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Artifacts by Theme

Education

Named participant List on Lawsuit

Torch and Book

In the Holmes family, school and education were prioritized for the children of W.O. Holmes Sr., which was then passed down to his granddaughter, Zebbie Holmes. Jean Holmes was the only daughter of W.O. Holmes Sr., who was pushed by her father to continue striving to obtain an education by first signing her name onto the 1947 Corbin et. al. v. Pulaski County School Board et. al. court case, and pushing her to graduate from Christiansburg Industrial Institute in 1947.¹ Jean graduated from Morristown College in Tennessee and worked in the Pulaski County School District for some time, furthering her commitment to education by working for the school district.² Jean Holmes Brown’s success in education despite the many difficulties and challenges faced by black Americans in the segregationist South inspired her daughter Zeborah “Zebbie” Holmes to further her education beyond high school and pursue a career in nursing. Throughout the lives of the Holmes family, education played an essential role in the family dynamic as education was stressed as a means to be self-reliant and sufficient, as well as a method of proving Black excellence and intelligence.

Faith and Religion:

Tithe Bowl and Communion Trays

Many generations of the Holmes family were deeply involved in their Methodist faith. Both William Oakley Holmes Sr. and Jr. were active New Century Methodist Church members. W.O. Holmes Jr. was an usher for New Century Methodist Church and Randolph Avenue United Methodist Church for over 50 years.³ Many men in the family were also members of the “United Methodist Men”, an organization that focuses on the growth of men’s relationship with Christ, which was formally established in 1968.⁴ W.O. Holmes Sr.’s brother, George Holmes, also served as an usher and frequently carried the communion trays to and from the altar. The family’s strong connection to the church is reflected in the quilt, which includes communion trays and a tithe bowl, items that honor the members of the family who served as ushers, and the importance of faith in their lives.

Luke 8:5

In the top left of the Holmes quilt square is verse Luke 8:5 from the Christian bible, which says “a farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path.” This verse focuses specifically on how people receive God’s words, with some seeds falling on the farm land, which produced a fertile harvest, and others falling along the path, which were trampled and eaten by birds. The church was a central unifying factor in the family as the children all received God’s word and took their Methodist faith into their minds and hearts as it was introduced to them by their parents and elders. William Oakley Holmes Jr. was a clear example of this, as his father’s and uncle’s presence in Pulaski’s New Century Methodist Church led to a lifelong commitment to being an usher at the New Century Methodist Church and the Randolph Avenue Methodist Church.⁵ The seeds dropped by the earlier generations of the Holmes family were sown from one generation to the next as the children and descendants continued the legacy of Methodist faith in their own lives.

Artifacts by Family Member

Train:

Directly showing his career and method of providing for his family, a line drawn image of a trail is shown steaming down the railroad tracks to symbolize W.O. Holmes Sr.’s commitment to his job, and commitment to his family. Throughout the early to mid 20th century many Black men in southwest Virginia worked for Norfolk and Western Railroad with a major hub of employment for the company being in Roanoke, Virginia.⁸ For many Black men all around Southwest Virginia, working for the railroad gave a sense of higher pay compared to other jobs in the area. Working for N&W as a Black man in the 1910s to 1940s was a job that was well respected within the community and “…allowed many Black workers to purchase a home and send their children to college.”⁹ While pay and conditions were often better than a lot of other sources of income for Black men in the early 20th century, working for the Railroad still came with the same racial discrimination seen throughout many southern workplaces such as position and raise discrimination, along with segregated facilities and work units. The imagery of a train rolling down its tracks is meant to symbolize W.O. Holmes Sr.’s work on the railroad, paying homage to his career and contribution to the family’s livelihood.

Number “42”

While working for the Norfolk and Western Railroad, family lore suggests that the number “42” was central to William O. Holmes Sr.’s work, often referred to as “the number 42 for the train.”¹⁰ The number “42” may have once been a common colloquialism related to Norfolk Southern Railroad, or the number of the specific train William often worked on. The number “42” stitched into the design of the Holmes quilt square to symbolically represent his job as a N&W Railroad worker as a means to support his family, along with sayings and phrases commonly used within the family that show the tightly knit Holmes family.

Tomatoes and Onions

Among his many hobbies, W.O. Holmes Sr. was also a dedicated gardener, tending to vegetables such as green beans, tomatoes, and onions. This aspect of his life is symbolized in the family quilt where elements of gardening, particularly tomatoes, are included to honor his contribution to the family’s self-sustenance and connection to the earth. Many Black families during this time who lived in more rural localities relied on self-sufficiency through growing their own food as a means to support oneself and family. Farming for Black Americans has been a way to survive and build community while resisting the systemic oppression that has historically limited their economic opportunities.¹¹ This theme represents W.O. Holmes’ passion for gardening and ties back to the family’s values of self-sufficiency and connection to nature. Elements such as tomatoes and onions are included to reflect the produce W.O. Holmes Sr. grew and nurtured.

Jean Holmes Brown

Born on April 27th, 1930, Jean Holmes Brown was the first of two children born to W.O. Holmes Sr. and Alice Blakey Holmes in Pulaski, Virginia.¹² Attending the Calfee Training School in Pulaski and Christiansburg Industrial Institute in Christiansburg, Jean Holmes prioritized her educational career at an early age. After graduating from CII, Jean Holmes received her degree from Morristown College in Tennessee in 1949 and lived for a few years in Cincinnati upon graduation. Upon her return to Pulaski, Jean Holmes became an active member of the Corbin branch of the YMCA from its opening, serving as an evening supervisor and later as chairman of the board.¹³ She was also deeply involved in the community through her work at Pulaski County Middle School, where she supported children with disabilities. In addition to her outstanding community service also worked diligently to provide for her family and also sported a position at The Powers Food Fair ¹⁴ . While raising her daughter Zeborah “Zebbie: Holmes, Jean Holmes Brown was able to instill the same lessons and values taught to her by her father onto Zebbie Holmes, such as the importance of education.

Zeborah “Zebbie” Holmes

Zeborah “Zebbie” Holmes, daughter of Jean Holmes and granddaughter of W.O. Holmes, is a significant figure in the Holmes family who holds the same values of education, faith, and community close. Becoming a nurse, Zebbie Holmes was able to graduate from nursing school in the 1980s. This achievement was heavily influenced by her mother’s insistence on the importance of education and support, but a consistent push was given to Zebbie to go beyond a high school education. Seeing the photos of her mother’s accomplishments through her graduation portraits or her community involvement, Zebbie was influenced by her mother to pursue a challenging, rewarding, and essential career in the nursing field. Education remains a core value within the Holmes family, symbolically placed at the heart of the quilt to show its importance within the family.

Frances Johnson Holmes

Second wife of W.O. Holmes Sr., records show Frances’s importance within the family network. Taking on the role of step-mom to both W.O. Holmes’ children, Jean and William Oakley Holmes Jr., Frances Holmes raised the children for at least a decade as her own. The 1940s census shows that Frances’s highest level of education was completed in two years of college, which was a likely reason why Jean Holmes was able to find such success in her college years and graduation.¹⁶ Her inclusion in the quilt demonstrates the interconnectedness and unity of the Holmes family, showcasing the broader community ties that were part of the family’s fabric.

1. Carter, Ethel.”Colored News, Pulaski Students.” The Southwest Times. June 8, 1947. page 2. Accessed Virginia Chronicle https://www.virginiachronicle.com/ ↩︎
2. “Area Deaths, Jean H, Brown.” The Southwest Times. November 20, 1992. page 2. Accessed Virginia Chronicle https://www.virginiachronicle.com/ ↩︎
3. “Deaths, William O. Holmes.” The Southwest Times. November 18, 1965. page 3. Accessed Virginia Chronicle https://www.virginiachronicle.com/. Find a Grave. “Memorial page for William Oakley “Brother” Holmes Jr.” Memorial ID 64601874. Pinehurst Cemetery, Pulaski. Maintained by Michael Blankenship. Accessed October 10, 2025. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/64601874/william-oakley-holmes#source ↩︎
4. “UMM History.” The United Methodist Church. Accessed October 10, 2025. https://www.nyac.com/ummhistory#:~:text=The%20present%20history%20of%20United,Brotherhood%20organized%20by%20John%20Wesley. ↩︎
5. “Memorial page for William Oakley “Brother” Holmes Jr.” Find a Grave. ↩︎
6. Commonwealth of Virginia Certificate of Death for William Oakley Holmes Sr., November 23, 1965, Pulaski, Virginia. Accessed http://www.ancestry.com. ↩︎
7. Commonwealth of Virginia Certificate of Death for Alice Blakey Holmes. “Memorial page for William Oakley “Brother” Holmes Jr.” Find a Grave. ↩︎
8. “N&W Railway Becomes a Source of African-American Jobs.” The Gainsboro History Project. Accessed October 10, 2025. https://gainsborohistoryproject.org/chapters/chapter-3. ↩︎
9. “N&W Railway Becomes a Source of African-American Jobs.”The Gainsboro History Project. ↩︎
10. “Conversation with Zebbie Holmes.” 23/54 Quilt Workshop. Fine Arts Center for the New River Valley, Pulaski Virginia. November 16, 2024. ↩︎
11. King, Katrina, Spencer Wood, Jess Gilbert, Marilyn Sinkewicz. “Black Agrarianism: The Significance of African American Landownership in the Rural South.” Rural Sociology. January 2018. 680. ↩︎
12. “Area Deaths, Jean H, Brown.” The Southwest Times. November 20, 1992. page 2. Accessed Virginia Chronicle https://www.virginiachronicle.com/ ↩︎
13. “Corbin Y Branch Kicks off it Membership Drive.” The Southwest Times. March 16, 1958. page 4. Accessed Virginia Chronicle https://www.virginiachronicle.com/ ↩︎
14. “Area Deaths, Jean H. Brown.” The Southwest Times, November 20, 1992, page 2. ↩︎
15. Carter, Ethel.”Colored News, Pulaski Students.” June 8, 1947. ↩︎
16. Department of Commerce–Bureau of the Census. Sixteenth Census of the United States. Pulaski, Virginia. Enumerated April 20, 1940. Sheet no. 9A. Entry for William O. Holmes. Accessed http://www.ancestry.com. ↩︎
17. “Memorial Page for William Oakley “Brother” Holmes Jr.” Find a Grave. ↩︎
18. “Memorial Page for William Oakley “Brother” Holmes Jr.” Find a Grave. ↩︎
19. “Memorial Page for William Oakley “Brother” Holmes Jr.” Find a Grave. ↩︎
20. Commonwealth of Virginia Certificate of Death for Alice Blakey Holmes. April 3, 1932, Pulaski, Virginia. Accessed http://www.ancestry.com. ↩︎