The Memorial Grove

Historical marker location:

Columbia Island, District of Columbia

( Marker is on George Washington Memorial Parkway, ½ mile South Washington Boulevard, on the right when traveling south.)

Marker installed: 2021

A Living Legacy. Lady Bird Johnson Park.

The District was a major center of the slave trade in the 19th century: Prior to the Civil War, Washington, D.C. was home to one of the largest slave markets in the country. Slaves were bought and sold in public auctions held in the city, and many prominent politicians and businessmen owned slaves.