PORTSMOUTH, Va. — Portsmouth's history is easy to find if you just know where to look.
“These are real people! And real stories, and these real stories needed to get out," said Mae Breckenridge-Haywood, who is the President of the African American Historical Society of Portsmouth.
For her, the stories of African American slavery hold a dark but important chapter of American history.
The African American Historical Society of Portsmouth is offering its "Tracks of our Tears" virtual tour, examining the spaces and stories that connect the city of Portsmouth to the Underground Railroad.
“Everything was going virtually. So I said, 'This is a golden opportunity to get the story out, about its activity in Portsmouth,'" Breckenridge-Haywood told 13News Now Tuesday.
She says the COVID pandemic has only increased the need for virtual education, and that this Black History Month, she is aiming to reach people who are beyond just the Hampton Roads region.
"Slavery is not beautiful history. It’s a mean and ugly history. But it happened, and this was an opportunity to share that, and I didn’t see a medium for it in Portsmouth."
The virtual tour provides information and renderings of significant landmarks both still standing and those that may be gone, including The Mount Cavalry Cemetery, the site of the Crawford House, and more.
The full virtual tour can be visited on the historical society's website, and can be visited in-person for those looking for more adventure.