Major funding for backstory is provided by an anonymous donor,

the National Endowment for the Humanities,

the University of Virginia, the Joseph and Robert Cornell Memorial Foundation,

and the Arthur Vining Davis foundations.

From the Virginia Foundation for the Humanities, this is backstory.

Welcome to backstory, the show that explains the history behind today's headlines.

I'm Joanne Freeman.

If you're new to the podcast, we're all historians,

and each week Brian Bellow, Ed Ayers, Nathan Connley and I,

explore the history of topics that have been in the news.

Today on the show, we'll be listening to what the American public told FDR's White House,

and I'll be finding out why historians are increasingly getting their message out

140 characters at a time.

But first, we're going to hear from Justin Reed,

the director of African American programs here at Virginia Humanities.

Reed grew up in Farmville, Virginia, where his family has roots dating back to slavery.

In 2014, he set out on a personal journey to find the plantation where his ancestors had been enslaved.

And when he found it, he wrestled with his feelings about the site.

The drive to Amphill Plantation is a very beautiful drive.

You're passing through Central Virginia rolling hills as near the James River.

There's still a lot of farms out there to this day, and it's very pristine.

As I was approaching the house, I'm not really sure what I felt then.

...