LoudounNow LOUDOUN COUNTY’S COMMUNITY-OWNED NEWS SOURCE
[ Vol. 4, No. 5 ]
[ loudounnow.com ]
Foodies prep for New Year’s
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[ December 20, 2018 ]
Oatlands Research Unearths Former Slaves’ Family Foundations
“R
BY MARGARET MORTON eclaim Your Story.” That’s the stirring call to action for descendants of former slaves at the early 19th century Oatlands Plantation, who are among an increasingly large number of African-Americans interested in exploring the family histories of those enslaved at that plantation and other sites. The plantation was the largest enslaved community in Loudoun—amounting to 133 people at the outset of the Civil War, according to Elizabeth Carter’s diary of her families’ operations at Oatlands, south of Leesburg, and Bellefield Planation, near Upperville. Some workers were hired out and families were often split—adding to the complexity of telling their stories. Oatlands House and Gardens has formally opened an interactive website exhibit in a garden dependency building that allows descendants to search a comprehensive database of those working for the Carter family—from the slavery era, through the Jim Crow era to modern day—and find individual stories about their ancestors. The project was funded through a $12,000 grant from the African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, with support from The JPB Foundation. Director of Programming and Education Lori Kimball, along with new Oat-
Danielle Nadler/ Loudoun Now
Ellen Thaxton, a descendant of the enslaved at Oatlands Plantation, sits in front of an out-building on the property where slaves were tasked with curing pork for the Carter family. Now, the building houses an interactive exhibit that invites visitors to research a database of former slaves, view their stories and trace family histories.
lands CEO Caleb M. Schutz, was on hand last week to show off the new exhibit, which is accompanied by artwork from Gertrude Ashton Evans, depicting life on the plantation.
“It’s descendant driven,” said Kimball, noting the comprehensive input from those whose ancestors were enslaved on the property. “We asked them what they wanted,” which was a full history and ge-
nealogy, with interpretive panels to come later, for the public to see, Kimball said. “It’s still raw,” Kimball said, adding that OATLANDS ENSLAVED >> 34
Governor’s Budget Proposal Clears Way For State Park BY RENSS GREENE Governor Ralph Northam’s proposed state budget allows the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation to accept donated land for a state park in northwestern Loudoun, clearing the way for a new state park after years of hurdles and complicated negotiations. The governor’s budget authorizes the state to accept donated land for a state park in Loudoun, a project that has been
underway since at least 2012. Gov. Bob McDonnell announced plans for the park in northwestern Loudoun just before leaving office in 2014. Since then, efforts have focused on transferring land on the Blue Ridge to the state government. “We have dealt with numerous people, and everybody’s been kind of pushing or pulling in the same direction to get it done,” said Supervisor Geary M. Higgins (R-Catoctin), who has led efforts
in the county government to create the state park. “It just takes so many moving parts. It takes many people involved, and we’re thankful for everybody that’s hung in there with us while we were working to make this happen.” The Bob and Dee Leggett Foundation donated 604 acres of land near Neersville to the Potomac Conservancy, who then donated to the property to the Department of Conservation and Recreation in 2015. The Leggett Foundation then
sold a further 280 acres for $2.9 million, which the county paid. The Old Dominion Land Conservancy is holding the land for the county. That land, which has fewer restrictions on its use, will also be donated to the state to form the seed of a new state park and can be used the usual state park facilities. The park has not yet been named, but the state today refers to it as Sweet Run. STATE PARK >> 34
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