Tag: Alexandria VA

Roger C. Anderson

Roger C. Anderson
1926 – 1999

Behind the scenes of the Alexandria Gazette Packet’s article on, “He Loved His People and His Community”– dated July 4 – 10, 2019.

Mr. Roger C. Anderson was one of several people who helped spark my interest in African American History. I remembered somewhere around 1985 I took a tour of Alexandria African-American sites with Mr. Anderson and others. I was shocked in learning about the Alexandria’s Slave Pen. I was in my late twenties just finding out for the first time about the Alexandria Slave Pen; that part of history was not taught to me in the Alexandria School System.

Our busy lives sometimes make us forget to thank individuals who have impacted our lives in a positive way. Mr. Anderson was one of those people who impacted so many African American children growing up in Alexandria during segregation and the early years of desegregation. The article in the Alexandria Gazette is to publicly tell the story of the contributions that Mr. Anderson made to his people and to his community.

Read more about “Mr. Roger C. Anderson”– dated June 4-10, 2019 in the Alexandria Gazette Packet on page 9 at
http://connectionarchives.com/PDF/2019/070319/Alexandria.pdf.

“Thank You Dad for a Great Childhood”

Behind the scenes of the Alexandria Gazette Packet’s article on, “Thank You Dad for a Great Childhood”– dated June 6, 2019.

Mr. John L. Taylor’s at the Elks Lodge

Mrs. John Leonard Taylor’s maternal family has been in Alexandria, Virginia since the Civil War. This side of his family is connected to the Alexandria Freedmen Cemetery. On Mr. Taylor’s paternal side of the family, his great-grandparents where from Loudoun, Virginia.

Mr. Taylor is the youngest of four children, Donald, Charlene and Alvin. He was born in 1936 and he lived a great deal of his life in segregated Alexandria. Segregation was a way of life for many African Americans prior to 1965, but Mr. Taylor did not let the condition of segregation stop him from carving out a better life for his family. He was able to have a career at the Washington Metropolitan Transit and retired as a supervisor. Mr. Taylor was able to give his two girls an enjoyable life and he was able to purchase his own house.

Looking back, Mr. Taylor had a good life with his wife Beatrice Cross-Taylor, his daughters, parents and siblings. He was able to carve out a little bit of the American dream.

Check out the article “Thank You Dad for a Great Childhood”– dated June 6, 2019 in the Alexandria Gazette Packet on page 10 at http://connectionarchives.com/PDF/2019/060519/Alexandria.pdf.

Alexandria Gazette Packet’s article – “A Mother’s Unconditional Love”

Carolyn Phillips-McCrae
Foster daughter of Mrs. Jennie Bell-Cantey

Behind the scenes of the Alexandria Gazette Packet’s article on, “A Mother’s Unconditional Love”– dated May 2-8, 2019.

Mrs. Carolyn Phillips-McCrae was extremely lucky that her mother made a decision to hand her over to Mrs. Jennie Settle Travis-Bell Cantey. She had the ability to love so many children like they were her own. It is believed that Mrs. Jennie was not raised by her own mother but whatever her childhood situation was, she impacted the lives of 44-children in a positive way.

Mrs. Carolyn heard numerous stories from Mrs. Jennie “Mama” about Fauquier County, Virginia where Mrs. Carolyn thought that was where Mama was born. Through genealogical research, I found that Mama was born in Rappahannock, Virginia. On her marriage license to her first husband, she stated that she was born in Rappahannock, Virginia. She and her first husband married in Fauquier, VA where he was born.

Check out the article on “A Mother’s Unconditional Love”– dated May 2-8, 2019 in the Alexandria Gazette Packet on page 12 at http://connectionarchives.com/PDF/2019/050119/Alexandria.pdf. Also you can read behind the scene of this article on my blog at http://www.theotheralexandria.com.

Alexandria, VA – Parker-Gray School’s Project

I am looking for people or/and their relatives who attended Alexandria, Virginia’s Parker-Gray School from 1920 – 1965. Please see my flyer for my contact information. Parker-GraySchool flyer3SocialMedia. Thanks.