{"product_id":"the-lost-black-communities-of-marion-ransell-dobbins-9781467159043","title":"The Lost Black Communities of Merrifield, the Pines and Williamstown","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAfter the Civil War, Black landownership in Fairfax County increased by leaps and bounds. \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBy the 1870s, retired Union officers were purchasing land that they sold to African Americans like Joshua Ball, Joshua Pearson, Robert Bradley and John Coates. Merrifield, the Pines and Williamstown soon emerged as vibrant communities founded by born-free Blacks, the formerly enslaved and their descendants. These African Americans quickly established farms to provide for their families and engaged in truck farming to stimulate trade. They formed charitable organizations and a church. Unfortunately, from the 1960s through the 1980s, these towns disappeared due to eminent domain practices, modern progress and gentrification. Historian Marion Ransell Dobbins unearths the legacy of these vanished communities.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Marion Ransell Dobbins\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 1467159042\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781467159043\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e History Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 06\/03\/2025\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 160\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback","brand":"Marion Ransell Dobbins","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":46825892610303,"sku":"9781467159043","price":24.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_3fd51f88-8875-45e6-bb7d-f5d982a70cb1.jpg?v=1746073946","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/the-lost-black-communities-of-marion-ransell-dobbins-9781467159043","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}