Sweet Briar College

Sweet Briar College is a liberal arts women's college in Sweet Briar, Virginia, about 12 miles (19 km) north of Lynchburg, Virginia. The school's Latin motto translates as: "She who has earned the rose may bear it." The college is on 3,250 acres (13,152,283 m) donated by the founding family of Indiana Fletcher Williams. The school is named after the former Sweet Briar plantation, the former plantation of Elijah Fletcher and his family. Fletcher was a 19th century teacher, businessman, and mayor of Lynchburg. His wife, Maria Crawford, is credited with naming the land Sweet Briar. By the mid-19th century, Fletcher had between 80 and 100 slaves at the plantation. After their emancipation in 1865, several continued to work for pay and live...