Thoroughfare: A Town Under Siege

Alexandra Johnson, a freed slave, founded the Little Zion Church in Thoroughfare. It was a simple structure that provided community space for residents to come together, to support and uplift each other and pass down a tradition of perseverance in the face of hardship and oppression. That physical space was held together by a cord, a fiber called oakrum. 

Today stands Oakrum Baptist Church, the namesake of that same cord. Frank Washington, the youth director and spokesman for the Coalition to Save Historic Thoroughfare explains, “the binding cord of that little shack was the initial Oakrum Baptist Church and it became the center of our community and that same analogy of that cord binding us together...is the work we're doing in this community.”

Frank and Dulany Washington joined Prince William Conservation Alliance to share their story. Watch the full presentation here or on our YouTube channel. 

The Coalition to Save Historic Thoroughfare is a community-driven effort to protect the homes, the land, and historic community cemeteries from encroaching development. Thoroughfare, located off Route 55 outside Haymarket, was established by freed slaves and Native Americans as a self-sufficient standalone farming community.

Frank Washington retells the impetus for this recent organized effort; his family was grieving the loss of his aunt and in the process to lay her to rest next to her late husband in the community cemetery known as the Peyton Cemetary. One day the access road to the cemetery was locked without further explanation. They were later told no further burials were permitted there despite this being a community cemetery. Another cemetery with an estimated 75-100 gravesites called the Scott Cemetary was plowed under and yet another cemetery, the Allen/Fletcher cemetery, is facing development threat from the adjacent property owner.

These cemeteries are the final resting places of slave, freed slave and Native American ancestors. "They were part of Thoroughfare. They were part of a family and community that survived and worked this land and is now resting in peace here," Frank said as he and Dulany highlighted the importance of their heritage. Growing up in Thoroughfare they were taught self-worth, they were taught that despite the obstacles set for them because of the color of their skin they would always overcome as long as they stand together. Frank continued, "I'm living the dreams of my ancestors. They worked hard to give us the life that we have, which is why we fight for these cemeteries because their death is not in vain. Their struggles were not in vain."

The community continues to seek accountability for the desecration of the Scott Cemetary, to gain access to the Peyton Cemetary, and protect the Allen/Fletcher Cemetary. While that county has shown some support[1], nothing has yet to be resolved.

You can support this effort by contacting the Board of County Supervisors (bocs@pwcgov.org) ask them to protect this region and correct policy loopholes that allowed this to happen in the first place.

Thoroughfare has deep roots in our collective history. Protecting it honors those that made Thoroughfare unique; preserving it allows us to continue to share that heritage for generations to come. "“Preserving our history, preserving the legacy of our ancestors, our home, our land, our cemeteries...there's no more a fitting word than Oakrum right now because it signifies a bond that ties us together as we move forward in solidifying our place in history.”

¹On May 18, the Board of County Supervisors “committed to allocate $765,000 for Fiscal Year 2022 for historic preservation, historical research and public interpretation in the communities of Thoroughfare and The Settlement and other historic communities in the County (source).”