06/14/2026
Honoring the Enslaved at Abingdon (Plantation) House
The Abingdon plantation, also known as the Alexander-Custis Plantation, was an 18th- and 19th-century estate owned by prominent families including the Alexanders, Custises, Stuarts, and Hunters, and was worked by slaves and domesticated animals. The site of the plantation is currently located in Arlington County, Virginia, within the grounds of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.
When John Parke Custis acquired Abingdon from Robert Alexander, he also purchased a 1,100-acre tract of land from Gerrard Alexander. This tract, separate from Abingdon, remained in the Custis family, and G.W.P. Custis later built Arlington House on the land he developed.
In the 60 years leading up to the Civil War, at least 200 enslaved African Americans lived and labored on the estate, with approximately 63 individuals residing there at any given time.
The absence of traditional surnames among enslaved people was a deliberate result of the chattel slavery system, which treated human beings as property rather than citizens. By stripping enslaved individuals of family lineage and property ownership identifiers, the system reinforced their status as property and eroded family structures.
A B I N G D O N H O U S E S L A V E S
A limited number of records document the names of enslaved individuals held at Abingdon, including:
Dick, Bess, Robin, Stice, Nell, Nan, David, Will, Milley, Rose, Solomon, James, Peg (daughter of Moll), Peg (daughter of Bess), F***y, Cook Nan, Cook Beck, Rose, Moll, Amey, Dinah, Ebe, Doll, Old F***y, Nan, Beck, Sall, Sarah, Pat, Naney, Nelly, Amey, Nan, Letts,
Tom Millar, Great Joe, Great Harry, Little Tarry, George, Phill, John Tower, Julius, Charles, Will Flood, Will Twine, Lane, Joe, Lewis, Peter Hardyman, Daniel, John, Terry, George, David, Tom, Mingo,
Beck, Nan, Lydia, Moll, Charlotte, Jenny, Mima, Mima, Patt, Beck, Ally,
Billy, Joshua, Sithey, Ceasar, Morris, Anthony, Jack, Will, Peter, John, David, Joe, Billy, Nelson, James, Sampson, Stephen, Ned, Joe, Bob, Susan, Charlotte, "the youngest daughter of Celia", Joseph, Sandy Watts, Peter, Tobey, Henry, Jackson, Robinson, Charles, Lewis, Martha, Michael, Cecelia, Sandy, Emily, Mary, Hannah, Dinah, Rebeka, Daniel, James, Bushrod, Philip.
In 1998, interpretive panels were installed at the Abingdon plantation site, primarily focusing on the lives of the plantation owners. However, for over a century before the Civil War, enslaved African Americans comprised the majority of the population working at the site.
Through archaeological research and historical investigation, the lives and contributions of these men, women, and children are being recognized and commemorated.
Enslaved individuals at Abingdon performed skilled tasks such as backbreaking labor in the fields, animal care, machinery maintenance, and groundskeeping. Within the main house, duties included childcare, laundry, sewing, cleaning, and food preparation. Their labor facilitated the lives of the plantation owners and contributed to their wealth and power.
Few records documenting the lives of enslaved individuals at Abingdon were created, and even fewer have survived. Many records merely list numbers of enslaved people. Behind each of these numbers lies a life worthy of rediscovery and remembrance.
Dr. Scott Edwin Taylor
****Archival research provided by Dr. Thomas Foster, Howard University
