Stafford in Stafford County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)

Gateway to Freedom

Trail to Freedom

Photographed by Kevin W., February 19, 2011

1. Gateway to Freedom Marker

Inscription. "I bounded across the Gang plank and concealed Myself for a while until the Steamer got off from the Wharf. I then came out and arrived Safe at 6th Street Wharf in Washington D.C. on the Night of September 1st, 1862 in a hard rain." —John Washington
During the Civil War, most white Stafford residents greeted the arrival of the Union army in April 1862 with outrage and fear. But many slaves throughout the region rejoiced at the opportunity for freedom. Thousands left their houses, farms, and plantation, heading north toward the Union army.

Some "contrabands" (as the army called them), took jobs with the Union army, often as paid servants to officers. They earned between 25 and 40 cents per day, plus a ration. But for most former slaves, their journey to freedom continued to and culminated a Aquia Landing. Soldiers shepherded them onto steamboats for the short journey up the Potomac to Washington, D.C.

When the Union army evacuated the area in September 1862, a final burst of freedom-seekers flooded Aquia Landing. Among them was Fredericksburg slave John Washington, who slipped aboard the Washington-bound steamer

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Keyport (above). That spring and summer, as many as 10,000 slaves made the journey into Union lines—to freedom.

…There was a continuous black line of men, women, and children moving north along the [rail]road, carrying all their worldly goods on their heads. Every train running to Aquia was crowded with them…I think it is safe to estimate that the number of contrabands that have passed by this route since we took possession of the road at 10,000."
—W.W. Wright, Superintendent, U.S. Military Railroad Report, Sept. 17, 1862.

Erected 2011 by Stafford County and the Virginia Foundation for the Humanities.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Civil Rights. A significant historical month for this entry is April 1862.

Location. 38° 23.372′ N, 77° 18.945′ W. Marker is in Stafford, Virginia, in Stafford County. It is on Brooke Road (County Route 608). Marker is in Aquia Landing County Park (formerly Aquia-Po Beach Park). Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 2846 Brooke Rd, Stafford VA 22554, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker

Photographed by Shane Oliver, March 5, 2022

2. Gateway to Freedom Marker

Text has been updated slightly. The word "slave" has been replaced with "enslaved".

is in the Washington Metropolitan Area,

in Northern Virginia,

and in the Piedmont.

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: Steamships, Stages and Slave Trade (here, next to this marker); Early Escape Route (here, next to this marker); Aquia Landing (here, next to this marker); a different marker also named Aquia Landing (within shouting distance of this marker); Patawomeck Tribe Village (approx. ¼ mile away); a different marker also named Aquia Landing (approx. half a mile away); History of the Patawomeck Indians (approx. half a mile away); a different marker also named Aquia Landing (approx. 0.6 miles away). Touch for a list and map

Three Trail to Freedom markers are collocated here image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Kevin W., February 19, 2011

3. Three Trail to Freedom markers are collocated here

The Gateway to Freedom Marker is the right-most marker in this picture.

of all markers in Stafford.

Also see . . . Trail to Freedom web site. (Submitted on February 8, 2011, by Kevin W. of Stafford, Virginia.)

Acquia Creek. Burnside's Base of Supply image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Allen C. Browne, April 3, 2011

4. Acquia Creek. Burnside's Base of Supply

Aquia Landing as it appeared in the late 1862 early in the Civil War. (Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division)

Steamship Keyport image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Allen C. Browne, April 3, 2011

5. Steamship Keyport

Steamship Keyport, upon which John Washington snuck aboard with evacuating Union troops.( The Mariners' Museum, Newport News, VA.)

Credits. This page was last revised on September 2, 2026. It was originally submitted on February 6, 2011, by Kevin W. of Stafford, Virginia. This page has been viewed 1,066 times since then and 22 times this year. Photos: 1. submitted on February 6, 2011, by Kevin W. of Stafford, Virginia. 2. submitted on May 23, 2022, by Shane Oliver of Richmond, Virginia. 3. submitted on February 6, 2011, by Kevin W. of Stafford, Virginia. 4, 5. submitted on February 17, 2013, by Allen C. Browne of Silver Spring, Maryland.

Editor’s want-list for this marker. Submission of the new marker with different text for its own profile. • Can you help?