The Historic Douglass High School Virtual Cache

Please No Night Caching Due To Location

Douglass High School was built in 1941 in Leesburg, Virginia as the first high school for African-American students in Loudoun County.

For years, delegations of Black Loudoun parents and patrons met with the Loudoun County School Board to request adequate facilities and additional teachers for their children.  They were repeatedly told there were no funds to purchase land, while funds were found to purchase additional land for White schools.  Undeterred, the parents worked together and, with the help of Jeanes Supervisor, Gertrude Alexander, formed the County-Wide League in 1938 to consolidate and strengthen their efforts. The community raised $4,000 through donations, bake sales, and the assistance of William “Willie” Hall, who obtained a loan so a school site could be secured. With money in hand, the League was able to negotiate and purchase the land on which the school now sits from William S. Gibbons, to build an accredited high school. The League hired well-known civil rights attorney Charles Hamilton Houston to help persuade Loudoun County officials to allocate funds for the new school.  The School Board agreed to fund the high school if the League sold the land to the School Board for $1. 

The original building, constructed in 1941, consisted of four classrooms. Since a bare minimum of furnishings were provided by the county, more private donations were sought to fully furnish the school. There have been two subsequent additions. In 1950, a science laboratory, home economics suite, and five classrooms were added. In 1960, a gymnasium, shop, cafeteria, and additional classrooms were built. Prior to this, black high school students attended classes in an unsafe building on the 2nd floor of the Loudoun County Training School, located on Union Street. Some high school classes were taught in the 1920s and a full high school program was established in September of 1930. 

The school was named after African-American abolitionist Frederick Douglass at the request of the community organizers. With desegregation in 1968, the building became a middle school, then a special education and alternative school.

Tours of The Historic Douglass High School Education & Development Campus are available by appointment on the second and fourth Saturday of each month at 11:00 a.m.

In addition the school, the Douglass Community Center sits on the same property.  There they provide many events for the community. If you decide to visit, there are history displays around the campus that talk about the history and timeline of how they achieved what they did, as well as quotes from some celebrities and past teachers.

Also, there is a playground that creates a themed experience that embraces the global impact and contributions that African Americans have made in American history. The playground includes one-of-a-kind custom-made structures and replicas that depict African American history and culture, including the Hall of Heroes, which is inspired by the architecture of the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C., and is the center structure that sets the tone for the themed playground concept. Click on the picture below to watch a video about what this playground is about.

Lastly, at the time of this cache, there are 2 statues one called "Upward Struggle" and one of Frederick Douglass. The Upward Struggle statue is a monument dedicated to the fight for education equality. 

Douglass High School was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on September 24, 1992

Logging Requirements 

To claim this cache complete the 4 tasks below. 

• At the starting cords, face the school. There is a black sign on the far right side. What happened on May 8, 1993
• Next, walk down to the Frederick Douglass statue. Take your photo with Mr. Douglass and include it with your log. Note: Groundspeak guidelines do not require your face to be in the photo. If your face is not visible, make sure that something that identifies you is. N39 06.552 W77 33.296 (waypoint)
• Send a message or e-mail to the cache owner that includes the following information:
  • Located near the Frederick Douglass statue, there are quotes on the ground. "We are the ones we are waiting for" is inside one of the full quotes.  Who said the full quote?
  • What is the name of the sculptor?

References
Douglass High School (Leesburg, Virginia) - Wikpedia
The Historic Douglass High School - Loudoun County Public Schools
A Brief History - The Historic Douglass High School Education & Development Campus

First To Find
Congratulations to Jess and Wipps on being the first to log this cache!

Virtual Rewards 4.0 - 2024-2025
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between January 17, 2024 and January 17, 2025. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards 4.0 on the Geocaching Blog.