Near Amherst in Amherst County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)

Bear Mountain Indian Mission School

Photographed by J. J. Prats, June 8, 2017

1. Bear Mountain Indian Mission School Marker

Inscription. Bear Mountain is the spiritual center of the Monacan community. The Bear Mountain Indian Mission School, ca. 1868, was originally built for church services and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Virginia’s racial segregation laws excluded Monacan children from public schools. The school provided a seventh-grade education until 1964, when high school first became available to Monacan students. In 1968, an Episcopal mission was established on this site, which included a frame extension to the schoolhouse. A fire in 1930 left only the schoolhouse intact. The building now belongs to the Monacan Indian Nation.

Erected 2007 by Department of Historic Resources. (Marker Number R-52.)

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Education • Indigenous Peoples and Communities • Religion & Religious Structures. In addition, it is included in the Virginia Department of Historic Resources (DHR) series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1868.

Location. 37° 34.392′ N, 79° 7.602′ W. Marker is near Amherst, Virginia, in Amherst County. It is on Kenmore

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Road (County Route 643) just east of Matohe Road and Father Judge Road (County Route 655), on the left when traveling west. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 2009 Kenmore Rd, Amherst VA 24521, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Central Virginia.

It is also in the American South

and specifically in the Upper South.

Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region,

North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the original Thirteen Colonies,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 5 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Sweet Briar House (approx. 2.7 miles away); Sweet Briar Plantation Slave Cabin (approx. 2.7 miles away); The Boxwood Alumnae House (approx. 2.7 miles away); James River Batteau (approx. 3.2 miles away); Rucker’s Chapel (approx. 3.2 miles away); Sweet Briar College (approx. 3.4 miles away); Thomas "Tom" Nelson Burford

Photographed by J. J. Prats, June 8, 2017

2. Bear Mountain Indian Mission School Marker

(approx. 4.2 miles away); World War II Memorial (approx. 4.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Amherst.

Also see . . . Monacan Indian Nation - History. “However, some of the Monacan people stayed in Virginia, entrenched in their ancestral home in the mountains, a place that became known as Amherst County. Other members of their confederacy, such as Saponis, Occaneechis, and Tutelos, joined these remaining Monacans, and the Monacan people adopted the few Tuscaroras who chose to remain in Virginia.” (Submitted on June 14, 2017.)

Credits. This page was last revised on August 15, 2021. It was originally submitted on June 14, 2017, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio. This page has been viewed 1,426 times since then and 47 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on June 14, 2017, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio.

Editor’s want-list for this marker. Photos of the schoolhouse • Can you help?