Alert:
The Fairfax County Park Authority is committed to sharing stories, artifacts and archives to recognize the contributions, struggle and history of African-Americans in Fairfax County and our parks. Our hope is to not only share these stories and programs, but to encourage conversation and inspire change for the future.
Through archaeological finds and research, Park Authority archaeologists and historians continue to discover and share the full story of historic sites and parks in our park system to ensure that Black and African-American persons are part of our narrative. In addition to our work of uncovering the past, the Park Authority also continues to add new chapters to its rich heritage as we chart our course into a bright future. The collection below includes a varied selection of stories and initiatives – both past and present – that highlight that heritage.
The Park Authority continues to expand this list and share stories form our archives as well as related sources. To share additional information for potential inclusion on this page, please email parkmail@fairfaxcounty.gov.
Jai Cole is the first Black woman to serve as executive director of the Fairfax County Park Authority. A native of Reston, Jai is one of only a few park leaders across the nation able to enjoy the opportunity of leading their childhood park system. A true champion of Fairfax Parks, Jai has been to each of our 420 parks in all their varieties! Check out the highlights from “Jai’s Park Tour” and fall in love with the Fairfax County parks all over again!
It’s hard to imagine Tysons, Virginia as anything but a busy urban center, home to business, shopping, and mass transit. But it was once home to a rural community made up of free Black Fairfax County citizens. They lived in a community called Freedom Hill, believed to be name for the large number of free Black residents living in the vicinity in the 19th century. Freedom Hill Park is now located in the area.
Map of N. Eastern Virginia and vicinity of Washington, McDowell 1862, courtesy of Library of Congress.
The brick kitchen at Ash Grove Historic Site is one of the few examples of a slave dwelling (formerly inhabited by enslaved Africans or African Americans) standing in Fairfax County today. While the documentary record concerning the lives and experiences of the enslaved at Ash Grove is sparse and fragmentary, we do know that a cook named John along with his wife, Charlotte, and their seven-month-old daughter, Rebecca, were among the enslaved held in bondage on the property by the Fairfax family in 1834.
In the late 1700s, emancipated men, women, & children established a community south of Centreville between Bull Run and Cub Run. Their settlement became one of the largest African-American communities in Fairfax County.
The Walney Workbooks shown here were donated to Ellanor C. Lawrence Park in 1994. They provide a weekly account of daily farm operations from 1849 to 1854. They provide insight into the names of enslaved workers—such as Joe, John, Henry, William and Wesley—and their work tasks.
The Machen family at Walney Farm (what is now Ellanor C. Lawrence Park) used the institution of slavery, hiring out and owning slaves, to rise both in society and financially. Jinny was African-American woman whose family belonged to Machen family friend Sarah B. Brett. She was first hired out – and later purchased – by the Machens, though it is unclear if her two sons were also purchased. This is a story that historians at Ellanor C. Lawrence Park continue to research.
The local blacksmith was a critical community member in past. Frying Pan Farm Park in Herndon interprets and preserves blacksmithing as part of its historic mission. The Moffett Blacksmith Shop, originally located in the nearby town of Herndon circa 1917, stands at the farm entrance across from the Cider Press Barn. There were at least four blacksmith shops or businesses in Herndon since the time the town was incorporated in 1879. They were run by William Henry Moffett, Enos Garrett, Thomas Sauls, and Henry Simms - one of Herndon's first Black business owners.
Constructed in 1911, the Old Floris Schoolhouse at Frying Pan Farm Park stands where a one-room schoolhouse was built in 1876. Due to Fairfax County Public School policy at that time, there was a separate building for Black students. Learn more about the history of the Floris School in this 2001 video that includes interviews with alumni of the Floris Colored School and the integrated school and with former Frying Pan Farm Park Manager Yvonne Johnson.
In 1777, gentleman freeholder John Moss established Green Spring Farm in Alexandria. Today, the house that he built for his family in 1784 is open to the public as the Historic House at Green Spring Gardens. As a landowner and a justice of the county court who had served George Washington during the Revolutionary War, Moss was no doubt influenced by the enlightened ideals that triggered the revolution and led to growing unease over the legitimacy of slavery. Yet he and many “enlightened” slave owners continued to uphold the practice.
In 1965, Dr. Belinda Crompton Straight - who lived on the Green Spring Gardens property at the time - joined a small team of doctors who traveled to Selma, Alabama to provide emergency aid and triage to civil rights marchers walking from Selma to Montgomery in support of voting rights for Blacks. One of the injured marchers treated by Belinda was John Lewis, who had a fractured skull. In 2007, as a congressman from Georgia, he met with her for the first time since Selma. Green Spring Gardens owes its existence to Dr. Straight. In 1970, she and her husband Michael Straight gifted their small family estate to the Park Authority, including Green Spring Historic House. Photo from Dr. Straight’s 2015 obituary in the Washington Post.
