News Release

New Chatham "Life of a Plantation" Walking Tour

NPS Photo

News Release Date: June 13, 2018

Contact: John Hennessy, 540-693-3200 x4010

New Walking Tour Explores the Life of a Plantation
Saturdays and Sundays, 11:00 a.m.

 
FREDERICKSBURG, VA: This summer, the National Park Service is pleased to announce new weekend tours at Chatham—a 1771 plantation on Stafford Heights, overlooking the Rappahannock River and Fredericksburg. The program, “Life of a Plantation: War, Freedom and Change”, is a 45-minute guided walking tour of the gardens and grounds at Chatham. Visitors are invited to join these tours every Saturday and Sunday at 11:00 a.m. throughout the 2018 summer season.
 
These programs are designed to both look at Chatham through the eyes of those who lived there (both enslaved and free) and to understand the site in the wider context of American history. Over the course of two centuries, Chatham witnessed tumultuous and even violent transformations of life and society in Fredericksburg and beyond. The tour will use personal stories and various features still visible on the landscape to explore the experience of Chatham and its people, including topics like the Civil War, slavery, life on the plantation, and more.
 
Chatham has enjoyed a rising number of visitors, with more than a 30% increase in the last five years.  This formal program will offer new and returning guests with a new way to explore and enjoy this site. For questions or more information about this new tour, visitwww.nps.gov/frsp/planyourvisit.