April 23, 2024 marks 127 years since the lynching of Joseph McCoy in Alexandria. To acknowledge Alexandria’s history of racial terror and injustices, as well as its work toward creating a more inclusive community, the Alexandria Community Remembrance Project (ACRP) will hold a series of remembrance events including an annual wreath laying ceremony.

Special this year, to honor the lost life of McCoy, ACRP created a self-guided city-wide remembrance walk that can be accessed online (https://www.alexandriava.gov/cultural-history/joseph-mccoy-remembrance-walk) or with a printed guide book. Purple signs dotting the cityscape narrate the events that led to McCoy’s ultimate murder on April 22 and 23, 1897. Booklets can be picked up at the Alexandria Black History Museum, the Freedom House Museum, Alexandria’s History Museum at The Lyceum, the Visitor Center, or the Old Town Farmers Market (4/20).

On Sunday, April 21, a presentation and discussion on The Role of White Supremacy in American Christianity will be held at the Virginia Theological Seminary at 3 p.m. This event is organized by a group of faith organizations, many with historic ties to Alexandria. These faith groups have joined together to hold this and several interfaith conversations on important issues over the next year.

Joseph McCoy Remembrance Ceremony
Tuesday, April 23, 5 p.m.
Penny Hill Cemetery
700 Block of S. Payne Street (parking at the Nannie J. Lee Center or S. Payne Street)
Free

The Alexandria Community Remembrance Project, Roberts Memorial United Methodist Church and city officials will hold a wreath laying ceremony with remarks by Mayor Justin Wilson,  Interim Police Chief Raul Pedroso, and Roberts Memorial Rev. Josette Franklin and feature music by cellist Tim Thulson. All are welcome to attend. This is a rain or shine event.

Joseph McCoy Remembrance Walk
April 10-24
Multiple Old Town Locations
Online and Brochure Guides
Available free at Alexandria Black History Museum, the Freedom House Museum, Alexandria’s History Museum at The Lyceum, the Visitor Center, or the Old Town Farmers Market (4/20).

The Alexandria Community Remembrance Project marked the places in this city important to the story of the life and death of Joseph McCoy, an 18-year-old native Alexandrian accused of a crime and lynched by a mob on April 23, 1897. The purple signs alert passersby to Joseph McCoy’s existence and the role his life and death played in our shared history. Use the QR Codes on the signs to learn the story related to the sign and its location or by picking up a booklet at Alexandria Black History Museum, the Freedom House Museum, Alexandria’s History Museum at The Lyceum, the Visitor Center, or the Old Town Farmers Market and explore what happened on April 22 and 23, 1897.

Courageous Conversation: The Role of White Supremacy in American Christianity
Sunday, April 21, 3pm
Letti Pate Evans Room at the Virginia Theological Seminary
3737 Seminary Road, Addison Academic Center Building
Free

Leaders from Alexandria’s faith communities have organized a presentation and discussion featuring the film God + Country with speakers Rev. Rob Schenck, Rev. Quardricos Driskell, and Dr. Sabrina Dent. The event will explore the history of white supremacy and the role it has played in American religion and culture. This interfaith public event is being hosted by the Virginia Theological Seminary at the Letti Pate Evans Room in the Addison Academic Center.

Illumination of Remembrance Sites
April 22-25
Alexandria City Hall, George Washington Masonic National Memorial, Police Station at City Hall and the Lynching site.
Free

Honoring the life of Joseph McCoy, Alexandria sites will be illuminated in purple - the color of remembrance and memorialization – as a way to pause and remember Joseph McCoy.

For reasonable disability accommodation, contact Nicole Quinn at historicalexandria@alexandriava.gov or call 703.746.4554, Virginia Relay 711.

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This news release is available at alexandriava.gov/go/5784.