Archaeologists Uncover 18th-Century Williamsburg Bray School Foundation

Archaeologists at William & Mary have uncovered the near-complete 18th-century foundation of the Williamsburg Bray School, one of the oldest known institutions dedicated to educating enslaved and free Black children in North America. The discovery also includes a previously undocumented cellar layered with centuries of artifacts, such as slate pencil fragments and jewelry, which provide new insights into the school's history and its impact. Operating from 1760 to 1765, the Bray School taught hundreds of mostly enslaved students, offering literacy that increased their agency despite the school's religious framework that rationalized slavery. After its use as a school, the building served various purposes, including as a dormitory for some of the first generations of women attending college in the U.S., before being incorporated into William & Mary's campus and later moved to the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation for restoration. Historians identified the structure in 2020 using dendrochronology, and the museum is working to trace the descendants of its students. This archaeological work, part of a renovation project at Gates Hall, intertwines the histories of Williamsburg and the university, illuminating aspects of the early American republic through the 20th century, according to William & Mary President Katherine A. Rowe.