170 N High Street
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Last updated on July 3, 2025
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Directions from Jail Hill to Site 2:
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William Strother was among the first to purchase land in the Jail Hill area. William was born into slavery around 1797 to an enslaved mother, Charlotte Strother, on the Carpenter Farm in Keezeltown, Virginia. Strother registered as a freeman in 1925. Despite a state law that required freedmen to leave or obtain permission to remain in the commonwealth within a year of their emancipation, William did not petition until 1929. The delay may have been due to the inconsistent enforcement of the law. In his petition, white residents spoke of Williams’ quality of work, which suggests William may have been rented out for work while enslaved, which earned him a reputation. He was a skilled, well-digger, cistern builder and road worker. William’s desire to stay close to his first wife, who was enslaved as a house servant, was the primary goal of his petition.
William purchased a half-acre lot on the southeast corner of North High Street and West Elizabeth Street on April 21, 1830, from the Grahams for one dollar. Strother built a home but was forced to sell the property a year later due to financial trouble. It is likely Strother remain on the property as a tenant. In 1850, William Strother remarried Mary and had five children. William purchased a half-acre on Jail Hill in 1856 on the corner of North High Street and West Market Street. Over the years, William bought and sold properties on Jail Hill. The home William built on the corner of North High Street and West Wolfe Street may stand there today. He lived in the home with his wife and children. After William died in 1865, his family was unable to inherit the property due to incomplete payments made by the previous owner. The property was seized by the court in 1876 and auctioned off to become a rental home. The home is now privately owned.
William purchased a half-acre lot on the southeast corner of North High Street and West Elizabeth Street on April 21, 1830, from the Grahams for one dollar. Strother built a home but was forced to sell the property a year later due to financial trouble. It is likely Strother remain on the property as a tenant. In 1850, William Strother remarried Mary and had five children. William purchased a half-acre on Jail Hill in 1856 on the corner of North High Street and West Market Street. Over the years, William bought and sold properties on Jail Hill. The home William built on the corner of North High Street and West Wolfe Street may stand there today. He lived in the home with his wife and children. After William died in 1865, his family was unable to inherit the property due to incomplete payments made by the previous owner. The property was seized by the court in 1876 and auctioned off to become a rental home. The home is now privately owned.
