a leader in a community effort to preserve Fire Station No. 8, the County’s historically Black fire station, in its original location. In 2014, the Arlington Fire Chief had earmarked Station 8 for possible “relocation, consolidation, replacement or closure” based on the findings of traffic and response time studies conducted by the county.

Plans began to move the station north near Marymount University, with no notice or input from the Hall’s Hill community. When news reached the John M. Langston Citizens Association, they immediately began organizing to prevent the loss of their neighborhood’s historic firehouse.

The daughter of respected Station 8 captain Alfred W. Clark, Sr., Kitty had grown up in the station and understood how important it was to the community. At a time when Black Arlingtonians were barred from movie theaters, restaurants and recreational activities under Jim Crow segregation, Station 8 served as a vital community center. It brought people together from all three historic Black neighborhoods in Arlington, serving Green Valley, Johnson’s Hill and Hall’s Hill.

Firefighters would host movie nights for the neighborhood kids in the 1950s and the station was one of the first places in the area that had a telephone and a color television. Some of the firefighters had even set up their own golf course by the station on Culpeper Street. Neighbors knew they could always stop by to chat, play games and seek refuge.

A black and white photo of the old Fire Station No.8 in Arlington, Virginia.

Fire Station No. 8 at its previous 2209 Culpeper Street location, ca. 1934-1963. From PG 200

In September 2015, after pressure from both the John M. Langston and Old Dominion Citizens Associations, the County Board created a community task force to help determine how to move forward with Station 8.

As one of the five “Fire Station 8 Angels” — including her close friends Marguarite Gooden, Edith Gravely, Peggy Carter Jones and Rochelle Jones-Day — Kitty was integral in the fight to build the new Station 8 on its original site. She was known for being collected but forceful. Kitty spoke out at the county board meetings and made sure that the task force understood the station’s historical significance.

“She was like our spiritual glue, in a sense...the light of the Lord shone through her and helped our lights shine. And I think that’s why they called us the Station 8 Angels,” said Gooden. Jones-Day remembers Kitty as their “Big Sister in Christ,” guiding them with strength and prayer.

An updated photo of the new Station 8 fire station in Arlington, Virginia.

First day of operations at the new Station 8 building, June 25, 2024.

In the end, they successfully advocated for a new, larger Fire Station 8 to be built on its original site. As a member of the Fire Station No. 8 History & Legacy Working Group, Kitty helped choose the words that adorn the walls of the new building, including “Resilience,” “Service” and “Dedication.”

While she may not have fought fires like her father, Kitty fought for what she thought was right. Her legacy lives on in Arlington.

Sources:

Help Build Arlington's Community History

The Charlie Clark Center for Local History (CCCLH) collects, preserves and shares resources that illustrate Arlington County’s history, diversity and communities. Learn how you can play an active role in documenting Arlington's history by donating physical and/or digital materials for the Center for Local History’s permanent collection.

Do you have a question about this story, or a personal experience to share? 

Use this form to send a message to the Charlie Clark Center for Local History.

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Appreciating Arlington Educator Katherine Mosley Ross

This Teacher Appreciation Week, we’re showing our appreciation for Arlington educator Katherine Mosley Ross.

A photo of Katherine Ross with a white garment on her head, a white dress and white pearls around her neck.

Katherine Ross, date unknown. From her funeral program, 2003.

Katherine Mosley (Woodson) Ross was born on May 19, 1905, in Lynchburg, Virginia. She was the first child born to William Edward Mosley, a blacksmith who owned a shop in what was then known as Hell’s Bottom and Emma Isabel Mosley, a housewife who briefly worked for the government during World War I.

Shortly after Ross’ birth, William and Emma built a home at 909 S. Scott St., where they lived for the rest of their lives. The house is still standing, directly next door to St. John’s Baptist Church, which was built in 1907.

Ross’ elementary education began at St. John’s Baptist Church School. By the time she entered the fourth grade, the church school had closed, and she began attending what was known as the “new Jefferson School,” a 4-room schoolhouse built on land purchased from the South Arlington Cemetery Corporation in 1914.

The “old” Jefferson School was the first public elementary school for Black students in Arlington, established in 1870.

