Bill Text: VA HJR1107 | 2019 | Regular Session | Enrolled
Bill Title: Commending Gum Springs.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Passed) 2019-02-22 - Bill text as passed House and Senate (HJ1107ER) [HJR1107 Detail]
Download: Virginia-2019-HJR1107-Enrolled.html
WHEREAS, Gum Springs, the oldest African American community in Fairfax County, celebrated its 185th anniversary in 2018; and
WHEREAS, Gum Springs, named after a gum tree that once marked the community's location near Mount Vernon, traces its origins to a freeman, West Ford, who was born on the Bushfield Plantation in Westmoreland County circa 1784; and
WHEREAS, West Ford was the son of a female mulatto slave, Venus, who was owned by George Washington's brother, John Washington, and his wife, Hannah; as a young boy, he often served as a personal attendant to George Washington; and
WHEREAS, Hannah Washington decreed in her last will and testament for West Ford to be set free at the age of 21; and
WHEREAS, around 1806, West Ford was granted his freedom and, a few years later, he married Priscella Bell; the couple had four children, William, Daniel, Jane, and Julia, who were educated at Mount Vernon; and
WHEREAS, when Bushrod Washington died, he willed 160 acres of land adjacent to Mount Vernon to West Ford; two years later, West Ford sold the land and purchased 214 acres nearby, which became the black community of Gum Springs; and
WHEREAS, Gum Springs served as a haven for freed and runaway slaves during and after the Civil War; its residents began to build homes and establish their economic independence with the help of the Freedmen's Bureau and the Quaker community; and
WHEREAS, Gum Springs community members farmed the land and established themselves in trades learned while estate slaves; in 1867, the Freedmen's School was established at Bethlehem Baptist Church to educate Gum Springs residents; and
WHEREAS, in 1890, the Reverend Samuel K. Taylor, William Belfield, Lovelace Brown, Hamilton Gray, Robert D. King, Henry Randall, and Nathan Webb formed the Joint Stock Company of Gum Springs and sold lots; and
WHEREAS, Gum Springs continued to grow and thrive over the next century, with its members working in a variety of occupations, raising their families, and serving the community; Gum Springs now has more than 2,500 residents, many of whom are descendants of the original inhabitants; and
WHEREAS, Gum Springs commemorated its 185th anniversary with a festival and parade on community grounds on June 17, 2018; Ada Singletary, the oldest living resident of the community, who still lives on land that has been owned by her family for at least 100 years, was named grand marshal of the parade; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly hereby commend Gum Springs on the occasion of its 185th anniversary; and, be it
RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to the New Gum Springs Civic Association as an expression of the General Assembly's admiration for the community's many contributions to the history and heritage of Fairfax County.
