Collections : [The George Washington Presidential Library at Mount Vernon]

Anne S. Frobel's father, John Jacob Frobel, was Ann Washington's music teacher, and lived for a short time at Mount Vernon (circa 1804-1806) with Bushrod and Ann Washington. The diary includes reminiscences of her childhood visits to Mount Vernon.Part I of the diary covers the Civil War years, 1861-1865. It constitutes almost 90% of the diary and deals with Anne and her sister Elizabeth's experiences as two female southern sympathizers alone on a farmstead, "Wilton Hill," outside of Alexandria, Va. Frobel describes the occupation of northern Virginia by Union soldiers, as well as their own house and grounds by the Union Army.She reveals both their fears and courage as she describes problems with Union soldier raids, and her attempts to get protection from Union officers. She relates the hazards of travelling to Alexandria, difficulties obtaining passes, and the desertion of slaves to the army. She also relates her own deteriorating relationship with her slaves, and their relationship to the soldiers.Part II of the diary describes a six-year period after the war, 1873-1879, detailing Elizabeth's and her financial hardships and the difficulty of collecting rent from tenants. She also relates their attempts to sell their farm.

Richard Roberts was the son of Richard Roberts (1808-1876). His mother died when he was five years old and the family left New Jersey a few years later. Likely they joined the Quaker community which had established itself in Alexandria in the 1850s, the pacifist Woodlawn Quakers. This group lived near the village of Accotink, a place mentioned several times in Robert's autobiography. According to a history of the Alexandria Quaker Meeting by Martha Claire Catlin, the group befriended and supported the economic independence and land ownership of the free African Americans in the area. The 1870 census shows Richard Robert's family living on real estate valued at $7,250, on a portion of Mount Vernon where they had numerous African American neighbors. Given the descriptions in the text, the Roberts farm may have been part of Washington's "Muddy Hole" or "Dogue Run" property. Roberts provides descriptions of his life there, the estate, and inhabitants, just after the Civil War.

Survey plat map of land contained between Dogue Run and Little Hunting Creek, shows the original grant of land between the Spencer family and the Washington family originally granted by Thomas Lord Culpeper in 1674 to Col. John Washington, who arrived in Virginia in 1657 and to Col. Nathaniel Spencer for a grant of 5,000 acres. This land is the future site of Mount Vernon. Survey made for plaintiff Sampson Darrell against defendant Zephaniah Wade. Autograph document signed, 1 page.