Best Farm Slave Village

The Best Farm Slave Village site is a slave quarter that was associated with L'Hermitage, a plantation established in 1794 by the Vincendières, a family of French planters who came to Maryland from Saint-Domingue (known today as Haiti). By 1800, L'Hermitage was home to 90 enslaved laborers, approximately ten times the number of slaves that would be expected for the size of the plantation. This was the second largest slave population in Frederick County at the time and among the largest in the state of Maryland.

Click on an icon below to learn more about the history of the site, archeology conducted, spatial hierarchy, artifacts recovered, and future plans.

 

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IN THE MEDIA:

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• "Archaeologists Unearth Maryland Slave Village" on NBC Washington (20 August 2010)
• Kojo Nnamdi Show on National Public Radio (9 August 2010)