Maggie L. Walker National Historic Site

	Maggie Lena Walker House
	U.S. National Register of Historic Places
	U.S. National Historic Landmark
	U.S. National Historic Site
	U.S. National Historic Landmark District; Contributing Property
	Virginia Landmarks Register
	Maggie L. Walker House
Location	110A E. Leigh St., Richmond, Virginia
Coordinates	37°32′52″N 77°26′17″W / 37.54778°N 77.43806°W
Built	1909
Architectural style	Gothic
Website	Maggie L. Walker National Historic Site
Part of	Jackson Ward Historic District (ID76002187)
NRHP reference No.	75002100
VLR No.	127-0275
Significant dates
Added to NRHP	May 12, 1975
Designated NHL	May 15, 1975
Designated NHS	November 10, 1978
Designated NHLDCP	1976
Designated VLR	April 15, 1975

The Maggie L. Walker National Historic Site is a United States National Historic Landmark and a National Historic Site located at 110½ E. Leigh Street on "Quality Row" in the Jackson Ward neighborhood of Richmond, Virginia. The site was designated a U.S. National Historic Landmark in 1975.^[3] The National Historic Site was established in 1978 to tell the story of the life and work of Maggie L. Walker (1867–1934), the first woman to serve as president of a bank in the United States. It was built by George W. Boyd, father of physician, Sarah Garland Boyd Jones.^[5] The historic site protects the restored and originally furnished home of Walker. Tours of the home are offered by National Park Service rangers.

Description

The Maggie Walker NHS is located north of downtown Richmond, in the city's historically black Jackson Ward neighborhood. It consists of six buildings on the north side of East Leigh Street, including 110 A E. Leigh Street, 112 E. Leigh Street, 114 East Leigh Street, 600 North 2nd Street, and 602 North 2nd Street.^[6] Most of these buildings have exteriors reflective of the early 20th century, with their interiors repurposed to house Park Service facilities, including a museum and visitor center, as well as curatorial spaces.^[7]

The centerpiece of the site is the Maggie Walker House, a two-story Victorian Gothic brick rowhouse located near the center of the block of East Leigh between 1st and 2nd Streets. A Colonial Revival porch with sunroom above covers the front of the house.^[8] The interior is furnished with original belongings of Maggie Lena Walker, and period furnishings dating to the 1920s and 1930s. The house, complete with Walker's effects, was donated to the people of the United States by her descendants in 1979.^[7]

History

Maggie Walker, the daughter of a slave, was a pioneering African-American businesswoman and civil rights activist. She was an influential member of the NAACP, and is credited with founding the first African-American, female-owned bank, St. Luke's Penny Bank (long since folded by mergers into other institutions), in 1902. She was also involved in local philanthropic efforts, supporting schools for education African-American girls in Richmond.^[8]

References

^ "Virginia Landmarks Register". Virginia Department of Historic Resources. Retrieved March 19, 2013.
^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. April 15, 2008.
^ ^a ^b "Walker, Maggie Lena, House". National Historic Landmark summary listing. National Park Service. Archived from the original on January 21, 2009. Retrieved June 27, 2008.
^ "Management". Maggie L Walker National Historic Site (U.S. National Park Service). Retrieved December 12, 2022.
^ Middleton, Otesa (February 18, 1998). "Sarah Garland Jones". Richmond Times-Dispatch. Retrieved February 17, 2017.
^ "Richmond Parcel Mapper". City of Richmond. Archived from the original on July 30, 2013. Retrieved September 2, 2015.
^ ^a ^b "State of the Park" (PDF). National Park Service. Retrieved March 14, 2017.
^ ^a ^b "NHL nomination for Maggie Lena Walker House" (PDF). Virginia DHR. Retrieved March 14, 2017.