Black History Permeates Nation's Capital
W A S H I N G T O N, Feb. 17 -- About 60 percent of Washington, D.C.'s 572,000 residents are black, and their history in the area predates the 1791 creation of the federal district by Congress. That makes the nation's capital rich in black heritage, from the Colonial era to the antebellum and Civil War eras, to contemporary urban life.
"There was always a sizable free black population in theDistrict of Columbia," said James Horton, the Benjamin Bannekerprofessor of American Studies and History at George WashingtonUniversity.
Yet for decades after the capital was established, slave marketsflourished in the area that is today the National Mall,particularly along what is now Independence Avenue.
Slaves and free blacks helped build the White House and U.S.Capitol as both laborers and craftsmen.
Although President George Washington personally took part inplacing the south cornerstone for the future capital at a spotknown as Jones Point, 8 miles north of his Mount Vernon estate, itwas the surveyor Banneker who performed the calculations needed toposition 39 other stones along a route measuring 10 miles on eachside. Banneker was a well-known black inventor, mathematician andastronomer who had been born free.
Slave Houses, Escape Plots
"Washington was dedicated to having high-quality craftsmen andworkmanship," said Stephanie Brown, a Mount Vernon spokeswoman.Many of the 316 slaves living at his estate at the time of hisdeath were trained as coopers, millers, blacksmiths, carpenters andshoemakers and distillers.
Washington housed many slaves in the "House for Families," acommunal quarters. Although the original building burned early inthe 20th century, it has been reconstructed.
Neighborhoods created by and for blacks in the capital,including shops, churches and homes, survive today. Some weresometimes intricately involved in surreptitious escape plots. TheGeorgetown section of Washington had several "safe houses" usedby conductors on the Underground Railroad.
Related Stories
ABC News Live