The main building of the Hoffman-Boston Junior High School formerly known as the Jefferson School in black and white and a medium size two storied building.

The main building of the Hoffman-Boston Junior High School (formerly the Jefferson School), a segregated school built in 1915 with an addition added in 1931, at 1415 S. Queen Street. The building is currently part of the Hoffman-Boston Elementary School campus. From RG 32.

While Ross was a student at Jefferson, Fletcher Kemp began his long tenure as superintendent. He became known for his vigorous efforts to reform the school system. In an oral history interview, Ross cited Superintendent Kemp as someone who encouraged and inspired her to pursue a career in teaching.

[Kemp] said, "I want you to go over there to Dunbar or Armstrong and go further and come back here and teach in my school.” And I knew he was talking to me, he looked right at me, and he said, "I expect you to come back and teach in my school."

Then, you know, you didn't answer. But I smiled, and I just said, well I was going to do it. I was going to do it anyway, but I was going to do it. And I knew he meant for me to come back and teach in Arlington County Public Schools.

Ross would go on to do just that. After graduating from Dunbar High School in Washington, D.C. (there were no Black high schools in Arlington at that time), she enrolled in the Minors Teacher College at Georgia Avenue and Harvard Street.

Every morning, Ross would have to leave her house at 7 a.m., take a trolley from Arlington to Pennsylvania Avenue and hop on a streetcar to get to school. She was forced to ride in the back of the trolley.

As far back as I can remember, my father used to tell me that there was a law ... and that law said that there was a difference between white and Black. But the minute he said that, he said, “but the law is wrong.”

He said, “there isn't any difference. So far as brains, you have just as much brains as anybody. But the law says: This is why you have to sit in the back of the trolley. This is why you can't go to some places in Washington D.C.” Well, there wasn't any place in Arlington to go, so it didn't make too much difference. But if there was a restaurant or whatever in Arlington, I couldn't have gone to it anyway.

But he insisted on telling me that the law was wrong. “But it's the law, so I don't want you to get hurt...But remember that regardless of what you have to do, it is wrong. And one of these days, it's going to change.” Well, it was a little difficult, but I believed what he said.

So, when I rode on the trolley, I knew I had to sit in the back. But I knew that was the worst place in the world, I shouldn't have to be there.

After graduating from teaching school, Ross applied for a job with the Arlington County Public School system. Kemp hired her and appointed her to teach first and second grade at Langston School. She held that post for four years before marrying her first husband.

At the time, married women were not permitted to teach in Arlington, so, she left and didn’t return to teach at Arlington Public Schools until 1937. In the meantime, she earned her bachelor's degree while continuing to teach in North Carolina and Campbell County, Virginia.

A young black girl performing a dance, standing on her toes.

Girl performing dance on toe shoes at Langston School, 1955. From PG 218.

When Ross returned to Arlington, she was appointed to the new Hoffman-Boston High School – the first Black high school in the county, established at the former Jefferson School, where she had found her inspiration to teach two decades prior.

Despite the efforts of the teachers, the resources that students had access to were inadequate compared to the white high schools. Ross and others were known to send their students to libraries in D.C. to supplement their education, since the Hoffman-Boston Library was lacking.

Black students eating lunch with each other at Hoffman-Boston High School.

Lunch time at Hoffman-Boston High School. From RG 307.

In 1941, with the U.S. joining the war effort, the Pentagon was built, displacing the Black families who lived in what was known as Queen City. Most relocated to Green Valley, causing the student population to skyrocket at the local Kemper Elementary School (later renamed Drew Elementary School).

Superintendent Kemp called upon Ross to be a leader to the teachers at Kemper. She helped them make the best of their strained resources and contend with squeezing a full day’s curriculum into half-day shifts, which allowed them to teach as many students as possible.

A two-story building used for schooling.

The second Kemper School building, built in 1893 for Black students in the Green Valley/Nauck neighborhood. The building was replaced in 1945 and is now the Charles R. Drew Elementary School at 3500 23rd Street. From RG 32.