In 2018, the Friends of Historic Huntley acquired an 1845 letter from Betsey Mason, a former owner of what is now Historic Huntley in Alexandria, Virginia. Her letter to Fairfax County Magistrate John Augustine Washington III (great-grandnephew of George Washington and the last private owner of Mount Vernon) is regarding enslaved persons at her home. The letter is an important part of the story of the people of Historic Huntley.
In 1933, President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), which hired men to create state parks, improve soil conservation, conduct reforestation, and construct fire trails. The men received food, clothing, shelter, health care, and education. Projects of the racially segregated Fort Belvoir CCC camp, Army 3 VA-2399 C (Colored) included building fire trails through forested areas of Fairfax County. One such trail started at Old Keene Mill Road, crossed nearby Accotink Creek, and intersected with several old logging roads. A historical marker recognizing these important accomplishments can be found in what is now Lake Accotink Park.
During the Civil War, many formerly enslaved persons who braved work outside Union lines were captured and sent back into slavery. In 2015, thanks to the efforts of the Fairfax County History Commission, a historic marker was installed in Burke to commemorate the important contributions of many nameless African-Americans who helped build the Orange and Alexandria Railroad. The original bridge crossing Accotink Creek was built in 1851 as part of this railroad. This railroad was a major asset to the military supply chain at the time. The marker in Lake Accotink Park sheds light on what could have been a lost part of our community’s heritage.
The James Lee Community Center in Falls Church is a Fairfax County community center home to the Park Authority’s Archaeology and Collections Branch. However, the building's history offers a remarkable story of activism and determination that brought about needed change. Despite the landmark 1954 Brown v. Board of Education ruling that declared segregation of public schools unconstitutional, James Lee operated as a fully segregated Black school until June 1966 and was one of the last two segregated schools to close in Fairfax County.
Oak Hill in Annandale, Virginia was constructed circa 1790 on the historic Ravensworth tract. It was built by Richard Fitzhugh, a descendant of one of the first land-grant holders in Northern Virginia. After the Civil War, at least three former slaves bought and lived on small parcels of Oak Hill land. An undocumented slave cemetery, discovered in 2005 on former Oak Hill land, is described in the 2005 short documentary African-American History in Oak Hill produced by Fairfax County’s Channel 16. Learn more at The Story of Ravensworth website.
More than 200 years ago, a young man named Ellick escaped from slavery by running over a hill at sunset. That hill was near land that is now the boat launch at Riverbend Park. It is one of two Fairfax County Park Authority sites located on the National Park Service's Network to Freedom - a database of sites that tell the story of resistance against slavery through escape and flight. Read more about Ellick’s escape to freedom.
Sully Historic Site in Chantilly, Virginia tells the story of all the people who once lived on the land, including Ludwell, Madam Juba, and runaway slave Godfrey (shown here in an artist rendition by Grace Kettell). Enslaved persons cultivated tobacco at Sully as far back as 1746. There were more enslaved people living at Sully than the numbers that comprised the Lee family who lived there, and Sully staff works very hard to acknowledge them, to remember them and to honor their legacy.
Interested in doing your own research on African-American history in Fairfax County? Explore these additional resources available through Fairfax County Park Authority or our partners in Fairfax County:
The Park Authority’s Park Authority Archaeology and Collections Branch (ACB) identifies, preserves, and interprets the material culture of Fairfax County to promote shared stewardship of cultural resources, nurture a deeper understanding of the past, and inspire future generations. The County Archaeological Research Team (CART) is the research and outreach arm of the ACB. CART conducts archaeological investigations on parkland throughout the county. Findings from this research can be found on CART’s artiFACTS Blog.
The Fairfax County Government Historic Court Records office offers a digital guide with links to will books, death records, registration of free African-Americans before the Civil War, and many more resources. These are vital sources for the working historians at the Park Authority:
In January 2021, the Fairfax County History Commission began compiling source materials regarding African-American History in Fairfax County. The initial inventory is available on the History Commission website, along with a General Resources Guide and suggested Research Topics. These early draft releases were created for use by students, educators, historians and county residents prior to database release in later 2022. Residents are encouraged to contact their district’s Commissioners with additional information of any site or resource.
Fairfax County Public Library’ website offers events and programs this Black History Month to celebrate, honor and educate. They have also curated a Black History Month booklist featuring recently received and newly published titles. FCPL’s Virginia Room also maintains a collection rich in regional history and genealogy, as well as local and state government information and legal resources.