Abraham Hall: A Historic African American Benevolent Lodge

Abraham Hall: A Historic African American Benevolent Lodge. . , Abraham Hall was built in 1889 as a lodge for the Benevolent Sons and Daughters of Abraham. Chartered in 1877, this fraternal organization provided emergency financial assistance and death benefits to its members: a form of insurance not otherwise available to African Americans. Abraham Hall has been used for various functions over the years including as meeting place, landmark, and touchstone of the African American community of Rossville. The African American community’s namesake, Augustus Ross, was one of its first settlers. He purchased one of 12 parcels of land previously belonging to wealthy landowner Mark Duvall. The Benevolent Sons and Daughters of Abraham purchased the largest (3.85 acres) of the twelve parcels., The Lodge became the largest and most substantial building in Rossville. After Queens Chapel burned down in the 1890s, church services were held in Abraham Hall until 1901, when the church completed work on a new chapel. The Lodge was also used as a schoolhouse in the years before the construction of Muirkirk School in 1922., As the first Black historic site in Prince George’s County to be restored with public funds, Abraham Hall marks a significant milestone in the historic preservation efforts of Prince George’s County, Maryland. Abraham Hall is owned and operated by the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission., [Illustrations:], Charter of the Benevolent Sons and Daughters of Abraham, Rebecca Lodge #5, 1877. Courtesy of the Benevolent Sons and Daughter of Abraham , Rossville Plat, 1886. Map of the original plot that comprised Rossville. A 25 acre parcel of land from Mark Duvall’s estate was divided into 12 lots. Many of the lots were purchased by African Americans employed at the Muirkirk Ironworks. The original landowners in Rossville were Augustus Ross, Charles Briggs, Mary E. Williams and Elias Williams, William Briggs, Thomas Mathews, Jonathan Carter, William Talbert, M.J. Williams, William Dixon, Knotley Johnson, Agnes Taylor. The plot where Abraham Hall stands is plot #9. Courtesy of the Maryland State Archives, Abraham Hall was built in 1889 by members of the Rebecca Lodge of the Benevolent Sons and Daughters of Abraham. It was one of the most prominent buildings in Rossville, a community largely inhabited by African American employees of the Muirkirk Ironworks and their families., Badge from Naomi’s Household of Ruth, women’s auxiliary of the Grand United Order of Odd Fellows, which held meetings at Abraham Hall. Courtesy of Edna Ross, Badge from the Rebecca Lodge #6 of the Benevolent Sons and Daughters of Abraham. Courtesy of Edna Ross, In 1864 slave statistics for the State of Maryland, Prince George’s County, Augustus Ross was 18 years of age and listed as a slave to Walter W. W. Bowie. Courtesy of the Maryland State Archives , Students attend school at Abraham Hall, circa 1918. Courtesy Albert Thomas, Photo of Muirkirk School students circa 1925. The Muirkirk School replaced the Freedman’s Bureau School operated by Charles Coffin when it opened in 1922. It was built with the financial assistance of the Rosenwald Fund, a fund created to help communities build schools for African American children. Muirkirk iron worker William William Toliver was among the Rossville residents who served on the school’s building committee. Courtesy of Philip Gibson, Portrait of Israel Crump, Civil War veteran and Rossville resident, circa 1920. Courtesy of Marsha Brown, Grand United Order of Odd Fellows’ annual meeting at Abraham Hall, circa 1940. The Odd Fellows, like other lodges in the Muirkirk area frequently met at Abraham Hall. Courtesy of the Benevolent Sons and Daughters of Abraham Naomi’s Household of Ruth, the Women’s Auxiliary of the Grand Order of Odd Fellows, at their annual meeting at Abraham Hall, circa 1940. Courtesy of the Benevolent Sons and Daughters of Abraham