Black Men Built the Capitol: Discovering African-American History In and Around Washington, D.C. [Paperback]

Jesse J. Holland (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 2007

Millions of people visit the National Mall, the White House, and the U.S.
Capitol each year. If they only hear the standard story, a big question remains:
“Where’s the black history?”

Packed with new information and archival photos, Black Men Built the Capitol
answers this question. In this thoroughly researched yet completely accessible volume, Washington insider and political journalist Jesse J. Holland shines a light
on the region’s African-American achievements, recounting little-known stories
and verifying rumors, such as:

•   Enslaved black men built the Capitol, White House, and other important Washington structures.
•   Philip Reid, a thirty-nine-year-old slave from South Carolina, cast and helped save the model of the Statue of Freedom that sits atop the Capitol Dome.
•   The National Mall sits on the former site of the city’s most bustling slave market.
•   The grounds that are now Arlington National Cemetery were, from 1863 to
1888, a self-sustaining village for former slaves called the Freedman’s Village.

 Included are hundreds of places in the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia that illuminate “the rest of the story” for Washington residents and visitors alike.

--This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Millions of people visit the National Mall, the White House, and the U.S.
Capitol each year. If they only hear the standard story, a big question remains:
“Where’s the black history?”

 

Packed with new information and archival photos, Black Men Built the Capitol
answers this question. In this thoroughly researched yet completely accessible volume, Washington insider and political journalist Jesse J. Holland shines a light
on the region’s African-American achievements, recounting little-known stories
and verifying rumors, such as:

•   Enslaved black men built the Capitol, White House, and other important 

    Washington structures.

•   Philip Reid, a thirty-nine-year-old slave from South Carolina, cast and helped
save the model of the Statue of Freedom that sits atop the Capitol Dome.

•   The National Mall sits on the former site of the city’s most bustling slave market.

•   The grounds that are now Arlington National Cemetery were, from 1863 to
1888, a self-sustaining village for former slaves called the Freedman’s Village.

 

Included are hundreds of places in the District of Columbia, Maryland, and

Virginia that illuminate “the rest of the story” for Washington residents and visitors

alike.

About the Author

Jesse Holland is an Associated Press reporter covering Congress and is extraordinarly well placed among Washington's black power elite--the political, legal, academic, and media communities. He took a year's sabbatical from the AP to conduct never-before-done research into the topics covered in this book.

Product Details

• Paperback: 216 pages
• Publisher: Globe Pequot; 1st edition (September 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0762745363
• ISBN-13: 978-0762745364
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.3 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #178,002 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #55 in Books > Crafts, Hobbies & Home > Antiques & Collectibles > Americana

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating Read--Both as Guidebook and as American History, February 29, 2008

By 

R. Morris "Rob & Matt Morris" (Idaho Falls, ID USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Black Men Built the Capitol: Discovering African-American History In and Around Washington, D.C. (Paperback)

I enjoyed this book and learned a lot about Washington, DC that I had never known before. Mr. Holland writes with a light, easy-to-read style but his content is anything but light. Holland moved to DC only to discover that histories made little mention of the African-American contributions to our nation's capital. So he set out to change that, and this book is the result.
Each page uncovers new facts about how 'black men built the capitol', as well as the 'capital'. What makes this an indispensable guidebook is that Holland starts each section with the standard history of an area or landmark and then gives the reader the 'rest of the story', adding the African-American perspective. If you are looking for a book to teach you about DC, a fascinating city by any standard, this is a good one. If you are looking for a book to learn about DC from an African-American perspective, this is a great one.

I lived in DC for nine years, and thought I knew it well. Jesse Holland showed me, a white American who has a degree in history, just how little I actually knew.

Valuable, entertaining, and should be in every history classroom in the DC area.

Illustrated with maps and photos, including a section of color photos.

Rob Morris, author of Untold Valor: Forgotten Stories of American Bomber Crewmen Over Europe in World War Two.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Learned Something New on Every Page, October 15, 2007

By 

Caroline B. (Washington, DC) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Black Men Built the Capitol: Discovering African-American History In and Around Washington, D.C. (Paperback)

As a resident of Washington, DC, and one who has visited many of the attractions highlighted in Black Men Built the Capitol, I was amazed by all the new information I gleaned from this book. I learned something new on every page! I am a children's book author who loves history and a former journalist. I found it nothing but pure joy to read this book and discover so much more about black contributions to American and world history. Jesse Holland did his homework, and he did it well. Every American home and every American classroom, from elementary school to college, ought to have this book.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Black men built the capitol, September 23, 2007

By 

Ms T. "Ms. T." (Oxford, MS USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Black Men Built the Capitol: Discovering African-American History In and Around Washington, D.C. (Paperback)

This historial book about the accomplishments of African-Americans in the building of this nation reads more as a novel than a historical book. It gives interesting facts about African American history not only in the era of the building of Washington D.C. but of this nation in a whole. As the author, Jesse Holland states, the nation's history is incomplete without the mention of the African-American contributions. The book covers the Washington D.C. area and it points out the many African-American historial places and facts in D.C. that aren't on the regular tours.