Bridging Blandy’s Past to Present

Granddaughter of Former Blandy Director Makes a Visit to the Arboretum

*Michiko Quinones sitting on her grandfather's lap during a 1970s Singleton family reunion*

Michiko Quinones, the granddaughter of former Blandy Director Dr. Ralph Singleton, made a trip to Blandy Experimental Farm recently to visit the Kwanzan cherry tree planted in her mother’s memory and to reconnect with her past.

Dr. Singleton served as the director of Blandy from 1955-1965, before Michiko was born. But her mother, Margaret Singleton, spent a lot of time at Blandy. Later, the Singleton family, including Michiko, often visited Blandy in the 1970s for family reunions. “I have a lot of memories of this place, running down dogwood lane, frogs and tadpoles in the ponds, the sound of insects,” she said. “And corn, we ate a lot of corn here.”

In addition to the beauty of nature, Michiko said as a child, “I always felt a strong presence of something else here at Blandy.” Yet Michiko said her family rarely talked about the history of the land donated to Blandy in 1926, the history of the Tuleyries plantation that enslaved up to 100 people.

Child blowing bubbles 1970s. — *Michiko playing at Blandy in the 1970s.*

Now the co-founder and lead public historian of a Black history nonprofit,1838 Black Metropolis, and a recent graduate of Harvard’s Museum Studies Master’s program, Michiko is interested in learning more and using her expertise and connection with Blandy to help bring awareness of the pain of the familes who suffered lifetimes of forced labor to bring wealth to the Tully family. "Visitors to Blandy should know that enslaved people built the buildings, and the walls that still stand. And they are buried in a cemetery on the land."

“I am African American, and I have spent years researching my family histories - hitting a wall prior to the Civil War, when my ancestors were enslaved in South Carolina. Dr. Antonio Austin has begun the very important work of uncovering the names of the people who were enslaved here. I'm sure there are descendants looking for them. I would really love to see a formal public interpretation and reflection opportunity at Blandy to recognize the enslaved people who once were forced to live and work here,” she said.

Michiko Quinones poses with a photo of her grandfather, Dr. Ralph Singleton, hanging in the library at Blandy during a visit in June of 2026. — *Michiko 2026 poses with a photo of her grandfather, hanging in the library at Blandy.*

Formal research on the enslaved people of the Tuleyries began in 2021 and continues to be conducted through multiple resources. We encourage anyone with knowledge of or connections to this history to contact us at blandyoffice@virginia.edu.