Contrabands and Freedmen Cemeteries - Alexandria, VA
Posted by: bluesnote
N 38° 47.683 W 077° 02.963
18S E 322020 N 4295991
A cemetery for freed slaves during the civil war.
Waymark Code: WMQPWC
Location: Virginia, United States
Date Posted: 03/14/2016
Views: 5
The plaque says, "Federal authorities established a cemetery here for newly freed African Americans during the Civil War. In January 1864, the military governor of Alexandria confiscated for use as a burying ground an abandoned pasture from a family with Confederate sympathies. About 1,700 freed people, including infants and black Union soldiers, were interred here before the last recorded burial in January 1869. Most of the deceased had resided in what is known as Old Town and in nearby rural settlements. Despite mid-twentieth-century construction projects, many burials remain undisturbed. A list of those interred here has also survived."
County / Borough / Parish: Alexandria (independent city)
Year listed: 2012
Historic (Areas of) Significance: HISTORIC - NON-ABORIGINAL BLACK SOCIAL HISTORY
Periods of significance: 9000-10999 BC 7000-8999 BC 5000-6999 BC 3000-4999 BC 1000-2999 BC 1000 AD-999 BC 1850-1874
Historic function: HISTORIC - NON-ABORIGINAL BLACK SOCIAL HISTORY
Current function: EVENT INFORMATION POTENTIAL
Privately owned?: yes
Primary Web Site: [Web Link]
Street address: Not listed
Season start / Season finish: Not listed
Hours of operation: Not listed
Secondary Website 1: Not listed
Secondary Website 2: Not listed
National Historic Landmark Link: Not listed
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Visit Instructions:
Please give the date and brief account of your visit. Include any additional observations or information that you may have, particularly about the current condition of the site. Additional photos are highly encouraged, but not mandatory.