While our Museums remain closed, subscribe to our YouTube channel for the latest #VirtualHistoryVB content! Also make sure to follow our BRAND NEW blog! Staff will share stories and hidden histories, as well as videos, our Beyond the Passage podcast and more.

Join us for virtual, self-guided tours of the Francis Land House and Thoroughgood House, and share your experiences on social media using #VirtualHistoryVB. We also have a virtual video tour of the Princess Anne County Training School/Union Kempsville High School Museum (PACTS/UKHS), where staff will guide you through the history of the first high school for African Americans in Virginia Beach

Start your tours here:

Francis Land House Virtual Tour

Thoroughgood House Virtual Tour

PACTS/UKHS Virtual Video Tour

Virginia Beach's rich heritage is represented in its variety of historic homes. Some of the oldest surviving brick houses in America are in Virginia, and two of those–the Thoroughgood House and the Lynnhaven House–are located in Virginia Beach. The Francis Land House is a larger, later example of plantation living in Princess Anne County. These houses offer visitors the opportunity to step back in time and discover stories of risk and opportunity, expanding definitions of equality, and the bonds of family and community.

Slavery and the efforts of people of African descent to overcome prejudice and adversity are part of our shared past. The best account of local African American history can be found in the Princess Anne County Training School/Union Kempsville High School Museum. The museum tells the story of the struggle, and ultimate success, of the African American community to build a high school for black children during the era of segregation.

Virginia Beach's history is surprisingly broad, and the Virginia Beach History Museums provide memorable experiences for those wishing to discover the true hidden treasures of the Atlantic coast.

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