Gum Springs, Virginia

{{Short description|Unincorporated community in Virginia, United States}}

Gum Springs is a community in Fairfax County in Hybla Valley along Route 1 (Richmond Highway). The African American community, the oldest in the county,{{cite web|url=https://www.virginia.org/listing/gum-springs-historical-society-and-museum/254/|title=Gum Springs Historical Society and Museum|website=www.virginia.org}} was established in 1833 by West Ford, a freedman who had been manumitted by Hannah Bushrod Washington (widow of John Augustine Washington), in 1805.{{Cite news |date=February 7, 2020 |title=Preserving African American Heritage -Gum Springs |work=The Zebra |url=https://thezebra.org/2020/02/07/preserving-african-american-heritage-gum-springs/ |access-date=March 16, 2022}}{{cite news|last=Blechman |first=Barbara H. |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/1985/03/21/black-history-museum-considered-for-gum-springs/d71917cb-3ae6-4538-b2bf-d507f5ae3c1c/ |title=Black History Museum Considered for Gum Springs |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=1985-03-21 |accessdate=2022-04-09}} A historical marker (Number E-04) was erected by the Virginia Department of Historic Resources in 1991.{{cite web|last=Historical Marker Database|title=E-94 Gum Springs Historical Marker|url=https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=952|access-date=September 29, 2020|website=The Historical Marker Database}}

History

=Founding=

File:West Ford.jpg

In 1833, Gum Springs was founded by West Ford, a freed slave, skilled carpenter, and manager on George Washington's plantation, Mount Vernon.{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2022/03/14/did-george-washington-have-an-enslaved-son|title=Did George Washington Have an Enslaved Son?|date=March 4, 2022|magazine=The New Yorker}} Ford was able to develop this 214-acre farming community from the sale of land he inherited from Hannah Washington, the sister-in-law of George Washington. By 1866, Ford was the second richest free black farmer in Fairfax County, Virginia. Gum Springs Farm became the nucleus of an African-American community throughout the 1800s.

= Gum Springs School =

The school was established after the Civil War.{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=87-iWEE3PwMC&dq=Gum+Springs+School+virginia&pg=PA121|title=Sarah Johnson's Mount Vernon: The Forgotten History of an American Shrine|isbn=9781429931212|last1=Casper|first1=Scott E.|date=20 January 2009|publisher=Farrar, Straus and Giroux }}

= Bethlehem Baptist Church =

File:Gum Springs - Bethlehem Baptist Church.jpg

The church was established in 1863.{{cite web|url=https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=100708|title=Bethlehem Baptist Church Historical Marker|website=www.hmdb.org}}

= Odd Fellows Hall =

The Pride of Fairfax Lodge #298 building, formerly known as the Mount Vernon Enterprise Lodge No. 3488, is listed on the Fairfax County Inventory of Historic Sites and was listed to the Virginia Landmarks Register in 2021 and the National Register of Historic Places in 2022.{{cite web |url=https://www.dhr.virginia.gov/nominations/pride-of-fairfax-lodge-298-fairfax-county-dhr-no-029-6069/|title=Pride of Fairfax Lodge #298, Fairfax County, DHR No. 029-6069|website=www.dhr.virginia.gov}}

= Joint Stock Club =

In 1890, the Joint Stock Club was formed by five men. This endeavor helped create a safe place for African Americans to obtain land. All land was collaboratively bought, sold and subdivided at cost to other African Americans at a price of $30 an acre.

= Snowden Cemetery =

= Woodland Baptist Church =

=Gum Springs Historical Society and Museum=

Gum Springs Historical Society and Museum{{Cite news |date=May 21, 2009 |title=Taking Pride in 175 Years of History |work=Mount Vernon Gazette |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/realestate/1988/09/10/gum-springs-working-to-balance-past-future/7e996e72-2cc0-4e54-a053-bbaf7f732685/?tid=ss_mail |access-date=March 16, 2022}} is dedicated to preserving the legacy of Gum Springs Community and regularly disseminates information that tells the story of the Community's economic struggle and dedication to building an African-American community.{{Cite news |last=Newton |first=Grace |date=2024-05-26 |title='Your quiet community could be destroyed': Gum Springs residents fight to preserve local history |url=https://wtop.com/fairfax-county/2024/05/your-quiet-community-could-be-destroyed-organizers-to-hold-meeting-to-educate-gum-springs-residents-on-the-importance-of-preserving-their-community/ |access-date=2024-05-28 |work=WTOP News |language=en}} A historical marker is located at the corner of Richmond Highway and Fordson Road ( 38° 44.909′ N, 77° 4.965′ W).{{cite web |title=E 94 Gum Springs Historical Marker |url=https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=952 |access-date=March 16, 2022 |website=Historical Marker Database}}

Notable people

West Ford
Saunders B. Moon
Annie M. (Dandridge) Smith
Reverend Samuel K. Taylor