

#NORTHERN VIRGINIA DC BLUE SPHERES ART FREE#
Washington Street) pays homage to the free Black people interred on its grounds. The awe-inspiring Contrabands and Freedmen Cemetery Memorial (1001 S. Using harrowing video narratives and educational exhibits, the museum commemorates Northrup and other men, women, and children sold into domestic slavery.īetween 18, the Contrabands and Freedmen Cemetery served as the burial place for about 1,800 African Americans who fled to Union-occupied Alexandria to escape from slavery.
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As depicted in the movie 12 Years a Slave, Solomon Northup was one of the freemen deceived, kidnapped, and forced into slavery, and he probably passed through this site. Henry Louis Bailey-a former slave who was sold through the slave pen to a family in Texas. Ironically, the three-story brick building is now home to the Northern Virginia Urban League, and in 1996 the non-profit organization established Freedom House dedicated to Rev. The domestic slave trade was lucrative and flourished at 1315 Duke Street for more than 30 years under various slave traders.

From 1828 to 1836, the Franklin and Armfield Company - also known as the Alexandria Slave Pen - purchased and transported 1,800 slaves a year to Louisiana and Mississippi.

To experience black history where it happened, however, Alexandria offers several well-preserved sites.įor an intimate look at the city’s stake in slavery, visit Freedom House Museum (1315 Duke Street), the site of a former slave pen. The massive Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture ( 1400 Constitution Avenue, NW) is a must-see. Stop for lunch at Stomping Ground (2309 Mount Vernon Avenue), where co-owner and chef Nicole Jones satisfies tourists and repeat customers with Southern delights like homemade buttermilk biscuits, veggie hash and fried chicken. Union Street), an upscale regional seafood eatery and cocktail bar with blue and white décor that gave us Hamptons’ vibes.Īnother idyllic area in Alexandria is Del Ray, a vibrant, laid-back neighborhood that welcomes visitors with positive messages like “Reject Hate” and “Spread Kindness, Build Community” planted in front of businesses and homes with wrap-around porches and flower gardens. At suppertime, head to Hummingbird (220 S. Owned by millennial college sweethearts Sandra Tran and Gil Welsford, Nicecream offers over 80 yummy rotating flavors, including pineapple upside down cake, wild blueberry, peachy keen and the ever-popular vanilla bean. For a sweet treat, check out Nicecream (726 King Street), a new made-to-order ice cream shop that uses liquid nitrogen and locally sourced ingredients. Amazon is also building two 22-story office towers in a development known as Metropolitan Park, south of PenPlace.In Old Town, chow on creative comfort food (salads, burgers, fish tacos, pasta) and enjoy water views at Virtue Feed & Grain (106 S. The Helix is slated to be built on a site within HQ2 referred to as "PenPlace," which is expected to span roughly 2.8 million square feet of office space. Construction is expected to finish in 2025.Īmazon broke ground on its second headquarters last year. If the plans are approved, Amazon hopes to begin construction on the Helix and other office buildings on the site in 2022. The company announced in 2019 it would halt plans to build its new headquarters in New York after it faced pushback from local activists and City Council leaders.Īmazon and architecture firm NBBJ are presenting plans for the second phase of construction on HQ2 to Arlington County officials on Wednesday. Amazon has said it will create roughly 25,000 jobs over the next decade at HQ2 and in the surrounding area.Īmazon selected Arlington as the site of HQ2, in addition to the Long Island City neighborhood of Queens, New York, as part of a closely watched search for a second headquarters. The new roles span a variety of teams, including Amazon's Alexa and cloud-computing divisions, as well as its growing chain of Fresh grocery stores.

The new hires will more than double Amazon's headcount in Arlington, Virginia, where it currently employs 1,600 workers, according to the company. The updated design plans come as the company says it's looking to fill 1,900 roles in and around its second headquarters.
