During the Civil War, the Alexandria Contrabands and Freedmen Cemetery was the burial place for approximately 1,700 African Americans who fled to Alexandria to escape bondage. Now, in the sesquicentennial of both the Cemetery and the Civil War, a new memorial honors this site and those who were laid to rest there.
The City of Alexandria will officially dedicate the Contrabands and Freedmen Cemetery Memorial on Saturday, September 6, 2014 at 10 a.m. Several hundred descendants of those buried at the Cemetery have been located, and many will be on hand for the dedication ceremony.
Read more about the dedication and the cemetery here: http://www.visitalexandriava.com/things-to-do/historic-sites-attractions/african-american/
