HomeMy Public PortalAboutTOL PR 2018-11-15 History Awards Recipients
Town of Leesburg
News Release
For Immediate Release
November 15, 2018
Media Contact:
Leah Kosin, Public Information Assistant
lkosin@leesburgva.gov 703-771-2781
Mildred Ann Clark Daye, Lee D. Stone and Horace Nelson
Lassiter Honored at the 26th Annual Loudoun History Awards
Leesburg, VA (November 15, 2018) –
Mildred Ann Clark Daye and Lee D. Stone
were recipients of this year’s 26th annual
Loudoun History Awards on Sunday,
November 11. Both were honored for their
contributions to preserving Loudoun’s past
through collection of county documents and
memorabilia, preservation of historic
landmarks, visual arts, writing, and long-
time commitment to local history
organizations.
Mildred Ann Clark Daye was recognized for her many contributions to advocacy, preservation
and documentation of African American history, customs and life in Loudoun County. The
oldest of ten children, Daye grew up in Loudoun County where she attended segregated
schools. She excelled as a student and fought against inequality and discrimination in the 1960s
and 1970s before becoming the third African American to be hired as a telephone operator at
the C&P telephone company in Leesburg. She has continued to be an active community
member for the last 40 years and has donated over $20K in scholarships to the Loudoun
Douglass Alumni Association in Leesburg. She is an active member of the Black History
Committee, the Thomas Blach Library and Carver Alumni Association, among others. She has
been a member of Providence Baptist Church for over 25 years and continues to be an
advocate for equality for all people.
Lee D. Stone was recognized for his many contributions towards the research and
documentation of Loudoun County’s role in the American Civil War. A 1969 graduate of Cornell
University, with a bachelor’s degree in Government and a minor in American History, Stone
earned his master’s in History before joining the United States Army until 1972. He currently
lives in Loudoun County and serves as a national representative for the Sons of Union Veterans
of the Civil War, Lincoln-Cushing Camp, in Washington, D.C. In 2009, Stone began researching
the Loudoun Rangers, including their military, pension, census and local records. Over the next
several years, he compiled a unit roster, which was published in 2016. All proceeds go to
Waterford Foundation. Stone has also continued to identify and photograph gravesite of Civial
War veterans. There are more than 50 Union veterans buried in Loudoun, including 10 veterans
of the U.S. Colored Troops. Each Memorial Day holiday, Stone visits local Union Civil War
gravesites where he places a United States flag at each one.
Horace Nelson Lassiter was presented with a certificate of special recognition for preserving by
oral dissemination Loudoun County’s African American history. Town Councilman Ron Campbell
presented Lassiter with a certificate, which recognized Lassiter for more than 50 years of
service in the Town of Leesburg. Born at the original Leesburg Hospital in 1935, Lassiter joined
the United States Marines, where he learned to cut hair. He returned to Leesburg and opened
his own business in 1968 where he retired in October 2018. Lassiter continues to be an active
member of the Loudoun community.
About the Thomas Balch Library: Thomas Balch Library is a history and genealogy library owned
and operated by the Town of Leesburg. A designated Underground Railroad research site, the
Library’s collections focus on Loudoun County, regional and Virginia history, genealogy, military
history with special emphasis on the American Civil War, and ethnic history. For more
information, visit www.leesburgva.gov/ThomasBalchLibrary.
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