A special “stumbling stone” unveiling last week taught Gunston Middle School sixth graders about the harsh lives of those enslaved across Arlington — and in their very neighborhoods.
The stones, the latest in a series being placed across the county, recognize the lives of Sina and George, a mother-son duo enslaved during the mid-1800s in the area where the school is now located. While the full story of their lives is not known, research has uncovered some information:
“Sina and her son George were enslaved by a couple named Anthony and Presha Fraser. The Frasers owned a 1,000-acre farm in the area where Arlington Ridge, Long Branch Creek and Green Valley are today — right around where Gunston Middle School is located now. Their house, called Green Valley Manor, stood near today’s 23rd Street S. and S. Queen Street. In 1840, they enslaved three people. By 1860, they enslaved 12.”
Sina is believed to have been born in the late 1830s, but nothing is known about her early life or how she came to be enslaved by the Frasers. It is known that she was living on the estate in 1855, when she gave birth to son George. The identity of his father is not known.
George’s life was far different from young people of today, about 400 students were told:
“Because he was enslaved, George would not have been allowed to go to school. Instead, he would have been forced to work. He might have fed animals, delivered messages, cleaned, served food or helped take care of younger children. Sina may have worked in the fields growing corn and grains, or inside the Fraser home cooking, cleaning or helping members of the Fraser family.”
What today is Arlington, then known as Alexandria County, was occupied by Union troops at the outset of the Civil War in 1861. But that did not mean immediate freedom for those enslaved across the community. It is more likely they were freed in January 1863 by the Emancipation Proclamation.
Because researchers had no last names to work with, they have been unable to trace what happened to the mother and son beyond that point. They hope that, with more research, the full story may come to light.
The markers are part of the Memorializing the Enslaved in Arlington initiative, jointly sponsored by the Black Heritage Museum of Arlington and Arlington Historical Society with support of the Arlington County government and school system.
Representatives from sponsoring organizations were on hand, along with community leaders, to present the story of Sina and George to the students.
The markers were sponsored by members of the Mazumdar family, who have lived in the Long Branch Creek neighborhood for many years.
School Board member Zuraya Tapia-Hadley, who attended the ceremony, said the county school system was a strong supporter of the stumbling-stone initiative and the effort to tell the full story of the community’s history.
“From the partnership, educators have created lesson plans on enslavement in Arlington at the elementary, middle and high school levels that are taught in specific schools,” she said.
With colder weather closing in, the stumbling-stones initiative will go on hiatus. New markers will be unveiled starting again next spring.
