EDUCATION | PRESERVATION | EMPOWERMENT

Christiansburg Institute (CI, Inc.) is a grassroots 501c3 cultural heritage nonprofit with a mission of community education, intergenerational empowerment, and the responsible stewardship of African American history and culture in Southwest Virginia.

OUR WORK

  • Christiansburg Institute Museum and Archives

    CIMA

  • Christiansburg Institute Research Action Center

    CIRAC

  • Tours

    BOOK A TOUR

Christiansburg Institute Digital Archives

The first class of students who attended Christiansburg Industrial Institute were formerly enslaved. The last class integrated. The historic collections held in Christiansburg Institute Museum & Archives (CIMA) share their stories. Explore CIDA for a vivid portrayal of how the power of imaging brings to life nuanced stories of our nation's collective history.

Christiansburg Institute Digital Archives (CIDA)
A digital repository preserving illustrating nuanced narratives of African American life in Southwest Virginia.

Christiansburg Institute Museum and Archives (CIMA)
Our digital archives are a project of CIMA, to learn more about CIMA click here.

Christiansburg Institute Exhibit in Partnership with VT University Libraries

=Learn more about the ‘Shining a Light on Christiansburg Institute: A Collaborative Digitization Effort’ exhibit curated in collaboration with CI, Inc. and Virginia Tech University Libraries.

Christiansburg Institute Wayside Sign Unboxing

Discover an in-depth exploration of the meticulously curated and strategically placed wayside signs on the historic Christiansburg Industrial Institute campus in Montgomery County, Virginia.

Delve into the efforts we invested to install these informative markers, providing a richer understanding of the site's historical significance.

African American Legacy Tour: Montgomery County

The African American Legacy Tour series will gradually incorporate additional African American sites of memory and cultural significance that are located throughout the counties and cities of the New River Valley, providing a unique, visceral, and honest pathway for community members to reinvestigate Black histories and experiences in rural Appalachia in Southwest Virginia from Slavery to Civil Rights.

The first driving tour series starts in Montgomery County, Virginia, home to the historic Christiansburg Industrial Institute (CII). Tourists will visit 19 sites total, located in Christiansburg, Blacksburg, historic New Town and Wake Forest, each illustrating a nuanced insight into African American life in Southwest Virginia. Tour sites include schools, churches, businesses, cemeteries and former plantations.