Woodlawn Methodist Church (Historical Marker)

Here follows the inscription written on this roadside historical marker:

Woodlawn Methodist Church
African Americans in Woodlawn, four miles southwest of here, established Woodlawn Methodist Episcopal Church ca. 1866. The Woodlawn area, formerly part of George Washington's Mount Vernon estate, was home to African Americans who had been free landowners before the Civil War, people recently emancipated from slavery, and northern Quakers who had arrived In the 1840s. The Methodist church, built on land purchased from Quakers, housed a Freedmen's Bureau school that became a public school by 1871. The congregation established a cemetery and in 1888 built a new sanctuary. When Fort Belvoir expanded during World War II, the church moved here to the historically black community of Gum Springs.

Erected 2017 by Virginia Department of Historic Resources. (Marker Number E-146.)

In January 2014, St. John Baptist Church moved to this building that formerly housed Woodlawn Methodist Church.


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Here follows an excerpt from the Fairfax County African American History Inventory created by the George Mason University Center for Mason Legacies:

In 1866, the first Woodlawn United Methodist church was built on a plot of land adjacent to where the current cemetery exists. The land was donated by a Quaker neighbor, Joseph Cox in response to a request from William Holland. The church was built from local lumber and from additional materials from stables at Fort Myers in Arlington. In 1888 the original church was torn down and a new one constructed on the opposite side of the road. That church remained until the Army purchased the land and the congregation relocated to Gum Springs.

The first 2 structures were located on what is now Fort Belvoir at the intersection of Woodlawn, Gorgas and Meeres Road. In 1941, the land was condemned by the Federal Government for the expansion of the Fort and many members of the Community moved to Gum Springs. They constructed a new church at 7730 Fordson Road Alexandria, VA 22306. The building is still in use, but a new larger facility has been built at 7010 Harrison Ln, Alexandria, VA 22306.


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Here follows an excerpt from "The Dixie Pig" blog written by Senator Scott Surovell in 2013:

Woodlawn United Methodist Church, 1866
7730 Fordson Road, Gum Springs

The end of slavery after the Civil War spawned another African-American church near the Potomac Path—Woodlawn United Methodist Church. It is now also in Gum Springs, but it was originally located north of Woodlawn on land that has since become Fort Belvoir.

There was a cluster of African-American families living along Woodlawn Road in 1865 near the current Fort Belvoir Elementary School and the post commissary. They gathered together to form a church for their community after services drew too many people to fit in someone’s front parlor. A neighboring Quaker, Joseph Cox, gave land for the church to William Holland, a freedman who had followed the Quaker migration to Woodlawn from New Jersey. Founding members built the church using recycled lumber from Fort Myer in Arlington, just as Bethlehem Church had done.

The first church and the cemetery were located across from the current water tower on Woodlawn Road and next to the new Fort Belvoir chapel. In 1888, the congregation built a new structure across the road where the school playground is located now, as well as a school house.

The expansion of Fort Belvoir over the years has enveloped four churches along the Potomac Path, with Woodlawn UMC suffering the greatest deprivation. In 1940, the Army asked the church to relocate, which it did to Gum Springs. No one wanted to move the cemetery, so the Army allowed it to stay. The plot of neat graves and headstones stands alone today, not only in memory of the church’s departed souls, but also as a quiet refuge from the hustle and bustle of the Army. It is reportedly the only active private cemetery on a U.S. military installation and was once featured in “Ripley’s Believe It or Not.”

Woodlawn built the current church in 1941 and it serves about 200 members, according to Marye Elizabeth Thomas, the church historian. “I am one of eight members who are still living who attended the old church,” Ms. Thomas claimed proudly. Her family lived near the former church and cemetery, but like all of the others, was uprooted by the Army. Ms. Thomas’ family moved to Gum Springs, others to Alexandria and Franconia.

Post 9-11 security measures have strained the relationship between the church and Fort Belvoir regarding access to the isolated cemetery for maintenance, family visits, and burials. “The situation is getting better,” Ms. Thomas said, “but only after I went to Gerry Hyland, our county supervisor, and got him to help us. I’m not bashful about calling him for help.”