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“Bite-Size Bits of Local, National, and Global History”
Downtown Silver Spring in Montgomery County, Maryland — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)
 

Silver Spring Experienced by a Mother and Child, 1861-1865

 
 
Silver Spring Experienced by a Mother and Child, 1861-1865 Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, April 4, 2015
1. Silver Spring Experienced by a Mother and Child, 1861-1865 Marker
Inscription. 6 August 1863: “Our weather continues intensely hot, so far Blair endures it well — cheerful as a bird — out under the trees all day about the Spring where it is cool from the dense shade & the cool waters, he makes mill dams, mud cakes & runs barefooted…” — Elizabeth Blair Lee

In 1860, just prior to the start of the Civil War, there were over 18,322 residents in Montgomery County, including 8,177 children. One of those youngsters was Blair Lee, (1857–1944) the son of Samuel and Elizabeth Blair Lee and grandson of Francis P. Blair. Just three years old when combat began, young Blair stayed at Silver Spring in the summer months while his father served as a Rear Admiral in the U. S. Navy. Samuel Lee, (1812–1897) led blockades along the coastal waters of Virginia and North Carolina and then along the Mississippi River until 1865.

During these formative years, Blair Lee’s mother encouraged him to experience life as a curious boy should and she recorded these happenings in letters that kept her husband abreast of their son’s development. A typical day for Blair included playing outdoors in nature with his pets, pretending to be a soldier and building forts, gardening with his mother and picking flowers, spending time with his grandparents and cousins, doing chores around the farm, learning to read and write,
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and longing for his father’s return and end of the war.

Elizabeth Blair Lee (1818–1906) escaped the ordeal of losing a husband during the Civil War. She was also spared the tragic event of sending her son off to combat and never seeing him again. Her son became the first popularly elected US Senator from Maryland in 1913.

Because Blair was born into a politically connected and affluent family, his daily activities like differed from those of many other children residing in Montgomery County. For instance, more than a half of Montgomery County’s slave population included young African American boys and girls aged 18 and under. Instead of leisure, these children typically endured hard physical labor from sunrise to sunset six days a week. Although living beside seven enslaved children on the same estate allowed Blair Lee to enjoy more playful pursuits, the adoption of a new state constitution in Maryland on November 1, 1864 changed the way of life for Blair and many others.
 
Erected 2015 by History in the Parks.
 
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African AmericansWar, US Civil. A significant historical month for this entry is November 2015.
 
Location. 38° 59.121′ N, 77° 1.452′ W. Marker is in Silver Spring, Maryland, in Montgomery County. It is in Downtown
Silver Spring Experienced by a Mother and Child, 1861-1865 Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, April 4, 2015
2. Silver Spring Experienced by a Mother and Child, 1861-1865 Marker
Silver Spring. Marker can be reached from Jesup Blair Drive east of Georgia Avenue (U.S. 29), on the right when traveling east. In Jesup Blair Park behind (east of) Jesup Blair House. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 900 Jesup Blair Drive, Takoma Park MD 20912, United States of America. Touch for directions.
 
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. The Blair Family and their Silver Spring Homes (here, next to this marker); The Blair Family and the Civil War (here, next to this marker); Jesup Blair House (within shouting distance of this marker); William L. Chaplin Arrested! (about 600 feet away, measured in a direct line); The Civil War in Silver Spring (about 700 feet away); Original Federal Boundary Stone, District of Columbia, Northeast 1 (approx. 0.2 miles away); Living in Takoma Park (approx. ¼ mile away); Shepherd Park Christian Church Stormwater Features (approx. ¼ mile away in District of Columbia). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Silver Spring.
 
Blair Lee, 1864 image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, April 4, 2015
3. Blair Lee, 1864
Close-up of photo on marker
Princeton University Library
Elizabeth Blair Lee and son, Blair Lee age 4, 1861 image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, April 4, 2015
4. Elizabeth Blair Lee and son, Blair Lee age 4, 1861
Close-up of photo on marker
Princeton University Library
Unidentified mother and child, 1863 image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, April 4, 2015
5. Unidentified mother and child, 1863
Close-up of A.D. Jaynes photo on marker
Library of Congress
Samuel Phillips Lee, 1863 image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, April 4, 2015
6. Samuel Phillips Lee, 1863
Blair Lee’s father.
Close-up of photo on marker
Naval Historical Center
Unidentified African American soldier in Union uniform with wife and two daughters, ca. 1864 image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, April 4, 2015
7. Unidentified African American soldier in Union uniform with wife and two daughters, ca. 1864
Close-up of photo on marker
Library of Congress
Slaves Planting sweet potatoes, 1864 image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Allen C. Browne, April 4, 2015
8. Slaves Planting sweet potatoes, 1864
Close-up of Henry P. Moore photo on marker
Library of Congress
Samuel Phillips Lee image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Wikipedia
9. Samuel Phillips Lee
1845 painting by Thomas Sully
Blair Lee image. Click for full size.
Library of Congress
10. Blair Lee
This image appeared in The Washington Evening Star, Aug. 28, 1896, when Blair Lee was running for Governor of Maryland.
 
 
Credits. This page was last revised on May 25, 2023. It was originally submitted on April 7, 2015, by Allen C. Browne of Silver Spring, Maryland. This page has been viewed 660 times since then and 10 times this year. Photos:   1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10. submitted on April 7, 2015, by Allen C. Browne of Silver Spring, Maryland. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.

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Mar. 19, 2024