When Arlington Public Schools desegregated in 1959, Drew Elementary began to receive its first white students. Around this time, Ross became an assistant principal, supervising grades three through six. She oversaw the integration of the first white teacher, Ms. Hopkins, into a previously all-Black school.

Ross continued to teach at Drew until her retirement in 1970, after a 45-year career.

In addition to her career as a lifelong educator, Ross was a proud member of St. John’s Baptist Church for over 85 years. She devoted her time and leadership to the senior choir, trustee board, vacation Bible school and Sunday school. Her legacy to the church and community is the Katherine Mosley Ross Scholarship Fund, inspired by her loving dedication to education.

Sources:

Help Build Arlington's Community History

The Charlie Clark Center for Local History (CCCLH) collects, preserves and shares resources that illustrate Arlington County’s history, diversity and communities. Learn how you can play an active role in documenting Arlington's history by donating physical and/or digital materials for the Center for Local History’s permanent collection.

Do you have a question about this story, or a personal experience to share? 

Use this form to send a message to the Charlie Clark Center for Local History.

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Exhibition: From Barriers to Ballots

August 1-November 30

Black voters at the polls, ca. 1944-1962.
A Black man is entering a voting booth in Miami, Florida.
Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, LC-USZ62-119976

Stars graphic in red, white and blue.

The Voting Rights Act of 1965

August 6 marks the 60th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which some consider to be the crowning achievement of the 1960s Civil Rights movement. It was a milestone in the long struggle to extend political representation and voting rights to Black Americans.

From Barriers To Ballots:
The Fight for Equal Voting Rights in Virginia

To commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act, Arlington Public Library has partnered with several community organizations to tell the stories of activists, changemakers and everyday people in Arlington and Northern Virginia who fought for voting rights.

On View

The exhibitions have been extended at the following locations through Nov. 30:

from-barriers-to-ballots-title-graphic_300x240

Thank You

Exhibition partners include the Arlington Historical Society, the Black Heritage Museum of Arlington, the League of Women Voters of Arlington and Alexandria City and the NAACP Arlington Branch. 

Special thanks to the following media contributors: Arlington County Department of Voter Registration and Elections; Bethlehem Baptist Church, Gum Springs, Virginia; City of Fairfax Regional Library, Fairfax County Public Library; Library of Congress; Library of Virginia;
Norman Rockwell Museum and the Virginia Museum of Fine Art.

“From Barriers to Ballots” has generously been funded by the Friends of the Arlington Public Library (FOAL).

New Friends of the Library logo in bright colors. Tagline reads "Books are only the beginning"

“The goal is to develop a culture of voting in Arlington.”

Detta Kissel, volunteer, NAACP Arlington Branch

“We are a big mixing bowl and when I put in my vote, I add my ingredient. Every time I vote, I feel like an American.”

Dr. Scott Edwin Taylor, Ph.D., President, Black Heritage Museum of Arlington

“Voting is everything. Who you are. Your chance to give worth to your being, to care for your country. All of those things which make America great.”

Brenda Faison, Former Director of Christian Education and Missions, Bethlehem Baptist Church, Gum Springs, VA

Votes For The First Time

Votes for First Time at 79 by Harris & Ewing Inc.
Mrs. Lucy O’Leary of Arlington, VA, pictured on October 15, 1936. Her horse and wagon are adorned with banners endorsing Republican Alf Landon for President and Frank Knox for Vice President in the electoral race against Franklin D. Roosevelt. At age 79, Mrs. O’Leary cast her first ever vote in favor of Landon, who lost to Roosevelt by a landslide that November.
Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, LC-DIG-hec-33957

Charlie Clark Center for Local History: Where Stories Live

The Charlie Clark Center for Local History

Content and research for this exhibition has been provided by the Charlie Clark Center for Local History (CCCLH).

The Charlie Clark Center for Local History (CCCLH) collects, preserves, and shares resources that illustrate Arlington County’s history, diversity and communities.

Contact the CCCLH at localhistory@arlingtonva.us or 703-228-7714 to find out how you can donate materials, photographs and memorabilia or to be a part of an oral history interview.

