Unionville in Orange County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)

Isabella Lightfoot Training School

Photographed by Devry Becker Jones (CC0), April 9, 2021

1. Isabella Lightfoot Training School Marker

Inscription. Isabella Miller Lightfoot, born in Pennsylvania and educated at Hampton Normal and Agricultural Institute, taught African American children in Orange County from the 1880s to the 1930s. With other African American patrons, she donated funds for a school built here in 1930, named in her honor. The building, later enlarged, served students through grade 11 until George Washington Carver Regional High School opened in 1948. Operating as an elementary school in subsequent years, the building burned in 1953. That year the county constructed a new brick Lightfoot Elementary School on Route 522 for African Americans. County schools were desegregated in 1967-68.

Erected 2015 by Department of Historic Resources. (Marker Number JJ-33.)

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Education • Women. In addition, it is included in the Historically Black Colleges and Universities, and the Virginia Department of Historic Resources (DHR) series lists. A significant historical year for this entry is 1930.

Location. 38° 14.361′ N, 77° 57.618′ W. Marker is in Unionville, Virginia, in Orange County. It is at the intersection of Marquis Road (Virginia Route 669) and Independence Road ( Route

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650), on the right when traveling north on Marquis Road. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 12135 Marquis Rd, Unionville VA 22567, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Northern Virginia

and in the Piedmont.

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 7 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Campaign of 1781 (approx. 3 miles away); Elder John Leland (approx. 3.1 miles away); Campaign of Second Manassas (approx. 3.1 miles away); Stuart's "Very Narrow Escape" (approx. 4.1 miles away); Bloomsbury (approx. 4.9 miles away); a different marker also named Bloomsbury (approx. 5.3 miles away); Shady Grove School (approx. 5.6 miles away); Lee's Headquarters (approx. 6.3 miles away).

Photographed by Devry Becker Jones (CC0), April 9, 2021

2. Isabella Lightfoot Training School Marker

Credits. This page was last revised on July 8, 2021. It was originally submitted on April 11, 2021, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. This page has been viewed 1,112 times since then and 89 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on April 11, 2021, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia.