Existing comment:
Restoration of the North Slave Quarters:
Although this building remained largely unchanged throughout most of the 19th century, it underwent serious alterations in the years that followed. Recent physical investigations of the slave quarters have revealed many changes made to the buildings over time and uncovered unusual original architectural features and surprising details about the structures. The original design structure was similar to a contemporary split foyer house. Slaves entered through a center door onto a small platform, from which they could reach the ground and second floors.
One of the earliest changes made in the north quarter wall was loss of the "summer" kitchen, which could only be reached from an exterior entrance that was usually locked. The kitchen was filled in perhaps as early as 1854. Grade changes were made around the building, and eventually the north quarter was converted to a one-story structure. Architectural historians have identified the original floor line. On the north wall in front of you, the visible window lintel indicates the location of the basement windows that were filled in many years ago.
Remnants of soot, ash, and grease as well as the broken "key" bricks reveal the location and size of the original kitchen fireplace on the north wall. Historians have used computer-aided investigative techniques and have relied on oral history interviews conducted with former slaves in the 1920s to discover the many secrets of the north quarter. The planned restoration of the two surviving quarters by the National Park Service will provide a vivid backdrop for telling the African American story at Arlington. This project is made possible by the Save America's Treasures program. |