Professor, community partner lead Bluefield history project

A Virginia Tech professor is part of a team leading a project to recognize the historically Black neighborhoods of Bluefield, West Virginia.

Gregory Galford, an architect and assistant professor of residential environments and design in the Department Apparel, Housing, and Resource Management, is coordinating a design competition for a monument that will be displayed in the Bluefield neighborhoods to commemorate the history of this once segregated area.

He’s working with Vonnia Harris Davis, a Bluefield native who is deeply connected to the area. She has researched her Appalachia family genealogy, curated cultural events, and utilized film and photography as a tool for preservation and activism.

"This research is focused on using community input to provide themes that will guide revitalization of the neighborhood,” Galford said. “Themes obtained from the [community] listening sessions are being used to inform a design competition for an important site at the gateway to the neighborhood.”

The project is one of nine funded by Monuments Across Appalachian Virginia, a group dedicated to highlighting history and diversity through the perspective of monuments.

Galford and Harris Davis began working together in the spring of 2022, researching how the rail infrastructure of Bluefield, West Virginia, and Virginia divided and segregated the area. They have presented their work at conferences, detailing how the study of communities can be used for the preservation of underrepresented groups.

“This is extremely important, so we don’t lose pieces of history,” Galford said. “As an architect, I’m often focused on the built environment, but there’s so many components of history that we lose. People die, buildings fall down, and the stories are gone. Sometimes a group of people dedicated to a certain place can really start to change perceptions of that place.”

Harris Davis said she hopes to see ethical and social redevelopment in the community with the project.

“Most people just talk about economic redevelopment,” Davis said. “You must address the social issues, past and present, public policies, and ethical dilemmas that have negatively impacted, not only our community, but African American communities throughout the nation. Hopefully, our story becomes a blueprint and the motivation to preserve, heal, and plan for a better and sustainable future.”

A design proposal will be selected by the end of the year, with an unveiling planned for the spring of 2025.

Marti Wagnon, communications coordinator for Monuments Across Appalachian Virginia, said the project is a “good encapsulation” of Bluefield’s African American history.

“We thought the story was empowering and made a large impact on the area,” she said. “It was something that you would have never known unless you had a way to tell the story.”