Crowd Gathers To Commemorate The Role Of Loudoun Slaves

Posted: Sunday, July 19, 2015 9:00 am
Updated: 10:37 am, Sun Jul 19, 2015.
Chris Aguilar For Leesburg Today

... The rally was held in remembrance of freed and runaway slaves who fought in the Civil War and served as a petition to county leaders to place a marker on the courthouse grounds in their honor, as well as denote the property’s role in the Underground Railroad that helped countless slaves escape to freedom.

After opening remarks from NAACP Loudoun branch President Phillip E. Thompson and welcoming remarks from Leesburg Mayor Kristen Umstattd, local author and historian Kevin Grigsby gave testimony about the soldiers and slaves who fought in the war.

“Men like Washington Alexander who were snatched away from their loved ones and sold over 1,000 miles away enlisted in the Union Army right after the Union Army came and liberated the slaves on his plantation,” Grigsby said.

He continued, “within only a few short weeks of freedom, he and others were on the battlefield fighting against the battle-tested, hardened Confederate soldiers at the Battle of Milliken’s Bend on June 7, 1863. Yet, many like Alexander would die on the battlefield having experienced freedom for just a few short weeks. But they died in the name of freedom, a freedom they didn’t experience for very long, but a freedom they prayed millions of others would experience” ...

http://www.leesburgtoday.com/news/crowd-gathers-to-commemorate-the-role-of-loudoun-slaves/article_11e4545a-2d9c-11e5-b557-efb36f112465.html