LYNCHBURG, Va. – Lynchburg City Schools celebrated 160 years of public education Tuesday with a plaque-revealing ceremony.
The plaque, presented alongside the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War, commemorates the school district’s founding in 1865 and the beginning of the city’s public education system. Lynchburg City Schools Superintendent Kristy Somerville-Midgette said the plaque honors the district’s history and helps instill a sense of pride in students.
“That helps you to drive where you are going,” Somerville-Midgette said. “That rich history and that tradition that is here — we want to make sure that we always have that connection with us. That helps us build and grow on those traditions and that history to strive for and to move forward.”
The Lynchburg school system, established by Union Brig. Gen. Newton M. Curtis, predates Virginia’s state public education system.