Visit the CCCLH

Sharing the Love: Edmond and Alice Fleet

This year’s theme for Arlington Reads is love—feeling it, sharing it, and reading about it. We thought it was a good opportunity to share some of our favorite Arlington power couples who worked together to share their love for the whole community. This is part two of an ongoing series of blog posts, each featuring a different couple.

Alice and Edmond Fleet with hearts in the background.

Alice and Edmond Fleet. From RG 11: The Papers of Edmond C. Fleet, Collector, 1812-1984.

The lives of Edmond and Alice Fleet can be summed up as a series of fearless firsts. Despite the barriers they faced under Jim Crow segregation, they forged successful careers while generously donating their time and leadership to the church, social organizations and local politics. During their 46 years of marriage, Alice and Edmond uplifted one another and served as an inspiration to their community.

Alice Fleet playing croquet.

Alice Fleet playing croquet. From RG 11.

Alice West Fleet (1909-2000) was born in Mecklenburg County, Virginia, on a former plantation estate called Prestwould Farm. Her father, William West, was a farm caretaker and respected stone mason. Her mother, Rose Skipwith, was a housewife whose parents had been enslaved.

Alice knew at an early age that her dream was to be a teacher. After graduating from Thyne Institute, a prestigious, historically Black Presbyterian boarding school, Alice became a public school teacher while earning a degree in elementary education from Virginia State College.

In 1937, Alice married Edmond Claudius Fleet (1902-1983), a widower with three children, and moved to Arlington with her new family. Edmond worked as a civilian pastry chef for the United States Navy at the National Naval Medical Center. Throughout his career, he won many awards recognizing his culinary skills.

Edmond Fleet in chef attire holding silverware in both hands.

Edmond Fleet in chef attire, holding silver set won as first prize in a bake contest at Sheraton Park. From RG 11.

A Beloved Educator

After teaching for two years in Fairfax County, Alice was hired at Hoffman-Boston, which opened in 1915 as Arlington’s first junior high school for Black students. She continued to earn her master's degree in reading from the University of Pennsylvania during the summers between teaching and, later, pursued a PhD at George Washington University.

When Alice was appointed to fill a vacancy as reading specialist, she became the first Black reading teacher in Arlington County.

Alice Fleet at a Delta Sigma Theta gathering.

Alice Fleet at a gathering of Delta Sigma Theta, an organization of college-educated women committed to public service with a focus on the Black community. From RG 11.

On February 2, 1959, Arlington’s Stratford Junior High became the first school in Virginia to desegregate. Soon, other schools followed suit, and Alice was reassigned to Woodmont Elementary on North Fillmore Street. Alice became the first Black teacher in the county to teach at a previously all-white school.

Alice served as an Arlington County educator for over three decades, holding additional posts at Drew Elementary in Green Valley and Reed Elementary in Westover. She retired from teaching in 1971.

After Alice retired, she drew upon her expertise as an educator to spearhead the Educational Guild at Mount Zion Baptist Church, which provided scholarships to high school and college students. After Edmond’s death in 1983, she also established a scholarship fund in his name for disadvantaged college students.

In 2019, Arlington County opened Alice West Fleet Elementary School, named in her honor as a beloved teacher and educational pioneer.

Meeting Community Needs

Edmond and Alice were pivotal in founding the first YMCA in Arlington to serve Black community members. Seeing a desperate need for Black children to have an opportunity to socialize and participate in sports, a group of neighbors came together in 1946 to provide recreational programming specifically for people of color.

Two women holding a shovel with others behind them smiling.

Groundbreaking ceremony for the Veteran’s Memorial YMCA swimming pool. Photo from RG 11. Learn more about the Veterans Memorial YMCA here. 

By 1953, they had gathered enough funds to build the Veteran’s Memorial YMCA, a permanent home in Green Valley for their activities. It included a community room where dances and movie screenings were held. Located near Drew School, it naturally had a strong bond with neighborhood children, since the county’s Parks and Recreation system was still segregated.

In the late 1950s, this YMCA branch started a campaign to build a swimming pool to serve Black residents who were barred from using the county’s public swimming pools.

Edmond was a tireless fundraiser for the Veteran’s Memorial YMCA, serving on its management committee for 27 years. Alice served on the Board of Directors through the 1990s.

