Uncovering Hidden Histories: A Journey Through Rock Creek Park

From Brae Sullivan, Middle School Humanities teacher: On April 24, our DC History class traded the classroom for the trails to explore a side of Rock Creek Park most people miss. We met up with Ranger Bryan at Peirce Mill for the After Emancipation History Hike, focused on the formerly enslaved individuals who built lives and communities in these woods after the Civil War.

The highlight was visiting a sunny clearing that was once the homestead of Sarah Whitby. It was wild to stand in a spot that looks like just another part of the woods and realize a family actually carved out a life there in the 1870s. Walking from her homesite up to the grand Klingle Mansion really showed the contrast between the different worlds people lived in back then.

It was a great day to get some fresh air and realize that the park is full of deep, local stories right under our feet.