New historic preservation grant will support Black, Hispanic and Indigenous groups

By Holly Rodriguez

A $5 million grant established by the Virginia General Assembly in 2022 is designed to to support historically underserved and underrepresented communities and associated sites of historical relevance.

The Virginia Black, Indigenous, and People of Color Historic Preservation Fund (BIPOC) will launch its application process this spring through the Virginia Department of Historic Resources.

Caitlin Sylvester, grants coordinator for the program, said historians throughout the state are conducting outreach to potential grantees, beyond Black, Hispanic and Indigenous commu- nities. But, she said because those populations traditionally disenfranchised in Virginia have been mostly African-Americans and Indigenous people, they may be most likely to apply for and receive funding.

“This fund will provide grants for the acquisition, protection, and rehabilitation of historic and archaeological sites and tribal lands of significance associated with Virginia’s Black, Indigenous, and People of Color communities,” she said. The grant funding is limited to three specific project types: rehabilitation and/or stabilization of real property, purchase of a fee simple or