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Parker-Gibson Blacksmith Shop (Site)

GPS Coordinates: 38.8380438, -77.2464017
Closest Address: 8712 Little River Turnpike, Fairfax, VA 22031

Parker-Gibson Blacksmith Shop (Site)

These coordinates mark the approximate location of the shop. No visible remains exist.


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Here follows an excerpt from the Braddock Heritage website:

Moses Parker, a former slave who purchased his freedom, opened a blacksmith shop on Little River Turnpike with his partner, former slave, Horace Gibson. Gibson and Parker moved to Fairfax from Culpeper, purchasing five acres of land each near the intersection of Guinea Road and Little River Turnpike.

Blacksmith Shop, circa 1890:
They served travelers between Alexandria and points west. By 1878, the Gibsons and Parkers owned 400 acres of land that formed Ilda, a community of shops and a church likely named after Matilda Gibson Parker, daughter of Horace and daughter-in-law of Moses. In this photo, Matilda Gibson Parker stands in the center.

Source:
Courtesy of the family of Hareem Badil-Abish, from the book Shades of Gray: A Beginning...The Origins and Development of a Black Family in Fairfax, VA by Hareem Badil-Abish

Page Augustus Parker and Matilda Gibson Parker took over the blacksmith shop founded by Moses Parker, father of Page Augustus, and his partner, Horace Gibson. The blacksmith shop on the corner of Little River Turnpike and today's Prosperity Avenue served travelers between Alexandria and points west. By 1878, the Gibsons and Parkers owned 400 acres of land that formed Ilda, a community of shops and a church probably named after Matilda Gibson Parker.

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Nathaniel Lee

c/o Franconia Museum

6121 Franconia Road

Alexandria, VA 22310

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