African American History on the Parkway

Black people have deep histories in the Blue Ridge Mountains. The common narrative of the Appalachian region is too often limited to that of Anglo European settlers, but in fact the region’s history is much more diverse. In addition to the many Native American tribes for whom the Appalachian Mountains are part of their current and ancestral homelands, early non-native settlers included both free and enslaved black people.

Families such as the Saunders family who owned land near Peaks of Otter, Virginia are an example of this diversity. The Saunders had a small, primarily subsistence farm amid the rocky slopes of the region. Despite these deep roots, the early designers of the parkway removed or allowed the homes of black families to deteriorate in some cases, while showcasing and even artificially creating (through the relocation of example farmstead structures) of examples of white settlement.

The parkway was conceived, designed and built during a period of racial segregation, and the original designs for the parkway reflected that period. Separate recreational facilities were planned, and in some cases constructed, for black people.

It is important to learn these stories in order to understand the complete story of the parkway and atmosphere throughout the country’s history. The goal of this page is to tell a more complete story of the past.

 

CCC camp at Rock Castle Gorge, 1938.

NPS photo

Civilian Conservation Camps

The Blue Ridge Parkway is a product of several work programs established by President Roosevelt during the New Deal period, including the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). The CCC is known for their work throughout the country planting trees, constructing recreation areas and building infrastructure that many park users still enjoy today. While there were many private contractors and local workers employed to build the parkway, there were also four CCC camps whose crews worked on roadside cleanup, grading slopes, roadside plantings, and improvement of adjacent fields and forested lands.

CCC camps on the parkway were established in the 1930s, when segregation was commonplace throughout the Jim Crow south. While the founding documents of the CCC committed to create a workforce that was free from racial discrimination, there were many instances in which admittance officials wouldn’t accept applications of black individuals, or they would accept them but place the candidates in a lower priority level for enrollment. In 1933, the unemployment rate for African Americans was double the national average and numbers of African Americans admitted to public works programs were not representative of those in need of assistance, despite the New Deal's mission to help those struggling.

In areas with higher African American enrollment, separate camps were formed for black CCC men, and one of these segregated camps was established on the parkway. Located near Galax, VA, Camp NP-29, was a company of African American men that in December of 1940 had approximately 180 individuals. Not much is known about this camp, but reports state that they did work clearing the area near current day Mabry Mill (Milepost 176).

 

Possible Slave Cemetery

For some black people in the region, their history is tied to slavery. There are many small family or community cemeteries located along the parkway. One such cemetery contains unmarked graves which are believed to belong to enslaved individuals. Located at Milepost 177, the cemetery is associated with the nearby Meadows of Dan Baptist Church. Based on oral histories from the area, these unmarked graves are believed to belong to enslaved persons who worked on the Langhorne property in nearby Meadows of Dan. In 2007, the National Park Service’s Southeast Archeologic Center conducted a survey of this site using ground penetrating radar technology to determine if unmarked graves were present. This technology transmits pulses of radio energy to reflect off of buried objects or features. The resulting data can illustrate patterns of anomalies below the earth’s surface such as unmarked graves.

During the GPR survey nine possible burials were revealed. Of the nine possible graves, five were identified as definite burials and the other four as likely. The area in which the possible burials were found was recorded as the “Burnett Tract Slave Cemetery” and added to the NPS cultural resource database for permanent protection. Markers for some of these graves may have been moved and never reset when the parkway was constructed through this area. With support from community members and volunteers, a marker was placed at the cemetery in 2017 dedicated to the unnamed individuals buried at this location.

 

Additional Resources

The Blue Ridge Parkway Folklife Project was conducted by the American Folklife Center in cooperation with the National Park Service. The survey examined folklife in and around an area of the Blue Ridge Parkway at the Virginia and North Carolina border. The project documented old-time music, tales, hunting and hunting stories, farming, tobacco cultivation and auctions, vernacular architecture, quilting, foodways (including drying, canning, and baking), religious music and beliefs, as well as dance events featuring square dancing and flatfoot dancing. Recordings and photographs document local music (including concerts, fiddlers' contests, and music in homes), community events, church services and baptisms, local radio programs, and interviews with white and African American residents.