Kelvin and Pearl Green outside the Union Hill house his great-great-grandmother Margaret Jones Cousins purchased for her family in 1956. (Photo by Keshia Eugene)
The view of downtown Richmond from atop Jefferson Park is breathtaking. At least, that was the perspective Margaret Jones Cousins held in the 1950s when she set her heart on owning a home in Union Hill.
At the time, Cousins, her husband and their six children lived in a modest four-room home off Nine Mile Road. Her husband worked as an odd jobber, while she was employed in the health care field. Though she hailed from a family of means in Charles City, Cousins understood the value of hard work. As a teenager, she was sent to Richmond to study nursing. It was there that she later met her husband, and they shared a desire to build a better life — not only for their children, but for generations to come.
In the 1950s, a new middle-class demographic was emerging: upwardly mobile African American professionals who sought opportunity and permanence. Motivated by faith and a deep commitment to family, Cousins acquired her home on Princess Anne Avenue in 1956, becoming the first woman and the second African American to own a property on the street.
The circa 1915 home was built when residential architecture was transitioning from ornate Victorian styles to the simpler, more restrained Colonial Revival design. Consistent with its historic designation, the property retains many original details, including the classical columns framing the entry, on the front and side porches, and lining the grand hallway inside. Beautiful parquet wood flooring, believed to have been shipped from Germany by the original owner, and fireplaces framed in wood with mirrored hearths and subtle carvings suggest a European influence. The wrought-iron-railed staircase draws the eye upward to a lovely stained-glass window.
The home — affectionately known as “the park house” — served as the central hub of the Cousins family for nearly seven decades. It was a safe haven for all. Marriages were celebrated there. Grandbabies were raised from infancy to college graduation. Prodigal sons and daughters returned when needed. The Cousins’ legacy became inextricably linked to the residence until its sale in 2023.
Many family members believed the home was lost forever. Yet, after a brief pause in its story with the Cousins family, Margaret’s great-great-grandson, Kelvin L. Green II, and his wife, Pearl, reclaimed the residence.
“The Richmond area is special to us — not only because we were married here just one year ago, but also because our families lived for decades down the street from each other in Church Hill. Although we did not know of this connection when we met in Boston, it has been a constant reminder of the covenant-keeping God we serve. It was His divine providence that brought us together through generations,” Green says, adding, “When we began preparing to purchase our first property, the idea of bringing the original family home back emerged, so we waited and watched. Once ready, we saw the house was still on the market. We prayed, and that same day God answered, and we obediently submitted our offer. At every step of the process, we yielded to His guidance. By God’s grace through faith, we reclaimed our historic ancestral home in the Union Hill neighborhood.”
