Each year, the Arlington Historical Society, in partnership with the Cherrydale-Columbia Masonic Lodge, sponsors an essay contest for Arlington students in grades 8-12. This year, in honor of the 100th anniversary of the naming of Arlington County, we asked students to write about a person or group who made has made a significant contribution to Arlington over the last 100 years. We were thrilled to have the largest number of entries and to have participation from students of three Arlington high schools.
Over the next few months we will be highlighting some of this great work. We are notifying the winners and will publish the results. The first place winner will have his or her essay published in this year’s edition of the Arlington Historical Magazine. Congratulations to every participant!
— Cathy Bonneville Hix (AHS President)
Here are the 2020 essays. Please click on each title to read it.
- “Ellen Bozman: A Lifetime of Service, A Legacy of Leadership in Arlington County” by Julia Brodsky (H.B. Woodlawn)
- “Salvadoran Migrants: Arlington’s Greatest Contributors” by Ana Concha (Yorktown High School)
- “Ms. Horwitt’s Learning Garden, a Glimpse at Arlington’s Past” by Ben Eastwood (Yorktown High School)
- “Dorothy Hamm’s Path to Civil Rights for All Arlingtonians” by Josie Hughes (Yorktown High School)
- “Sister Majella Berg” by Athena R. Perry (Yorktown High School)
- “For a Better Arlington: How Elizabeth Weihe’s Civic Leadership Improved The County” by Natalie Seah (Wakefield High School)
- “Edmund D. Campbell: Fighting for the Elementary Rights of Every Arlingtonian” by Noah Silva (Yorktown High School)
- “Elizabeth Campbell” by Fiona Slattery (Yorktown High School)
- “The Impact of Joan Mulholland on Arlington” by Mason Starr (Yorktown High School)
- “Arlington’s Asclepius” by Claire Terry (Yorktown High School)
- “The Forgotten Enclave of Little Saigon” by Kelso Wilkin (Yorktown High School)
- “Parts of a Whole: How Governor Northam Secured Arlington With Even More Opportunities” author’s name withheld by request