Lady Astor Discussion and Museum Mingle

Lady Astor Discussion and Museum Mingle

Location: Danville Museum of Fine Arts and History, 975 Main Street, Danville, VA, USA

Date: Sunday, May 5, 2024, 3 p.m. - 5 p.m.

Come join us for a fascinating discussion about Lady Astor and then mingle at the museum! To recognize her international achievements, join the museum for an informative and entertaining presentation by Joyce Wilburn who will tell how Nancy Langhorne Astor, born in Danville, became a Member of the British Parliament (MP). The program is free and open to the public.

The Danville Museum of Fine Arts & History will also have a Museum Mingle with cash-bar refreshments after the presentation until 5 p.m. Lady Astor martinis as well as beer and wine will be available. Visitors can attend either or both events.

This event is a great opportunity to learn more about the life and impact of Lady Astor while enjoying the company of fellow history enthusiasts. Don't miss out on this unique chance to delve into the past and connect with like-minded individuals. See you there!

More about Nancy Langhorne Lady Astor

Known for her sharp wit and social commentary, Astor served as a MP representing Plymouth Sutton in the House of Commons for 25 years. In 1922, during a hometown visit by Lady Nancy Astor, she distributed 2,000 rose bushes to school children under the guidance of the Danville Garden Club, hoping the bushes would be planted at their homes. In 2011 the Dan River Plant Propagation Center at the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research took one of these original plants, the mother bush, and cloned it. Lady Astor’s grandson, William Waldorf Astor II, visited the city that year to see the cloned flower and was given a key to the City. At the same time, a half-dozen bushes of pale pink roses were planted at the bottom of North Main Street hill near the King Memorial Bridge. There is no record of where other Lady Astor Rose bushes might have been planted.

An exhibit on women from the Danville-Pittsylvania County area whose accomplishments enriched and helped shape the region is currently on display at the DMFAH, 975 Main Street, until Sunday, May 12. Cost of admission varies. For more info, visit www.danvillemuseum.org or call 434.793.5644.