Fort Ward's Lost Graves: Who speaks for the dead? Julia Randle

Fort Ward's Lost Graves: Who speaks for the dead? 

Julia Randle

Julia Randle, archivist at Virginia Theological Seminary’s Bishop Payne Library, where the [Fort Ward History Workgroup] meeting was held, said that the findings should have a huge impact on Alexandria citizens, particularly the black community.

“Alexandria, historically, has focused on it being the colonial port and the home of George Washington and this place that was occupied throughout the Civil War,” Randle said.  “But throughout it’s whole history, it wasn’t just white guys doing things.  It wasn’t just a white community.  It had a large African American community and history that went to put together everything that is Alexandria.”

“We are a community not just of white Southerners, we are a community of people, who are black and white and everything in between,” Randle said.  “The significance to the community of Alexandria is the inclusion of the whole community and telling the whole story.”

Julia Randle, Registrar and Historiographer at Episcopal Diocese of Virginia, February 6, 2011 from "Archaeological Study Reveals Significant Finds At Fort Ward"

By Haley Crum 

Fort Ward's Lost Graves: Who speaks for the dead? Elizabeth H. Douglas

Fort Ward's Lost Graves: Who speaks for the dead?

Elizabeth H. Douglas

Ms. Elizabeth Henry Douglas, who received the 2009 Brenman Archaeology Award from the Mayor and City Council in October 2009 for her contribution to the City’s oral history program, told members of the Fort Ward History Work Group  that, “The number of graves is more than you have noted. Most of the people who lived in the Fort area had family graves.  Everyone buried on their own lot“.  She noted that the area was not called Fort Ward, only the “Fort”.

Ms. Douglas provided the group with additional insights about the connections between the Fort and the Donaldston Store, roads, mail delivery, and the location of James Jackson’s home which is where the Fort Ward Museum is now located.  She also said that “all of the grave stones, except one, had been removed [from the area] just before they started doing the park”.

Elizabeth Douglas noted that the Fitzhugh and Spence graves [in front of the entrance to the maintenance and nursery area] belong in the Oakland Baptist Church Cemetery not sticking out where they are”.  She noted that the base of one of the gravestones has been damaged and needs to be repaired.

Minutes of the March 6, 2010 Fort Ward History Work Group Meeting

Fort Ward’s Lost Graves: Who Speaks for the Dead? Susan Cumbey

Fort Ward’s Lost Graves: Who Speaks for the Dead?

Susan Cumbey

“Lance (Mallamo) asked that I inform you about the grave site area that existed on the west side of the park.  This area was situated to the rear of picnic area 6, adjacent to the restored Northwest bastion of the fort.

It is also interesting that Wanda Dowell, former director of the Fort Ward Museum and HIstoric Site, generally recalled from her early years working at Fort Ward that some of the headstones were removed from this area, and Wally Owen (of the Museum) recalls visiting the park when he was young and seeing a headstone at the base of a tree in that area”.

Letter from Susan Cumbey, Director of the Fort Ward Museum and Historic Site, to Kirk Kincannon, Director of the City of Alexandria Recreation Department. March 13, 2009

Reply to Lance Mallamo, Director. Office of Historic Alexandria, VA. Regarding Fort Ward HIstory Work Group

                               November 18, 2013

Dear Mr. Mallamo,

Thank you for your note.  Adrienne and I had hoped for an opportunity to talk with you about the Fort Ward History Work Group.  Your comments at Wednesday nights Fort Ward Park & Museum Advisory Group Meeting were even more troubling than your written comments of October 31, 2013.  

We are interested in responding to your request.  However, it’s important to be clear on the following facts since you did imply that we were under your command and indicated that we had not lived up to our duties and responsibilities in your line of command.

First, we are voluntarily assisting the city in this community-driven effort.  We do not have any agreement with your office as to what services we are to provide you.

Second, as you noted, you did create the Fort Ward History Work Group, and as a result it is not an official City of Alexandria advisory group.  When you created it you did not provide any guidance to the group other than to say you wanted the group to be open to the public and for the participants to provide information to the Office of Historic Alexandria for use in the Fort Ward Park decision-making process.  The group has no guidelines from the city or your office as to what we should and shouldn’t be doing.

Third,  since the Fort Ward Park & Museum Advisory Group does not have any formal guidance for it’s activities from the City of Alexandria,  no functional relationship between that group and the work group has been described.

We note these facts because in your written and verbal comments you have been asserting that we have not met your expectations in terms of performance of the duties that we have been performing.  Your recent expectations seem to be, frankly, arbitrary and capricious at best, destructive at worst.  The group is the creation of your office, however,  it is entirely inappropriate to treat, and mistreat, us as employees at your beck and call.

We are more than willing to assist your efforts to help insure that good decision-making return to Fort Ward Park.  Our response to your specific requests follows:

1.  The e-mail list of work group members and OHA staff who are on your  meeting notification list has been provided to your office in the past.  I suggest that you search your office’s files for this information.  We can provide you with copies of the sign-in sheets from meetings we have held.  We can scan this information and send it to you electronically.  Let us know if you would like us to do that for you.

We also use social-media to reach a large number of individuals you are interested in the work going on at Fort Ward.  Despite some of the concerns of some Advisory Group members social-media sites are part of an effective public outreach effort.  