Civic Engagement

After retiring from their careers, the Fleets became involved in local politics. In 1977, they hosted Lady Bird Johnson at their home for a Chuck Robb campaign event. Chuck Robb—who was the husband of Lynda Bird Johnson Robb, daughter of President Lyndon B. and Lady Bird Johnson—ran as a Democrat for Lieutenant Governor of Virginia and won the election in 1977.

Alice Fleet was later appointed by Chuck Robb to serve two terms on the Virginia State Commission on the Status of Women. Alice also served as President-at-Large of the Arlington County Democratic Committee.

a man and three women dressed professionally at a fundraiser.

Lady Bird Johnson, second from left. Pictured with Edmond Fleet on the left, an unnamed woman to the right, and Alice Fleet on the far right at a fundraiser for Chuck Robb during his campaign for lieutenant governor. From RG 11.

“Let nothing and no one stop you.”

Alice was known among her students for a powerful motto that she taught them: “Let nothing and no one stop you.” In their commitment to equal rights and dedication to family and community, Alice and Edmond Fleet lived this motto every day of their lives.

Sources:

Help Build Arlington's Community History

The Charlie Clark Center for Local History (CCCLH) collects, preserves and shares resources that illustrate Arlington County’s history, diversity and communities. Learn how you can play an active role in documenting Arlington's history by donating physical and/or digital materials for the Center for Local History’s permanent collection.

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Ellen M. Bozman at 100

April 21, 2025, marks Ellen M. Bozman’s 100th birthday.

Bozman (1925-2009) was a community activist, politician and visionary leader who left behind a legacy which guided Arlington in transitioning from a suburban enclave to a bustling urban community while preserving the vitality of Arlington’s neighborhoods.

Ellen M. Bozman Papers (1961-2004)
Photo of Ellen M. Bozman at her desk.
Ellen M. Bozman at her desk; 1981 campaign brochure.

Bozman's Legacy Is Still Felt In The Arlington Community

Her prior planning experience gave Bozman the skills to help manage development in Metro corridors, allowing apartments, condominiums, single-family dwellings, parks and recreation areas to remain unchanged.

Her civic influence extended beyond her tenure as a board member through participation in various community organizations and governmental bodies. She advocated for controlled development, instituting services for the elderly and children and transparent government.

Photo of Ellen Bozman with Congressman Joe Fisher.

Ellen M. Bozman worked with former Congressman Joseph L. Fisher to get nearly 3 million dollars a year in federal funding for Arlington’s neighborhood conservation program; 1981 campaign brochure.

Photo of Ellen M. Bozman working at her seat on the Arlington County Board; 1970s.

Photo of Ellen M. Bozman working at her seat on the Arlington County Board; 1970s.

Photo of Ellen M. Bozman, attending the groundbreaking ceremony for C&P Telephone, one of the first companies to move into the new Courthouse Plaza in Arlington; 1987.

Ellen M. Bozman, pictured to the right, attends the groundbreaking ceremony for C&P Telephone, one of the first companies to move into the new Courthouse Plaza in Arlington; 1987.

Portrait of Ellen M. Bozman.

The Early Years

Bozman moved to the Arlington area in 1946 and entered civic life through the League of Women Voters, conducting public education campaigns supporting the integration of Arlington Public Schools.

She then served on several county commissions in the 1960s and early 1970s. Bozman was elected to the County Board in 1973 as an Independent, the first woman elected since 1958.

Bozman served from 1974 to 1997 on the Arlington County Board.

Bozman, a six-time board chair with 24 years of public service, is the longest serving Arlington County Board member (1974-1997).

In a time when few women held public leadership roles, she distinguished herself as a passionate leader and pioneer, effective consensus-builder and powerful agent of change.

Ellen M. Bozman featured as one of the "1986 Washingtonians of the year." Washingtonian Magazine, 1987.
Ellen M. Bozman featured as one of the "1986 Washingtonians of the year." Washingtonian Magazine, 1987.

