{"product_id":"portsmouth-virginia","title":"Portsmouth, Virginia","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eWhether assisting escapes through the Underground Railroad, forming banks, publishing a newspaper, or providing recreational facilities, Portsmouth's African Americans created one of the most stable middle-class black communities in America.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003eAfrican Americans in Portsmouth built a strong, insulated community because they were cognizant of the need to look inward. Early 20th-century leaders such as Dr. William Reid, Nancy T. Wheeler, and the Reverend Harvey N. Johnson Sr. were civic models and guiding forces for a community emerging from the ravages of slavery, and enduring the hardships of segregation.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBlack America: Portsmouth, Virginia captures the world of an ever-changing community and a people who persevered, no matter the odds.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Arcadia Publishing (SC)","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51934743822621,"sku":"9780738515816","price":24.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0988\/1259\/2413\/files\/imageloader_460aaab6-ee75-4e7e-adcb-bc0f4e765dcc.jpg?v=1782696909","url":"https:\/\/revelationsbooks.com\/products\/portsmouth-virginia","provider":"Revelations Books and Treasures LLC","version":"1.0","type":"link"}