2.  Your interest in the dates and meeting notices to which work group members and OHA staff were notified during the past year is best retrieved by your office staff from their own computers.  Over the course of the life of the work group we have mailed notices to hundreds and hundreds of individuals.  Messages sent to members and the public are the same messages sent to you and your staff.  Communications did not discriminate between OHA staff and other

1. 3.  Meeting minutes were never a requirement of this group.  The tradition of 

keeping a summary of the meetings was done as a public outreach technique to inform and inspire the members and others about the work of the group.  As you may recall early in this effort Pam Cressey and I did the bulk of this note taking.   When Adrienne and I were elected by the members to be the co-chairs of the work group, at a meeting you did not attend, our roles changed and formal note taking for some meetings was not determined to be necessary since, aside from the election of co-chairs, this group is a research and non-voting organization.  

1. 
   

4.      This letter confirms that we distributed the public presentation notice to FWHWG members, as I requested in my email of October 31, 2013.

I hope this is helpful to you.  Please let us know if you would like to meet to discuss the work group activities, or the contents of this message, further.

Sincerely,

Glenn

1. Glenn Eugster

Adrienne

Adrienne Terrell Washington

Co-Chairs, Fort Ward History Work Group

Jackson Family Cemetery Cleaned and Roped-Off

Jackson Family Cemetery Cleaned and Roped-Off 

December 4, 2013

One of many family grave areas in Fort Ward Park is the Jackson Family burial area.  Located just outside of the fort walls, city archaeologists confirmed what public records have shown for years--the area has many burial sites.  Although city officials knew of the grave area the cemetery was always mowed and treated as recreation land rather than sacred ground.  At times the area has been either well-maintained or very neglected.

Recently in response to concerns of neglect expressed by Frances Colbert Terrell of the Fort Ward Park & Museum Advisory Group city officials took action to clean debris and rope-off the known graves.  

As the park’s management plan is completed, after review by the Advisory Group, the public and city officials, Jackson family descendants and others who love Fort Ward will get a better idea of what best practices the Recreation Department staff will use to maintain this, and other, historic areas at the park.

Fort Ward’s Lost Graves: Who speaks for the dead? Dr. Pamela Cressey

Fort Ward’s Lost Graves:  Who speaks for the dead?

Dr. Pamela Cressey

“Here are important points that need to be conveyed at the [public] meeting on the 18th.

1. the entire park is on the national register and has potential for cultural resources.
2. there is a lot of historical information collected already for us in the past and neighbors currently.
3. We have four oral histories related to fort ward--and another one done just last saturday.  more can be done.
4. the maintenance yard is definitely a cemetery--don’t know if resources are still there.
5. archaeology will take a long time because of money and staff--will need to prioritize (I would think graves first) and expand out from known areas to find graves--this is time consumng.  Is possible for community volunteers to help........

         9.  Best to capitalize on public interest and professionalism and form a workng group--call it an advisory group--to go through these steps: neighbors, descendant families and interested black history people, recreation people, natural history people as well as staff from both depts.  This group must work not like a regular task force with one mission job, but work over time to develop trust, communication and become good stewards of the park’s resources and stories”.

Memorandum from Pamela Cressey, City Archaeologist, to Lance Mallamo, Director of the Office of HIstoric Alexandria.  March 13, 2009.

Remembering the Solitude of Fort Ward Park

Remembering the Solitude of Fort Ward Park

Charles W. Hendryx, the City of Alexandria’s first arborist, is long gone and forgotten.  No one at the Fort Ward Museum remembers him.  The City Recreation Department has no information about him.  Some of the people that worked for the city back-in-the-day remember him and know that one of the features of Fort Ward Park is the memorial that was created in his honor.

A search of the records in the Fort Ward Museum and the Alexandria Archives turned-up information about Mr. Hendryx and a lady named Mrs. R.F.S. Starr.  Mrs. Starr is often recognized as one of the people that helped convince City of Alexandria elected officials to save Fort Ward and create a historic park.  The Museum’s Library is named after Mrs. Starr to honor her work.

As it turns out Mrs. Starr and Mr. Hendryx worked together in the 1950’s to develop “preliminary thoughts” for Fort Ward Park.  Ideas for preservation, land acquisition, picnic areas, trails, footpaths, restrooms, parking and, natural and azalea plantings were shared between the two and used as the basis for the preparation of the initial plan for the park.

To recognize Mr. Hendryx’s contribution the city developed a small memorial, surrounded by azaleas and flowers, in his honor.   The memorial is located near the boundary where the park, Oakland Baptist Church Cemetery and Marlboro Estates comes together.  It is downslope of the cemetery within an area that early city maps described as “Solitude”, which was keeping with the city’s goal to protect history, provide recreation and preserve open space within the Fort Ward area.

Over the years, for good and not-so-good reasons, the area of solitude became a forgotten part of the park.  The area increasingly has been neglected with grass and leaves uncut and shrubs unkept.  Several benches that provide quiet places to meditate about nature fell into disrepair and small donor plaques placed on them were removed.  Even the Fort Ward Park & Musem Advisory Group members, charged with improving the management and protection of the park seemed to be ambivalent about this area.

Yesterday and today, however, a change was in the wind.  A Recreation Department maintenance truck pulled into the area and two city workers began removing two badly damaged benches, pruning overgrown shrubs, removing invasive species, and raking leaves away from the memorial and sitting area.

Although the changes are modest they are obvious and most welcome for they are the first signs of city interest in this part of the park in quite sometime.  City efforts, as well as donations and volunteer efforts from the Marlboro Estate residents, could help make this area an asset to Fort Ward once again.  If Mr. Hendryx and Mrs. Starr were still with us I’m sure they would be glad that the park they helped create and develop continues to be cared for.