In Her Own Words

“Since I joined the County Board in 1973, Arlington has become a community of rich diversity, expanding opportunities and ever more complex governmental challenges. I know we can meet whatever lies ahead due to the pride that Arlingtonians show for their community and their willingness to help make it better. I am privileged to have been a part of this process.”

Ellen M. Bozman
1985 campaign letter

A Tireless Advocate For Child Care & Affordable Housing

Her early initiatives included improving standards for child care, developing the first nursing homes in Arlington and advocating for tenants’ rights and affordable housing.

She also supported the first Arlington farmers market and Neighborhood Day and co-founded the Alliance for Housing Solutions, which works for affordable housing.

Bozman remained active in the county until her death on January 8, 2009.

Find more information about Ellen M. Bozman by visiting the Charlie Clark Center for Local History. (RG 333: Ellen M. Bozman Papers, 1961-2004)

ArlNow article by Scott McCaffrey (02/04/2025)

 

Glencarlyn Library’s 101st Birthday

Opened in the fall of 1923, Glencarlyn Library celebrated its 101st birthday with a rededication and all-ages celebration on September 21, 2024.

Arlington County Board Chair Libby Garvey, Arlington Public Library Deputy Director Anne Gable, Glencarlyn Civic Association President Brandon Hemel and Glencarlyn Library Centennial Celebration Chair Julie Lee all celebrated the library's storied century as a hub for nearby communities.

Patrons shared heartfelt stories—sometimes spanning generations—of what this library, community and milestone mean to them.

Willa

"I've never seen so many books before in my life!"

Glencarlyn's first page

"I think that the love of the library is so important to an individual, and particularly to young people and to children, that I would hope that all of them could have that close experience that I did."

Julie Lee

"Glencarlyn Library is so very important to me because it has been a part of my family for generations."

Colleen Lunsford and Órla Lunsford

"Thank you to the librarians who keep those books on the shelves and give us suggestions about what to read."

"Thank you, library, for all the books you let me borrow!"

Adriana & Maxine Backus

"Everywhere you look in the community, you realize that Glencarlyn is what it is because, at some point, somebody cared a lot."

Barbara McMichael

"Back then, in the middle of the library, they had these big boxes that stuck out, and they were full of cards. And they held something that we learned was called the Dewey Decimal System."

Lynn Green Robinson

"We moved into this neighborhood in 1958, and this library was a little white house. It was my favorite place on the face of the earth."

Marie Wilson

"As a child, our family came to the library once a week at least. And sometimes, if we were really bored, we asked to come more than once a week because we would have read all the books that we took home the weekend before."

J Vic Funderburk

Infamous FBI agent-turned-Russian asset Robert Hanssen "would come in and pick up a post and sit at one of the tables, holding the newspaper in such a way that it appeared that he was reading it... It became increasingly obvious that he was not reading it!"

Susan Walsh

"Our experience of this library really shaped who we became. We love books, and we want to share that."

The Friendly Cab Company

In 1947, Ralph Collins started a cab company to help his neighbors get around under Jim Crow segregation. It was one of the longest-running businesses in Green Valley.

Ralph Collins walking with his wife, Cornelia in the 1940s.

Ralph Collins with his wife Cornelia, ca. 1940s. From WETA’s Boundary Stones.

There were plenty of ways to get around Arlington in the 1940s. By then, streetcars had given way to bus routes and taxi cabs. As automobile ownership increased, so did commuter culture and the rise of numerous highways such as Shirley Highway (I-395 today).

But it was not so easy for Black Arlingtonians to get where they needed to go. Under Jim Crow, they were discriminated against on public transit and barred from using white taxi services. Segregation ruled every aspect of public life, from restaurants to barber shops and recreation centers.

Even access to medical care was separate and unequal. Arlington Hospital (now Virginia Medical Center) had segregated wards, and services to Black patients were limited. The maternity ward would not offer care to Black mothers, who were expected to travel to hospitals in Washington, D.C., or Alexandria to give birth.

For Black Arlingtonians, traveling that far in a medical emergency was difficult, especially since many could not afford cars of their own.

In 1947, Ralph Delaware Collins (1896–1951) of Green Valley founded Friendly Cab Company to help address this urgent need. It began as a shuttle service, transporting neighbors to and from medical appointments. Over time, Friendly Cab expanded into a full-service taxicab company and a cherished community institution.

