Chinquapin Trek (Historical Marker)

Here follows the inscription written on this roadside historical marker:

Chinquapin Trek
Alexandria Heritage Trail

Travel the Chinquapin Trek
The Chinquapin trek takes you back in time. Interpretive signs discuss the process associated with the formation of Taylor Run and forest succession. Illustration of trees, plants and wildlife assist you in identifying natural resources along the Trek. Archaeological discoveries, historic documents and memories of residents are woven into stories of the past. Close-knit communities of Native Americans, African Americans and World War II Torpedo Factory workers lived in this area. Since 1968, Chinquapin Park has been a place for nature preservation, gardening and recreation.

What is a Chinquapin?
(chĭng´kȧ•pĭn)
English explorers first saw this native American tree more than 400 years ago. The Eastern or Allegheny Chinquapin is a small tree that produces many acorn like nuts encased in prickly husks, similar to American chestnuts. Chinquapin trees once grew abundantly in this area.

1. The Story of the Chinquapin
Nuts from "chechinquamins," as Captain John Smith observed, were boiled by Native Americans for bread and broth. African American children who lived in this area in the early 20th century also collected chinquapin nuts to eat. The chinquapins were remembered in the name of Chinquapin Village Housing Project, which was built here in World War II. Chinquapin Recreation Center and Chinquapin Park continues to preserve the name of this tree.

2. Fun in the Forest
Natural resources in the Taylor Run valley and forest provided many basic needs for Native Americans who once lived in the vicinity. In the first half of the 20th century, children used many of these resources for recreation. Long-time residents remember that the swimming hole was a welcome respite from summer heat. Girls molded clay found along the stream bank into dolls and cookies.

3. Mills and Molasses
Taylor Run and the springs in the area have been sources of drinking water for thousands of years. Water has also had agricultural and commercial purposes. Water was used to power a sugar mill near Taylor Run; a pressing machine crushed sugar cane to extract juice. Refined sugar and molasses were produced by the mill from the sugar juice.

4. Life of a Creek
Alexandria's numerous creeks originate from springs and flow into larger waterways, which eventually run into the Chesapeake Bay. The valleys surrounding these creeks were formed as flowing water cut down through older sediments. Taylor Run and its valley have provided habitat for a diversity of life forms and a multitude of resources for humans over the centuries.

5. A Chinquapin House
Small, frame duplexes were constructed at the beginning of World War II around the circle drive still present in the Park. Each Chinquapin House was assigned by lottery to workers in the Alexandria Naval Torpedo Station and their families. The remains of some of Chinquapin Village can still be seen at the north side of the circle.

6. Listen for Chipmunks
Chipmunks are familiar animals in woodland settings. In the Fall, they can be seen scampering around filling their cheek pouches with seeds and nuts for the times they wake during winter hibernation. Chipmunks build elaborate burrows underground with chambers connected by tunnels. When chipmunks sense danger, they make a loud chirp to warn other and dart into their burrows.

7. World War II Chinquapin Village
The Naval Torpedo Factory attracted thousands of new people looking for jobs during World War II to Alexandria. Chinquapin Village War Housing Project was constructed for Torpedo Factory workers. The 300 families lived in duplexes along courts radiating from the central Chinquapin Circle. Memories of the people who grew up in Chinquapin Village provide the history of this cohesive neighborhood.

8. Look for Lady's Slippers
A rare orchid can still be found growing in the woodlands of the Park. Also called the Moccasin-flower, this native plant has a pouched flower attached to a long stalk. It grows in association with forests undergoing transition from one type of tree to another. They cannot survive in home gardens, since they need a soil fungus found in forests. It is unlawful to pick these flowers.

9. An African American Village
In the early 20th century, the area surrounding Chinquapin Park was a close-knit African American community. Part of this area was called Macedonia. Children attended the Seminary School, located where T.C. Williams High School now stands. After graduating from eighth grade, some students traveled to Washington, D.C. to complete their high school education.

10. A Native American Village
Early hunters probably walked along Taylor Run and through the surrounding woodlands at least 10,000 years ago. Over time, people began to migrate less and live in more settled and larger groups. Four hundred years ago, when the first Europeans arrived, native Virginians lived in villages with longhouses. They grew corn, tobacco, squash and beans and used natural resources to built canoes, make fires, and produce pottery and stone tools.

11. Life of a Forest
The process of succession is occurring in this forest. The evergreen pine forest, which started about 80 years ago after a fire, is giving way to a new forest of broadleaf species. Oak, hickory, maple and beech trees are beginning to reemerge as the old pine trees become susceptible to disease and windfall, allowing more sunlight on the forest floor.

Erected by City of Alexandria, Virginia.