Sacred Ground Historical Reclamation Project

Richmond Remembers, with help from Waterstreet Studio Published June 25, 2025, in Landscape Architecture Magazine , the Magazine of the American Society of Landscape Architects  Designers, historians, and community members collaborate on a landscape plan for the city’s neglected sites of enslavement. By Kim O’Connell " On a typical weekday, the historic Main Street Station in Richmond, Virginia, is a blur of motion. Passenger aOnce known as “the Devil’s half acre,” the jail site is part of Shockoe Bottom, a historic area where the long-buried and channelized Shockoe Creek once wove around the city before emptying into the James River. Shockoe Bottom is now the center of the city’s effort to reveal and commemorate its history of enslavement. This endeavor comes after prolonged efforts by community activists to acknowledge and restore Black history in the Shockoe Valley area of Richmond. The project includes recognition of the Shockoe Bottom African Burial Ground, the older of the...