Friendly Cab driver Granderson O. Bollock.

Friendly Cab driver Granderson O. Bollock. From RG 338: The Personal Papers of Birdie and Mable Alston, 1905-2019.

The company’s first taxis were Chryslers and many of the drivers were off-duty Black firemen. One early driver for Friendly Cab was Granderson O. Bullock (1910-2003). He worked as a milkman before becoming a part-time driver. He also worked for The Peyton Funeral Home and later, the U.S. postal service.

Friendly Cab gained a reputation for going above and beyond in their service to the community. In a Northern Virginia Sun article from 1965, Alice Kennard, who suffered from multiple sclerosis, praised the drivers of Friendly Cab Company for always getting her to her treatments, even if that meant "the driver picked her up and carried her to the cab.”

A newspaper clip from the Northern Virginia Sun about the Friendly Cab Company.

“Life in a Wheelchair Temporary, She Says,” by Virginia Warren. Northern Virginia Sun, vol. 28, no. 207, June 4, 1965.

After Ralph Collins' death in 1951, his brother Doug took over the company. William Collins, Sr. inherited the business and ran it until the mid-1990s, when he passed it along to William Collins, Jr., who managed it with help from Charles Collins and, later, Darryl Collins.

A newspaper clip of Ralph D. Collins' obituary in 1951.

Ralph D. Collins’ obituary, 1951. Source.

In an interview, Darryl remembered the day he decided to take over the family business. At his father’s funeral, longtime community leader Dr. Alfred Taylor stood up to speak on the man’s life and legacy. He then looked directly at Darryl and his siblings and said, “Do not let this business go away.”

Darryl knew then and there that the Friendly Cab Company was too important to let go. He continued to run the business with his sister, Vicky. Over the years, they turned down multiple offers to purchase the company, resolving instead to help Friendly Cab meet the community’s changing needs.

Facing increasing competition from rideshare services like Uber and Lyft, the Friendly Cab Company recently ceased operations. According to the Arlington County Register of Historic Places, it was one of the longest-running businesses in Nauck history.

Sources:

Help Build Arlington's Community History

The Charlie Clark Center for Local History (CCCLH) collects, preserves and shares resources that illustrate Arlington County’s history, diversity and communities. Learn how you can play an active role in documenting Arlington's history by donating physical and/or digital materials for the Center for Local History’s permanent collection.

Do you have a question about this story, or a personal experience to share? 

Use this form to send a message to the Charlie Clark Center for Local History.

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Sharing the Love: Elizabeth and Edmund Campbell

This year’s theme for Arlington Reads is love – sharing it, celebrating it, and reading about it. We thought it was a good opportunity to highlight some of our favorite Arlington power couples who worked together to ‘spread the love’ in their communities. This is part one of an ongoing series of blog posts, each featuring a different couple.

Edmund and Elizabeth Campbell.

Edmund and Elizabeth Campbell. Photos from RG 19: Personal Papers of Elizabeth Pfohl Campbell, 1942-1991.

During their 60 years of marriage, Elizabeth and Edmund Campbell dedicated themselves to improving Arlington’s public school system. Leveraging their respective skills in education and law, they motivated one another to support their community through political engagement, volunteering and activism.

Edmund Campbell (1899–1995) met Elizabeth Pfohl (1902–2004) in 1936 while Elizabeth was serving as dean of Mary Baldwin College in Staunton, Virginia. After they married, Elizabeth moved to Cherrydale, where Edmund lived while practicing law in Washington. She adopted Edmund’s two children from a previous marriage and in 1941 they had twins of their own.

At that time, Arlington’s population was booming, in part because of the influx of wartime government workers. Between 1870 (when the first public school was established in Arlington) and 1950, the school-age population had nearly quadrupled. The school system was unequipped to teach so many children. Resources were spread thin and teachers were overwhelmed by large class sizes and long hours.

a license plate that reads, better schools make better communities.

License plate with the phrase, "Better Schools Make Better Communities" From RG 19.

