May 6, 2022

I request $1241.80 to travel to Richmond this summer in 2022 to research for five days in four repositories. My dissertation is a place-based history of a National Park Site (NPS) called Chimborazo Medical Museum, which was previously a Confederate hospital and a school for newly freed African Americans. The medical museum was closed during my last research trip to Richmond in March 2022, but it has since opened. The park ranger confirmed there are physical records located in the museum that would be useful for my research. The Richmond National Battlefield Park, which oversees the Chimborazo Medical Museum, also holds materials about the early NPS development at Chimborazo, which is a chapter for my dissertation that I have few sources for. Reviewing some physical collections about land records at the Library of Virginia would also be crucial for my chapter on land ownership, as I have more names and dates since my last trip in Richmond. The Richmond Public Library also houses papers of a federal bureau agent who oversaw Chimborazo’s Freedmen’s school, which is a key chapter in my dissertation. Finally, being in Richmond in person would give me more time to meet community members who are key collaborators for this public-facing project, such as park rangers, professors at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) and University of Richmond, and a Native American land acknowledgement group of VCU librarians. 
The $103.00 budgeted for map scans, and the quote from the Library of Virginia on page 2, are related to two maps that would significantly help my research. “Valentines Indian Lore” is an important cultural map that depicts White Richmonders’ myths of Native American history, which I plan to use for public research presentations. A high-quality scan will better show this visual, as it is hard to read and see otherwise. The second map is a plat from 1817 that lists a number of names and deed transactions at the Chimborazo site. I want a high-quality scan so I can georectify this plat map in the digital software QGIS to visualize the land ownership over time. Scans of both of these items would help future presentations and ease digital methodologies for my dissertation. 
As explained below in the budget section, a total of $1241.80 would fund five full days in Richmond that would allow me to maximize my time in the four different repositories to view physical archival records that are only accessible in person. Viewing these collections will help advance my research for multiple chapters and particularly help clarify my understanding about early land ownership, the Freedmen’s school, and the national park site and museum. It will maximize my time and minimize future day trips to Richmond.

Budget Proposal:
-	Lodging. Based on Google, Hotels.com, and AirBnB.com, the most economic lodging near downtown Richmond is around $160-$190, so $175 per night (x4) = $700
-	Gas mileage (roundtrip of 260 miles x 58 cents (IRS standard rate)) = $150.80
-	Richmond’s per diem is $64 per day, with first and last travel day $48 ($48 x2 + $64 x3 ) = $288
-	Map scans, Library of Virginia = $103.00
-	TOTAL ANTICIPATED COSTS: $1241.80

Thank you in advance for your consideration,

Laura Brannan Fretwell 
lbranna@gmu.edu	



Quote from Library of Virginia for Map Scans: