Untitled ("Church Exterior") a photograph taken by Rufus W. Holsinger, date unknown.

The photograph below (U00213D) shows, presumably, the men of the church before the exterior. Of interest in this photograph is the African American gentleman standing to the upper left. His identity is unknown; no other information is known (including which congregation). He may be the church undertaker/groundskeeper/janitor (in the Episcopal church, if the man had custodial duties, he would have been known as the "sexton"). For a simliar portrait, see, "St. Paul's Church Choir".  

The church has been identified as Christ Episcopal Church on High Street in downtown Charlottesville (see second photo, below). The number of men wearing collars in the portrait suggests it may have been a diocesan meeting.

The photograph is included here in that, although not a posed studio portrait of African Americans, it does show actual interactions between white and black citizens at a time when segregation due to Jim Crow laws was in play. It is highly valuable in providing "visual evidence" of that lived environment.

The UVA Library catalogue shows an unknown date as 1889/~1930. More details will be added as they are found.

NOTE that the name with which the portrait is labelled (or, labelled "untitled") is not necessarily the name of the sitter(s) in the portrait, but rather the name of the person who paid for the portrait when it was taken (the date and name associated with each photograph is from the business ledgers of R. W. Holsinger). 

Below: U00213D
 

Below: X01793B2

Sources

- "Untitled (Church exterior)," date unknown, photograph in UVA Library Catalogue (U00213D)  

- "Christ Episcopal Charlottesville" 1912-10-27 photograph in UVA Library Catalogue (X01793B2) 

SEE ALSO:

Holsinger Image Gallery of African Americans

J. F. Bell Funeral Home Records

Charlottesville City Directory, 1914-15 [Hathi Trust] 

1870 & 1910 U. S. Census - Charlottesville & Esmont Communities

First published: January 24, 2021

Return to the Holsinger Main Page or African-American Portraiture List of Names