Black Men Built the Capitol: Discovering African-American History in and Around Washington, D.C.

Millions of people visit the National Mall, the White House, and the U.S.

Capitol each year. If they only hear the standard story, a big question remains:

“Wheres the black history?”

Packed with new information and archival photos, Black Men Built the Capitol

answers this question. In this thoroughly researched yet completely accessible volume, Washington insider and political journalist Jesse J. Holland shines a light

on the regions African-American achievements, recounting little-known stories

and verifying rumors, such as:

•   Enslaved black men built the Capitol, White House, and other important 

    Washington structures.

•   Philip Reid, a thirty-nine-year-old slave from South Carolina, cast and helped

save the model of the Statue of Freedom that sits atop the Capitol Dome.

•   The National Mall sits on the former site of the citys most bustling slave market.

•   The grounds that are now Arlington National Cemetery were, from 1863 to

1888, a self-sustaining village for former slaves called the Freedmans Village.

Included are hundreds of places in the District of Columbia, Maryland, and

Virginia that illuminate “the rest of the story” for Washington residents and visitors

alike.

Capitol each year. If they only hear the standard story, a big question remains:

“Where’s the black history?”

Packed with new information and archival photos, Black Men Built the Capitol

answers this question. In this thoroughly researched yet completely accessible volume, Washington insider and political journalist Jesse J. Holland shines a light

on the region’s African-American achievements, recounting little-known stories

and verifying rumors, such as:

•   Enslaved black men built the Capitol, White House, and other important 

    Washington structures.

•   Philip Reid, a thirty-nine-year-old slave from South Carolina, cast and helped

save the model of the Statue of Freedom that sits atop the Capitol Dome.

•   The National Mall sits on the former site of the city’s most bustling slave market.

•   The grounds that are now Arlington National Cemetery were, from 1863 to

1888, a self-sustaining village for former slaves called the Freedman’s Village.

Included are hundreds of places in the District of Columbia, Maryland, and

Virginia that illuminate “the rest of the story” for Washington residents and visitors

alike.

2. Foreword

3. A Brief History of Washington, D.C.

4. The U.S. Capitol

5. The National Mall

6. Around Washington

7. Maryland

8. Virginia

9. Coming Soon

10. At A Glance

11. Bibliography

Chapter SummariesChapter 1 – Introduction

In the introduction, the author will introduce himself and illustrate the need for this book through personal anecdotes and stories from life in the Washington, D.C. political arena.

Chapter 2 – Foreword

The author expects to have this written by a prominent politician or historian who will extol the need for this book.

Chapter 3 – A Brief History of Washington, D.C.

The first chapter will set up the rest of the book, telling the history of the District of Columbia and the African American participation in the creation of the nations capital.

Chapter 4 – The U.S. Capitol (Chapter provided)

Chapter 5 – The National Mall

This chapter will take the reader through the rest of the African American contributions on the National Mall with the major sections featuring the White House, the Lincoln Memorial, the Tidal Basin and the Smithsonian Institution museums, as well as a tour of the locations of its now-dismantled slave markets and auction sites.

Chapter 6 – Around Washington

This will be one of the longer chapters in the book, featuring the rest of Washington, D.C.s major African American tourism sites including lesser known sites like the Mary McCloud Bethune Statue in Lincoln Park (the first African American statue erected in Washington, D.C. and still the only one dedicated to an African American woman) and the Frederick Douglass Museum and Hall of Fame for Caring Americans (Douglasss first home in Washington, D.C. and the former home of the Smithsonian Institution National Museum of African Art), as well as more famous sites like Douglasss Cedar Hill home in Anacostia and the Anacostia Museum and Center for African American History and Culture.

Chapter 7 – Maryland

Washington, D.C.s northeastern neighbor has plenty of African American heritage sites, which will be featured in this chapter. This chapters subjects will range from the Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History & Culture in Baltimore to the Alex Haley statue in Annapolis Harbor marking the spot where Kunta Kinte first entered the United States, and from the Harriet Tubman Memorial Gardens in Cambridge to the real “Uncle Toms Cabin” in Bethesda.

Chapter 8 – Virginia

Virginia was the nations largest slaveholding state, leading to a treasure trove of African American historic sites around the region including Arlington National Cemetery, Mount Vernon, the home of George Washington and his slaves; Colonial Williamsburg with its reenactments of colonial slave life; and Jamestown, where the first African Americans were brought involuntarily to North America.

Chapter 9 – Coming Soon (Chapter provided)

Chapter 10 – At A Glance

This chapter will consist of a spreadsheet-style chart which will give readers the vital information they need to visit the attractions listed in BLACK MEN BUILT THE CAPITOL: address, telephone number, Web site, hours of operation, distance from Washington, D.C.(if applicable).

Chapter 11 – Bibliography

A list of resources used in writing this book, and additional reading material for those interested in knowing more about Washington, D.C.s African American history.