There is just over a year until the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence but celebrations and commemorations are already underway across the United States of America.
One of them that originates locally comes in audio form. A pair of entities have launched a new podcast called Founding Fathers: Tracing America’s Journey in Charlottesville and Albemarle County.
“The goal of the Founding Footprints project is three-fold: to share an approachable, inclusive history of Charlottesville and Albemarle, to tie that history to the work of local organizations’ experiences, and to serve as a record of our community and culture at this moment in the national semi-quincentennial anniversary,” says Courtney Cacatian, executive director of the Charlottesville Albemarle Convention and Visitors Bureau.
The work is part of the local celebration being put on by the CACVB and the VA250 Charlottesville-Albemarle-Scottsville Committee. The podcast is co-produced by historian Benjamin Bernard and WTJU 91.1. Bernard is a Research Associate and Lecturer at the University of Virginia.
The first edition has the title From Tobacco Fields to Richmond Markets: James River Batteau Company and can be downloaded from the Virginia Audio Collective.
To produce the podcast, Bernard has interviewed many people who work in history in the area.
“From writers and museum directors to archaeologists, from historic chefs to boat captains, these experts share a passion for lively stories from the past and a sense of the significance of the 2026 anniversary moment,” Bernard said.
The program is funded in part through a grant from the VA250 Marketing Leverage Program.
Before you go: This story was originally published in the June 24, 2025 edition of Charlottesville Community Engagement. Then posted here a day later. It’s an odd thing, sure, but it’s what is at the moment. Learn more about the weirdness here.
Discover more from Information Charlottesville
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
