Enslaved and Entrenched
Elias Polk was born into slavery in 1806 on a farm owned by Samuel Polk, father of the future president of...
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Paul Jennings
Paul Jennings was born in 1799 at Montpelier, the Virginia estate of James and Dolley Madison. His mother, an enslaved woman...
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Plantations & Politics
Speaking before the United States House of Representatives in 1825, congressman James K. Polk described American slavery as “a matter which re...
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The Formerly Enslaved Household of the Grant Family
Women are often overlooked in history for their role in the institution of slavery. First Lady Julia Dent Grant, wife...
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Enslaved Workers on the White House Grounds
Uncovering the lives of enslaved people poses many challenges. Because enslaved people were denied the right of literacy, as a...
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The Formerly Enslaved Households of President Andrew Johnson
Andrew Johnson’s close association with Abraham Lincoln, as both his vice president and his successor, often disguises Johnson’s own...
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The Enslaved Households of President James Monroe
Considered the last “Founding Father” president, James Monroe was born in 1758 into an affluent, slave owning family in Westmoreland County, Virg...
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Emancipation Day in Washington, D.C.
Congress passed the Compensated Emancipation Act to end slavery in the District of Columbia and President Abraham Lincoln signed the...
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Slavery's Mark on Lincoln's White House
On a bright March 4, 1861, Abraham Lincoln took office as President of the United States “entirely ignorant not only of the du...
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The Slave Quarters at Decatur House
Nestled in the heart of Washington, D.C., Lafayette Park attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors every year. From school...
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The Enslaved Households of President Martin Van Buren
While many tend to think that slavery was strictly a “southern” issue, this system of racial captivity and exploitation existed acro...
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John Gadsby: Hotelier and Slave Owner in the President's Neighborhood
For nearly four decades until 1836, John Gadsby was the premier hotelier of Alexandria, Baltimore, and Washington, D.C. He leased...