The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1901-12-11
COLONY FOR NEGROES
Farm Village Scheme to Be
Tried In Virginia.
PLAN AwAKBNs MUCH INTEREST.


From Various Parts of the Country.
If Successful, Many similar VII
lagos VIII lie BuiIt-Each House
holder to Have mt Least Five Acres.
Virginia is perhaps the only state In /
the south which Is to have in the near |
future little town inhabited entirely |
by negroes and for the purpose of agri- |
cultural and Industrial training with |
n view TO improving their condition.
says a dispatch from Richmond TO the
New York Sun. For years travellers
and visitors have had their attention
attracted by little village about two
miles west OF Orange Court House pop
ulated entirely by negroes and famil-
iarly known as Shutdown. 1t gets its
name from the fact tha. two or three
hundred cabins occupied by the inhab-
itants are rooted exclusively with
rough slabs. These cabins are made
of rude logs stuck together with red
clay. They are scattered over an area
of half mile square and are connected
with rough and tumble bypaths grown
up in summer with weeds. 1t is II pc
culiar sight. this little negro town.
where white face seldom appears.
Shutdown is laid out with no system.
There is not store In 1t, although
there are more than 200 dwellings.
But the new town which is now be-
ing built for the colored people has a
/. good object in view. Already work
has begun on 1t and will be pushed for.
ward as rapidly as possible. Ii will oc-
cupy a tract OF land of about thou
sand acres around Fort Lee, on the
Chesapeake and Ohio railway, n few
miles below Richmond. The surveyors
who were employed to lay Off the town
have marked out a park, which is to be
beautfied articially in the winter and
in the spring a pavilion and other I'm
provements will be added. The first
house will soon be begun, and in n few
months a flourishing village will have
arisen where now there are only TIM
Der and underground.
This movement was started about n
year ago by DIR. X. K. Jones. well
known and skillful negro physician of
INltDlHOuAl, NhO lluS htth
interest in the welfare and improve
ment of his race and has done much to
elevate 1t both In n commercial and
intellectual way. 1t was through him
that large Industrial and training In
stitution was established at Richmond
in which negro women are taught to
cook, act as trained nurses. keep house
and follow other useful pursuits. Dr..
Jones, assisted by several other negro
citizens, purposes getting the village
started and then turning the property
over to the Women's League Training
school, above referred to. The proper
ty will cost many thousands Of dol
lars, and the leaders of the movement
already have large amount on hand
TO start the work.
From sixty to a hundred houses will
be built, and this Will be sufficient to
house a community of at least 500 peo-
pie. To each house will be assigned
not less than five acres of land located
at some distance from the village prop
! er and in that portion OF the tract
which will be devoted to agriculture
principally and to some minor Indus
hOuSNo WIN bN pNiiN
close together. and all will be pretty
much alike. resembling In some re-
spects the familiar milling towns dot
ted throughout the C8rolinas and 9th
er states.
The lands assigned TO each house
holder will be some ten or fifteen min
utes' walk distant. Each villager will
be allowed TO keep cows and other
stock. and ten acres will be set apart
for grazing purposes. One hundred
acres will be devoted to n park. The
village itself will occupy about fifty
acres, the grazing plot about ten acres.
and 700 or 800 acres will be left for
cultivation.
There Will be no difficulty In getting
people TO live In the village. A large
number OF applications have already
been received from respectable negro
families In various parts of the coun-
try. Some of these applications have
been received from as far south as
Georgia and even Florida. The pref
erence will be given to the negroes of
Virginia. The villagers will be al
lowed to own their own houses. but II
at any time they wish to sell them the
movers of the scheme will have an OPP
tion on them, the price TO bo decided
by arbitration. The name OF the VII
lage has not yet been decided on. Some
= help has already been received from
} wealthy men in the north, and other
donations have been promised. The de-
veIopment OF the movement is looked
upon with keen interest at Richmond
q and In other parts of the south.
Since this movement started reports
have been received that in at least two
other states in the south a similar prof.
ect will be undertaken II this one sue
ceeds. 1t is also said that this is the
beginning of the movement to colonize
the negroes in various parts Of the
southern states where the cities have
n congested colored population. This