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Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge |
History and myth run deep in the channels of The Great Dismal Swamp. It is famous as a place of refuge for runaway slaves – known as maroons, as an Underground Railroad site, and the failed land speculation of George Washington and the Dismal Swamp Land Company. The Dismal Swamp with its impenetrable undergrowth, and submerged twisted roots proved to be an ideal hiding place for run-away slaves and people wishing to live in hiding.
Great Dismal Swamp
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Osman
According to legend Osman, a black man living in the Dismal Swamp protected runaway slaves. After struggling through undergrowth David Hunder Strother was startled to catch sight of Osman. The hastily drawn sketch inspired Harriet Beecher Stowe’s novel
Dred: A Tale of the Great Dismal Swamp. 
Jericho Ditch1330 White Marsh Road
Open to public. Parking. Historic Marker: “Jericho Ditch, 9 miles long was dug by slave labor in early 1800's to enable the Dismal Swamp Land Company to remove the timber, to drain lowland and provide access to Lake Drummond.” |
Additional Civil War-related Sites
The sites below are not official sites on the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom
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Somerton Friends
5239 Quaker Drive
Parking Historic Marker: “George Fox, founder of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), visited this area in 1672 during a missionary journey to Virginia and North Carolina. His visit encouraged Friends who had settled nearby and led to the organization of Somerton Friends Meeting. Members conducted worship in private homes and later built a meetinghouse three miles southwest of here. The Somerton meetinghouse, along with a nearby school for African Americans, was burned in 1866. The congregation constructed its current building on the same site in 1869. Somerton is the oldest active Quaker meeting in Virginia.” |
The Contraband Camp Kingsboro Neighborhood Area | No parking
The settlement known as “the Contraband Camp”, begun soon after the Union occupation of Suffolk in May 1862. Within a year, the population of the camp was estimated to be more than 2,000 escaped/free slaves. The established camp consisted of laid out streets, temporary homes and schools constructed out of surrounding materials such as pine and other growths of timber.
By Kermit Hobbs: In this area there once stood a settlement of escaped and freed slaves who came to Suffolk to live under the protection of Union forces who occupied the town in 1862 and 1863. Here, many would find employment in construction of defensive earthworks that were being built around Suffolk. Some volunteered for service in the Union army in the newly formed United States Colored Troops. These people were first known as “contrabands.” This word implied they were nothing more than property, stolen from their owners. However, after the adoption the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863, they were declared to be free men, no longer slaves. Even though the name was not accurate, the area was known as the “Contraband Camp” or sometimes, “Union Town.” During the time of the Union occupation, the settlement grew to an estimated population of more than two thousand. The dwellings were laid out in streets and featured schools and a church, all built of whatever materials the inhabitants could find. One eyewitness stated that “They proved themselves quite expert in building their temporary homes, riving out material for their construction from pine and other growths of timber in the surroundings. Schools were established for the children, and the activities of a well ordered community were set in motion.” After the Union troops left Suffolk in July, 1863, the inhabitants moved on with the army, leaving the camp deserted. 
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Riddick's Folly House Museum
While Mills Riddick’s contemporaries may have mocked his Greek Revival home when it was built in 1837,
the house now stands as a beautiful reminder of the past. The impressive structure is situated on North Main Street and features striking architectural details. The five frieze band windows across the front of the house are rarely seen in eastern Virginia. The front of the mansion is bricked in Flemish bond, and double chimneys rise from both ends of the stately historic landmark. Slender columns of the Greek Revival period frame the main entrance. The interior showcases intricately carved moldings and elaborate ceiling medallions throughout the house. Riddick’s Folly has four floors, 21 rooms, and 16 fireplaces. All four floors are open to the public. The building features elegantly furnished double parlors, a gentlemen’s library, and adult and children’s bedchambers. Also open are the laundry and dining rooms, and our newest restoration project, the kitchen. Registered with the Virginia Historic Landmarks Commission and the National Register of Historic Places. During the Civil War, Riddick’s Folly served as headquarters for the Union Army. Guided tours are available during Riddick’s Folly’s normal operating hours. Group tours are also available; please contact the museum in advance. Visitors should plan to spend an hour to an hour and a half at Riddick’s Folly. |
In more detail . . .
In early 1837 a fire ravaged dozens of homes and outbuildings at the north end of Main Street in Suffolk. Out of the ashes of that fire Mr. Mills Riddick built their home that is known today as Riddick’s Folly. Mills Riddick was a member of a large and prominent family in Suffolk and Nansemond County. He was the grandson of Revolutionary War hero Col. Willis S. Riddick and was a captain of cavalry during the War of 1812. In 1819 and 1829 he served as a member of the Virginia House of Delegates, representing Suffolk and Nansemond County. After the death of Mills Riddick, in 1844, his son Nathaniel became head of the household and lived here with his wife, Missouri, and their five children until the Civil War. During the Union occupation of Suffolk the house served as headquarters of Major General John J. Peck and his staff of Union Army officers. Penciled messages left on the walls by Union and Confederate soldiers are still legible today. When the family returned 3 years later, they found their home stripped of most of their possessions.Riddick descendents continued to live in the home until 1967 when the house and grounds were sold to Nansemond County for use as office space. In 1977, Riddick’s Folly was established as a facility for cultural events in Suffolk. n 1988 and 1989 the house underwent an extensive privately funded restoration and became Suffolk’s only house museum and is continually being enhanced by the acquisition of period furnishings, ongoing research, and further restoration. |