On Sept. 10, 2015, “Freedmans Village Bridge,” the replacement overpass for Washington Boulevard at Columbia Pike, was dedicated. The naming honor for the 19th century Arlington community of former slaves was approved by the state after a 2008 request from the Arlington County Board.
The new bridge incorporates medallion images of the village, which was established as a model community by federal military officials on the captured property of Confederate General Robert E. Lee’s Custis-Lee estate in 1863. The village, which included housing, schools, a hospital and vocational facilities, was intended to be a temporary stopping point for the former slaves to establish themselves before moving on. Yet the community lasted and even thrived until 1900 when, after decades of trying, the government closed the village, persuading residents to accept payment to leave. Many found homes in other Arlington neighborhoods such as Hall’s Hill and Nauck.
Although “Freedman’s Village” is now commonly spelled with an apostrophe, County preservation staff recommended that the bridge name not include the punctuation as a more accurate rendition of the name from when the community existed.
Read more about the history of Freedman’s Village here and here.