Armstead Robinson’s founding of the Carter G. Woodson Institute for African American and African Studies in 1981 marked a critical moment in the history of UVA and the field of Africana Studies. Coming to UVA in 1980, Robinson left an indelible imprint on the university’s intellectual landscape. A great deal of insight about his vision for Black Studies and the Woodson Institute can be gleaned from  the Armstead Robinson Papers housed in the Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections Library at the University of Virginia.

Robinson died on August 28, 1995 at the age of 48.

In 2006, the Center for Race and Law at UVA held a panel in his honor. Check out the podcast below.

Truly one of the most gifted historians of black intellectual life and U.S. Southern history, as well as a key member of UVA’s trailblazing generation of early African American students. Rest in Peace.