The Campbells, wanting a better education for their children, decided to step up and demand a change. They became charter members of the Citizen Committee for School Improvement ("CCSI").

In 1947, they helped introduce legislation that gave Arlington the right to elect its own School Board, which they hoped would better serve the community. Until then, the School Board had been appointed by a School Trustee Electoral Board which in turn was appointed by the circuit court of Arlington County.

a newsletter from Citizen Committee for School Improvement (CCSI).

CCSI Newsletter, n.d. From RG 19.

Following this victory, CCSI focused on gathering nominees for the elected School Board. Despite her professional background in education and involvement in the Arlington PTA, Elizabeth Campbell declined to run—until her husband encouraged her to do so.

EDMUND: How did you get involved formally in the Better Schools Movement?

ELIZABETH: Well, I was asked to be a candidate to run for the elected school board, and I think I was asked after the two of us had received a group of Arlington citizens who said, "Which one of you will be a candidate for the School Board?" And you said, "I will not, but Elizabeth, I think you should because you have been active in school affairs."

EDMUND: And I had just finished my term on the County Board.

ELIZABETH: So, then you were asked to be the Chairman of the School Board Nominating Convention. The Convention was held on a hot August night, and I...

EDMUND: Where was it held?

ELIZABETH: It was held in the Ashton Heights Club House south of Pershing Drive on Fillmore Street. I remember that we got ready to go over there. We got in the car, and as we drove, you said, "Now, Elizabeth, you have worked very hard to get an elected School Board. There's no reason why with all of these good people as candidates you shouldn't get yourself nominated.” And I said, "No, I'm not going to."

But I got over there in that crowded room, and I was asked to make my little one-minute or two-minute talk. I looked around at all of the people who had worked so hard to pass this legislation to give us the right to have an elected School Board. I was thrilled with a patriotic fervor that I had never felt before or since. I don't know what I said, but the result of what I said was that I was the one woman nominated to serve with four men as candidates for the Arlington Elected School Board.

A notecard with a guide on school board candidates to vote for in 1947 election.

Notecard with a guide on which school board candidates to vote for in the 1947 election. From RG 19.

After a grueling campaign, they succeeded in getting all five nominees elected. Elizabeth served on the School Board from 1948 through 1955, and again from 1960 to 1963. They often held meetings in the Campbells’ home, where Edmund continued to support Elizabeth and the work they were doing to raise funds for school improvements.

A pamphlet urging Arlington residents to vote yes for a bond in the 1950s.

Pamphlet urging Arlington Residents to vote "Yes" to a bond issue of $4,750,000 to build more schools for Arlington's increased population and school enrollment. From RG 19.

The Campbells also helped desegregate Arlington’s schools, vehemently opposing Virginia’s policy of “Massive Resistance,” which occurred in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court decisions in Brown v. Board of Education. In 1954 and 1955, the couple fought to ensure that Arlington's public schools stay open by organizing the Save Our Schools Committee in defiance of Senator Harry F. Byrd and his allies.

a flyer from the save our schools committee for voting against the constitutional convention.

Flyer from the Save Our Schools Committee arguing for a vote against the constitutional convention. From RG 18: Personal Papers of Barbara Marx.

In 1955, Edmund won a case that overturned a Virginia law prohibiting racially integrated seating in public places. In 1958, following the closure of schools in Norfolk, Charlottesville and Front Royal, he successfully argued as the lead attorney in James v. Almond, finally ending Virginia's “Massive Resistance" laws that had forced the closing of all public schools which Federal courts had ordered to integrate. Following that decision, the first Black students entered Stratford Junior High School on February 2, 1959.

Through civic engagement, community organizing and simple kindness, the Campbells worked together to make Arlington a better place for the rest of their lives.

Sources:

Help Build Arlington's Community History

The Charlie Clark Center for Local History (CCCLH) collects, preserves and shares resources that illustrate Arlington County’s history, diversity and communities. Learn how you can play an active role in documenting Arlington's history by donating physical and/or digital materials for the Center for Local History’s permanent collection.

Do you have a question about this story, or a personal experience to share? 

Use this form to send a message to the Charlie Clark Center for Local History.

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