RESOLUTION REGARDING FUTURE USES OF FORT WARD PARK
Fort Ward, located in the City of Alexandria, was constructed in 1861 by Union forces in the defense of Washington, D.C. at the outset of the American Civil War. The earthen fort, one of 68 constructed, served in defense of the Federal City until it abandonment in December 1865. The area, prior to 1861 was primarily rural, and due to its relatively higher elevation above the city, served as summer homes for such prominent Alexandria citizens as Cassius Lee, cousin of Robert E. Lee. After 1865 the grounds abutting the abandoned Fort provided homes for freed blacks. Known as “the Hill,” Fort Ward is the site of the Oakland Baptist Church cemetery, as well as other African American graves. It was the site of one of the earliest public schools for Black children, as well as a church. Therefore,
Whereas the City of Alexandria demonstrated foresight in initiating the acquisition of the land to assemble Fort Ward Park (the “Park”) in 1953, to protect it from potential development, and
Whereas the City of Alexandria restored the Northwest Bastion of the Fort to its 1864 appearance and continues to preserve the earthen walls of the Fort, and
Whereas the Park admirably served as Alexandria’s premier Civil War site during the Centennial anniversary of that War during the 1961 to 1965 period, and
Whereas with the sesquicentennial of the American Civil War fast approaching in 2011, wherein millions of Americans are expected to visit sites such as the Park to better understand their own past, and
Whereas according to the City of Alexandria’s own website, “Fort Ward has been cited as the best Civil War restoration/preservation project in the mid-Atlantic region, as well as the flagship of the Defenses of Washington,” and
Whereas due to its historical significance the City of Alexandria nominated the entire area of the Park to the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places in 1982 as a Historical Park, and the Park was so designated, THEREFORE,
Be it herein resolved that the Friends of Fort Ward encourages and requests the City of Alexandria and the Department of Recreation, Parks, and Cultural Activities to: 1) reconfirm the City's commitment to the historic preservation of this asset; 2) limit uses that compromise the integrity of the site and deter from its historic character, and carefully manage other uses; 3) remove the horticultural maintenance area from the Park to a more appropriate location in the City; 4) protect marked and unmarked graves, and 5) begin working now with the City Archeologist, the Office of Historic Alexandria, and community members from the Oakland Baptist Church and the Friends of Fort Ward to better understand the broader historic nature of the Park.
Dated March 12, 2009
Respectfully submitted to the City of Alexandria,
The Friends of Fort Ward, Alexandria, Virginia
Fort Ward, located in the City of Alexandria, was constructed in 1861 by Union forces in the defense of Washington, D.C. at the outset of the American Civil War. The earthen fort, one of 68 constructed, served in defense of the Federal City until it abandonment in December 1865. The area, prior to 1861 was primarily rural, and due to its relatively higher elevation above the city, served as summer homes for such prominent Alexandria citizens as Cassius Lee, cousin of Robert E. Lee. After 1865 the grounds abutting the abandoned Fort provided homes for freed blacks. Known as “the Hill,” Fort Ward is the site of the Oakland Baptist Church cemetery, as well as other African American graves. It was the site of one of the earliest public schools for Black children, as well as a church. Therefore,
Whereas the City of Alexandria demonstrated foresight in initiating the acquisition of the land to assemble Fort Ward Park (the “Park”) in 1953, to protect it from potential development, and
Whereas the City of Alexandria restored the Northwest Bastion of the Fort to its 1864 appearance and continues to preserve the earthen walls of the Fort, and
Whereas the Park admirably served as Alexandria’s premier Civil War site during the Centennial anniversary of that War during the 1961 to 1965 period, and
Whereas with the sesquicentennial of the American Civil War fast approaching in 2011, wherein millions of Americans are expected to visit sites such as the Park to better understand their own past, and
Whereas according to the City of Alexandria’s own website, “Fort Ward has been cited as the best Civil War restoration/preservation project in the mid-Atlantic region, as well as the flagship of the Defenses of Washington,” and
Whereas due to its historical significance the City of Alexandria nominated the entire area of the Park to the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places in 1982 as a Historical Park, and the Park was so designated, THEREFORE,
Be it herein resolved that the Friends of Fort Ward encourages and requests the City of Alexandria and the Department of Recreation, Parks, and Cultural Activities to: 1) reconfirm the City's commitment to the historic preservation of this asset; 2) limit uses that compromise the integrity of the site and deter from its historic character, and carefully manage other uses; 3) remove the horticultural maintenance area from the Park to a more appropriate location in the City; 4) protect marked and unmarked graves, and 5) begin working now with the City Archeologist, the Office of Historic Alexandria, and community members from the Oakland Baptist Church and the Friends of Fort Ward to better understand the broader historic nature of the Park.
Dated March 12, 2009
Respectfully submitted to the City of Alexandria,
The Friends of Fort Ward, Alexandria, Virginia
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