Fort Myer in Arlington in Arlington County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)
Long Haul
Arlington House, The Robert E. Lee Memorial
| | George Washington Memorial Parkway, National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior | |
Photographed by Connor Olson, March 21, 2022
1. Long Haul Marker
The yard behind the mansion churned with a flurry of daily chores and demanding labor. Enslaved people crossed dirt paths here, their arm is packed with garden produce and supplies for field workers toiling in the 1,100 plantation acres. Close lines saved with wet laundry strong up wind from dust kept up by the wheels of visiting carriages. Enslaved domestic workers slept in cramped quarters on each side of the yard. While the structures exist today, the field slave cabins that died the south end of the state, close to the river, no longer remain.
Daniel hauled a good deal of manure with the cart and the carriage horse and we are wheeling off the old roots and brush
-G.W.P. Custis to his granddaughter, Agnes Lee, in 1853
Erected by National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Agriculture. A significant historical year for this entry is 1853.
Location. 38° 52.861′ N, 77° 4.379′ W. Marker is in Arlington, Virginia, in Arlington County. It is in Fort Myer. It is on Sherman Drive 0.1 miles Sheridan Drive, on
this page online
Regionally, this marker is in the Washington Metropolitan Area and in Northern Virginia. It is also in the American South, specifically in the Upper South, in the Mid-Atlantic, and on the Eastern Seaboard. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region, North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture, one of the original Thirteen Colonies, one of the Confederate States of America, and the Antebellum South.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: The Gray Family (a few steps from this marker); A Place of Division and Reunification (within shouting distance of this marker); Cherish these forest trees (within shouting distance of this marker); Tree Ring Timeline (within shouting distance of this marker); Division and Reunification (within shouting distance of this marker); Kingdom of my childhood
Photographed by Connor Olson, March 21, 2022
2. Yard behind the mansion
Other markers no longer nearby. Guardian of a Nation's Heritage (was here, next to this marker but has been permanently removed); Selina Gray (was here, next to this marker but has been replaced with another marker now near it); The Kingdom of My Childhood (was within shouting distance of this marker but has been replaced with another marker now near it); The Arlington Woodlands (was within shouting distance of this marker but has been permanently removed); The Flower Garden (was within shouting distance of this marker but has been replaced with another marker now near it).
Additional keywords. enslaved labor
Credits. This page was last revised on February 1, 2023. It was originally submitted on March 27, 2022, by Connor Olson of Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin. This page has been viewed 308 times since then and 20 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on March 27, 2022, by Connor Olson of Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin. • Devry Becker Jones was the editor who published this page.
