Sandy Williams IV, Authors and Architects, 2025
Authors & Architects by Sandy Williams IV honors the legacies of the men, women, and children who were enslaved by Roanoke College founders between 1842 and 1865. During its founding period, Roanoke College directly benefited and grew from a regional economic and political system built around slavery. Enslaved Black people contributed in immeasurable ways to the formation of Roanoke College. These contributions shaped the campus and the wider region.
The 1860 Federal Census accounted for 2,643 enslaved people in Roanoke County. Slaveholders in this region enslaved more than a third of the overall population. Each of the names or identifications on this memorial belonged to an enslaved person with specific ties to Roanoke College. Known family members appear together. The blank book covers and outturned pages remind us that innumerable names and stories have been omitted from official archival records. Many histories remain unknown.
The title, “Authors and Architects”, recognizes the roles of enslaved people as creators and founders in the history of the college. Their roles and identities extend beyond the conditions of subjugation typically used to bind and minimize the legacies of Black and Brown people in the telling of American history. This memorial honors the memory of people enslaved at and around Roanoke College, acknowledges the freedom and education denied to them in their own time, and underscores the significant roles that Black people played in the establishment and success of the broader community.
Learn More About Sandy Williams IV and the Center for Studying Structures of Race
Center For Studying Structures of Race
Sandy Williams IV
Memorial Dedication Ceremony, April 4, 2025