Advertisement for African Americans

An advertisement in the July 8, 1899, edition of the Richmond Planet, an African American newspaper, announces an excursion to Sea-Side Park near Norfolk, the site of "The only piece of water front that can be bought by Colored People on the broad Atlantic." The real estate come-on promised other delights: swimming, seafood, baseball, music, and speeches by well-known orators. The round-trip ticket cost $1.25, but only fifty cents if you purchased a lot. Tickets and information about the event could be found at the savings bank run by the Grand Fountain of the United Order of True Reformers, an African American fraternal organization in Richmond.