Timeless Traditions Foundation CDC
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Our history

The Carter Farm storybegins in 1889.

From a 160-acre purchase in 1889 to a thriving foundation serving community wellness today, the Carter Farm represents over 135 years of Black land stewardship, mutual aid, and cultural preservation in Pittsylvania County.

160acres

purchased by Raleigh Martin Carter in 1889

279acres

added through a later family expansion

2churches

built as places of scripture, literacy, and leadership

Pittsylvania County, Virginia

Land Acknowledgment

One family's chapter in a much larger history.

In the decades following Emancipation, Black families across Pittsylvania County and the broader South worked, saved, and organized to purchase and hold onto land, often against significant odds, from discriminatory lending practices to outright violence and legal exclusion.

Black landownership represented not just economic security, but self-determination: a place to grow food, build community, and pass on a legacy free from others' control. The Carter family's 1889 purchase, and their continued stewardship of this land ever since, stands within that history, a testament to what generations of Black families across this region worked to build and protect.

Today, Timeless Traditions Foundation honors that legacy by continuing the Carter family's work of mutual aid, cultural preservation, and community service on this sacred ground.

1889 and forward

The Carter Farm timeline

Every entry below rests on the same ground in Pittsylvania County, held by the family since the first deed.

  1. 1889Founding

    The Beginning: 160 Acres

    Raleigh Martin Carter purchases 160 acres of land in Pittsylvania County, establishing the foundation for generations of family stewardship and community service.

  2. 1890s-1900sDevelopment

    Building Community

    The Carter family builds two churches on the land, creating spaces for quality education where community members learned scripture, literacy, and leadership.

  3. Early 20th CenturyGrowth

    279 Acre Expansion

    Raleigh Martin Carter's grandmother expands the family footprint by an additional 279 acres, anchoring the family with stable housing and generational wealth.

  4. Mid 20th CenturyService

    Country Store & Farm

    The family's country store and farm fed everyone in the community, regardless of their ability to pay. Their home was a refuge for anyone needing work or shelter.

  5. 2020sModern Era

    Timeless Traditions Foundation

    Executive Director Bethann West James establishes TTF to honor this legacy, preserving cultural heritage, advancing education, and fostering generational health resilience.

The founding generation

The account our family kept

In 1889, my grandfather Raleigh Martin Carter purchased 160 acres of land, a footprint my grandmother later expanded by 279 acres. This anchored our family with stable housing and generational wealth at a time when Black landownership was both rare and revolutionary.

They used their resources to build two churches, creating sanctuaries for quality education where we learned scripture, literacy, and leadership. Their country store and farm fed everyone in our community, no matter their ability to pay. Their home was a refuge for anyone needing work or shelter.

My grandmother was our herbalist, treating the sick with natural remedies. When I cut my leg on a piece of tin as a child, she didn't take me to a hospital. She poured lamp oil on the wound and bound it with cloth. The scar remains, a lifelong reminder of their strength, resourcefulness, and enduring care.

Bethann West James, Executive Director

Meet the team
Aunt Pat and Aunt Ruth of the Carter family
Aunt Pat and Aunt Ruth, keepers of the Carter family story.

Coming Soon

The 1889 Society

A planned giving and bequest program honoring the farm's founding generation. Join the 1889 Society to ensure the Carter Farm's legacy continues for another 135 years.

Learn about planned giving