By CLINT SCHEMMER
Culpeper StarâExponent
ORANGEâIn a breakthrough culminating nearly 30 years of work at James Madisonâs Montpelier, descendants of enslaved persons at a major national historic site for the first time will be co-equals in governing the place that held their ancestors in bondage.
The National Trust for Historic Preservation, which owns the Virginia home of the fourth U.S. president and âFather of the Constitution,â lauded the decision by Montpelierâs board of directors.
Gene Hickok, board chair of The Montpelier Foundation, said changing how the site is run caps âa 28-plus years engagement with the Montpelier descendants community, and more recently, a deliberate, yearlong process by the board to achieve organizational and structural parity which reflects the complete history of this specific place and America as a whole.â
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