Photo courtesy of City of Alexandria
Freedom House is being restored in Alexandria.
Let Freedom House ring! Join a literary fundraiser Sunday, July 20, from 1-3 p.m. at historic Morrison House, 116 S. Alfred Street, to raise funds for the Freedom House restoration through the sale of “Spite House,” the new Old Town Loves Mystery by local author John Adam Wasowicz.
He’ll be joined by:
• Gretchen Bulova, director of Historic Alexandria
• Acclaimed local actor William T. Newman Jr.
• WETA Classical host Nicole Lacroix.
Also joining will be Old Town Crier Ben Fiore-Walker and Spite House owner Brendan O’Leary.
It’s a free event. But, if you purchase a book, Wasowicz will donate a percentage to the Freedom House restoration project.
Join Sunday's event for community, storytelling, and fun.
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/let-freedom-house-ring-a-literary-fundraiser-tickets-1396834211729
Photo courtesy of City of Alexandria
Freedom House Museum
The Freedom House Museum is what remains of a large complex dedicated to trafficking thousands of Black men, women, and children from 1828 - 1861. Slavery, race-based laws, and racial terror erased and diminished African American history and contributions from the national narrative. This Museum seeks to reframe white supremacist history.
This Museum honors the lives and experiences of the enslaved and free Black people who lived in and were trafficked through Alexandria. We invite you to visit the museum to learn, reflect, and advocate for change.
The Office of Historic Alexandria is rehabilitating the exterior of the Freedom House Museum, following extensive historic research and stakeholder engagement.
The exterior renovation of the ca 1812 Federal style townhouse at 1315 Duke St. was begun in June 2024 by Oak Grove Restoration following extensive historic research and stakeholder engagement. The overall goals for the building rehabilitation included stabilizing the fragile structure and returning the ca 1905 Second Empire Victorian style front façade to its appearance during the period of significance (1828-1861).
Specific restoration elements included removal of portions of the fourth floor; brick repointing; laboratory paint analysis; woodwork, window, and siding rehabilitation; chimney stabilization, and water intrusion mitigation.
These two photos illustrate the appearance of the front façade of the building (on Duke Street) during the Civil War when the building was being used by the Union army as a jail. Note the original character-defining side-gable slate roof, the limewashed side walls without windows, the painted front façade (including the Price Birch & Co sign), a second set of entrance doors and the smaller 12 over 12 sash windows with shutters below painted brick jack arches. Enlargement of these and other high-resolution period images have enabled staff to identify building materials and the original sizes and locations of doors, windows, the side-gable roof and chimneys.
Photos courtesy of City of Alexandria
These two photos illustrate the appearance of the front façade of the building (on Duke Street) during the Civil War when the building was being used by the Union army as a jail.
Scaffolding was installed on the full height of the building exterior to allow craftsmen to safely restore masonry, windows, siding and the new roof and to protect pedestrians on the sidewalk below during construction. Many thanks to the adjacent neighbors who allowed scaffold to be installed on their property to perform these tasks.
