The Arlington Historical Society and the Black Heritage Museum of Arlington invite you to the unveiling of “Stumbling Stones.” These bronze markers commemorate the lives of the enslaved people who helped build our county and our country and are placed in the sidewalk at the last known site of their enslavement. Memorializing the Enslaved in Arlington’s research has revealed over 2000 enslaved people and identified 1050 by name.
Please join us for a Dedication Ceremony honoring four individuals. We will be honoring them at Woodstock Park.
- Rose, born before 1735
- Solomon, born before 1735
- Sarah, born before 1735
- Lydia, born before 1735
Their Story
Lydia, Sarah, Rose and Solomon were enslaved by Richard Wheeler (1697 -1751) and his wife Rebecca. In the 1730s, the Wheelers operated a farm along the Potomac River near Memorial Bridge that later became a part of the Lee-Custis Estate (Arlington House). By 1750 the Wheelers and their enslaved people were farming land that comprises the present-day area around Old Dominion Drive and Langston Boulevard.
We first learn of Lydia, Sarah, Rose, and Solomon through Richard Wheeler’s will, recorded in 1750, where he bequeathed Lydia and Sarah to his son Drummond Wheeler and Rose and Solomon to his wife Rebecca. He also bequeathed three enslaved women, Jane, Nan, and Bess, to his son-in-law George Simpson and his daughter Susanna Simpson. Lydia, Sarah, Rose, and Solomon eventually became the property of Drummond Wheeler who acquired the Arlington farm upon the death of his mother in 1763. Nan and Bess may have been sold to a neighbor Francis Triplett, Sr and a Bess and Nan are both listed in Triplett’s will recorded in 1757.
After 1750, Lydia disappears from the historical record. The names of Sarah, Solomon, and Rose, however, reappear 32 years later among the nine enslaved people listed on the estate inventory of George Simpson. Filed in 1782, Simpson’s will bequeaths Sarah and Solomon to his son Joseph and Rose to his daughter Mary. Given the passage of 32 years, the odds are against it being the same three individuals Richard Wheeler once enslaved, but perhaps their names were passed to their offspring. Regardless of their actual fate, we know they lived, worked, and served the needs of their enslavers.
Join us as we celebrate and honor Lydia, Sarah, Solomon, and Rose and gain a greater understanding of Arlington’s complicated past. Brief remarks will be offered.
Memorializing the Enslaved in Arlington seeks to shed light upon these early Americans who contributed so much to the economic, social, and cultural development of our county. For more information, please contact Jessica Kaplan from the Arlington Historical Society at ahsedlink@gmail.com.
Learn more about the Memorializing the Enslaved in Arlington project here.
