413 Catherine Street

Here is a shot of Clay Street from our walk this evening. Click on the photo album entitled "Our Walk" for other photos of the neighborhood. We did not even come close to taking pictures of everything we wanted to but our memory card filled up too quickly. Check back for future photos of the neighborhood. It really has some remarkable buildings and interesting history.

In the spirit of impoverished future homeowners we opted not to attend VCU’s French Film Festival this weekend but instead to check out First Fridays. First Fridays is an event sponsored by Curated Culture, a non-profit organization that promotes local artist, all of the galleries along Broad Street and scattered throughout Jackson Ward open their doors for an open house on the first Friday of each month. This event is free and open to the public. We were amazed by what an incredible event this was. We often had to remind ourselves that we were still in Richmond. The streets were filled with street performers ranging from spoken word artists, musicians, poi dancers (fire twirling and breathing) to the elementary aged “Fartist” using a balloon as his medium. This was not at all what we had envisioned: Richmond's upper crust attending, glutting their selves on wine and cheese while ogling "safe art". The art was fabulous, albeit pricey. The image above is an egg tempera portrait by one of our favorite artists, Susan Jamison, from Roanoke on display through April at the ADA Gallery. I highly recommend anyone that has not attended a First Friday to check it out; I have to say this is one of the best events in Richmond. Click on the link in the "Things to do in Jackson Ward" section for more information. Wine and cheese at our new place anyone? This is only three blocks south of our new house!

UPDATE: note the changed location of Susan Jamison's exhibit which I originally stated was in the 1708 Gallery also Susan said to check back with ADA next month there should be drawings available for those of us that would love to support out local artist but lack the tens of thousands of dollars to do so. Every new house deserves new art so we look forward to seeing what Susan has available. In the meantime check out her website at: http://www.susanjamisongallery.com/ If any one knows how to get hyperlinks to work in blogspirit please email me or leave a comment and enlighten me. I'm not sure if it is part of the problem but I use a Mac.

March 31, 2005 we put a contract down on a home located in historic/hoodstoric Jackson Ward. Jackson Ward is an up and coming area in Richmond rich with history. Originally settled by German, Italian and Jewish immigrants whose influence is apparent in Jackson Ward’s diverse architecture. Jackson Ward is said to be second only to New Orleans in density of original ironwork adorning homes. After the Civil War the area became known as the “Harlem of the South” when many newly freed African-Americans moved into the neighborhood transforming it into a cultural and financial hub for African-Americans in Richmond. Jackson Ward thrived for many years but in the 1950's the neighborhood was dissected by Interstate 95 and has suffered greatly. In 2001 National Trust of Historic Places listed Jackson Ward as one of the top eleven endangered historic places. There have been some recent urban renewal efforts in the neighborhood and we are excited to have the opportunity to live in a neighborhood that played such an important role in Richmond's history. Click on the "Home Interior" album to view interior photos.