Presentation by the author, Marian Ransell Dobbins, historian and ethnographer.

Following the Civil War, Black landownership in Fairfax County expanded dramatically.  Merrifield, the Pines and Williamstown emerged as thriving communities established by born-free Blacks, the formerly enslaved and their descendants.  Our speaker will discuss her new book documenting the history of these towns and their eventual loss to eminent domain and gentrification.