About the Book
The first book of its kind, with comprehensive up-to-date details
Historic sites along the Mall, such as the U.S. Capitol building, the White House and the Lincoln Memorial, are explored from an entirely new perspective in this book, with never-before-told stories and statistics about the role of blacks in their creation. This is an iconoclastic guide to Washington, D.C., in that it shines a light on the African Americans who have not traditionally been properly credited for actually building important landmarks in the city. New research by a top Washington journalist brings this information together in a powerful retelling of an important part of our country’s history.
In addition the book includes sections devoted to specific monuments such as the African American Civil War Memorial, the real “Uncle Tom’s cabin,” the Benjamin Banneker Overlook and Frederick Douglass Museum, the Hall of Fame for Caring Americans, and other existing statues, memorials and monuments. It also details the many other places being planned right now to house, for the first time, rich collections of black American history that have not previously been accessible to the public, such as the soon-to-open Smithsonian Institution National Museum of African American History and Culture, and the Martin Luther King, Jr., National Monument, as well as others opening over the next decade. This book will be a source of pride for African Americans who live in or come from the D.C., Maryland, and Virginia area as well as for the 18 million annual African American visitors to our nation’s capital.
Jesse J. Holland is a political journalist who lives in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Washington, D.C. He is the Congressional legal affairs correspondent for the Associated Press, and his stories frequently appear in the New York Times and other major papers. In 2004, Holland became the first African American elected to Congressional Standing Committee of Correspondents, which represents the entire press corps before the Senate and the House of Representatives. A graduate of the University of Mississippi, he is a frequent lecturer at universities and media talk shows across the country.
Table of Contents:
Table of Contents1. Introduction
2. Foreword
3. A Brief History of Washington, D.C.
4. The U.S. Capitol
5. The National Mall
6. Around Washington
7. Maryland
8. Virginia
9. Coming Soon
10. At A Glance
11. Bibliography
Chapter SummariesChapter 1 – Introduction
In the introduction, the author will introduce himself and illustrate the need for this book through personal anecdotes and stories from life in the Washington, D.C. political arena.
Chapter 2 – Foreword
The author expects to have this written by a prominent politician or historian who will extol the need for this book.
Chapter 3 – A Brief History of Washington, D.C.
The first chapter will set up the rest of the book, telling the history of the District of Columbia and the African American participation in the creation of the nation’s capital.
Chapter 4 – The U.S. Capitol (Chapter provided)
Chapter 5 – The National Mall
This chapter will take the reader through the rest of the African American contributions on the National Mall with the major sections featuring the White House, the Lincoln Memorial, the Tidal Basin and the Smithsonian Institution museums, as well as a tour of the locations of its now-dismantled slave markets and auction sites.
Chapter 6 – Around Washington
This will be one of the longer chapters in the book, featuring the rest of Washington, D.C.’s major African American tourism sites including lesser known sites like the Mary McCloud Bethune Statue in Lincoln Park (the first African American statue erected in Washington, D.C. and still the only one dedicated to an African American woman) and the Frederick Douglass Museum and Hall of Fame for Caring Americans (Douglass’s first home in Washington, D.C. and the former home of the Smithsonian Institution National Museum of African Art), as well as more famous sites like Douglass’s Cedar Hill home in Anacostia and the Anacostia Museum and Center for African American History and Culture.
Chapter 7 – Maryland
Washington, D.C.’s northeastern neighbor has plenty of African American heritage sites, which will be featured in this chapter. This chapter’s subjects will range from the Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History & Culture in Baltimore to the Alex Haley statue in Annapolis Harbor marking the spot where Kunta Kinte first entered the United States, and from the Harriet Tubman Memorial Gardens in Cambridge to the real “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” in Bethesda.
Chapter 8 – Virginia
Virginia was the nation’s largest slaveholding state, leading to a treasure trove of African American historic sites around the region including Arlington National Cemetery, Mount Vernon, the home of George Washington and his slaves; Colonial Williamsburg with its reenactments of colonial slave life; and Jamestown, where the first African Americans were brought involuntarily to North America.
Chapter 9 – Coming Soon (Chapter provided)
Chapter 10 – At A Glance
This chapter will consist of a spreadsheet-style chart which will give readers the vital information they need to visit the attractions listed in BLACK MEN BUILT THE CAPITOL: address, telephone number, Web site, hours of operation, distance from Washington, D.C.(if applicable).
Chapter 11 – Bibliography
A list of resources used in writing this book, and additional reading material for those interested in knowing more about Washington, D.C.’s African American history.
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.
Review :
About Jesse Holland’s The Invisibles:
‘Jesse J. Holland's riveting book The Invisibles shines a long overdue light on the enslaved men and women who were forced to serve in the nation's seat of executive power—The White House. Not only does Holland reveal this ugly chapter of American history with sharp analysis and insight, he reveals the blatant hypocrisy of the nation's presidents and other leaders in permitting such a system of forcible servitude to exist. More importantly, he brings to life the stories and experiences of this group of nearly forgotten African Americans, who showed remarkable courage and resilient character despite being imprisoned by slavery in the heart of the so-called ‘land of the free.’’--J.D. Dickey, author of Empire of Mud: The Secret History of Washington, DC
“Oney Judge, who dared to flee to freedom from George Washington’s household. Edith Hern Fossett, a chef trained to prepare French delicacies for Thomas Jefferson. Andrew Jackson’s wily jockeys. Jesse J. Holland makes visible the courage, expertise and fortitude of the slaves held by U.S. presidents. Holland’s contribution to a complete history of our complex nation is one worth savoring.”--Donna Bryson, author of It's A Black White Thing
