Mark this historic inauguration week by joining us for a free, 90-minute walking tour, “From Slavery to Freedom in Adams Morgan,” on Sunday, January 20th at 1:00pm. starting at the Sun Trust Bank Plaza at 18th Street and Columbia Road, N.W., Washington, D.C. Our starting point at 18th Street and Columbia Road is about an 8 minute walk from the Woodley Park/Zoo/Adams Morgan Red Line Metro buses nearby are the 42, L2, H1, 90, 92, 96, 98, and the Adams Morgan Circulator.
We’ll walk first to Kalorama Park where, in 1861, an enslaved young woman named Hortense Prout made a daring bid for freedom from a lifetime of bondage on the cattle farm of John Little. Because of Hortense’s courageous effort, the National Park Service has named Kalorama Park a “National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom” site.
We’ll then walk to Walter C. Pierce Community Park, the site of Washington’s first (and only) Quaker cemetery and the city’s largest African American burial ground following the Civil War. Howard University archaeologists, the with support of the community, have conducted a unique, non-invasive (no digging!) survey of the park to determine where unmarked graves still exist so they can be protected and commemorated. At the park, we’ll also see and discuss Holt House built around 1800.
Please join us for this special journey into our city’s past! Neighborhood historians Mary Belcher and Eddie Becker will lead the walk, rain or shine. No RSVP required. Questions? Call Mary Belcher at 202-462-9069 or write Eddie Becker at eddie_becker@yahoo.com. This walk, which is handicapped accessible, is sponsored by the Kalorama Citizens Association.