1942 Land Tax Book Colored (Mary E Brooks)
The latest mention of Mary E Brooks was in the 1942 Land Tax Book.
Mary E Brooks' Land
Mary’s property was located in the Mount Vernon District, specifically in Gum Springs. Gum Springs happens to be the oldest African American community in Fairfax County. It was founded in 1833 by West Ford, a former freed slave of George Washington.
The first step in locating Mary Brooks was looking at the earliest tax record of her land. The first mention of Mary Brooks was found in the 1887 non-segregated land tax book. This tax record found that she owned 11 acres in Gum Springs. The latest mention of Mary Brooks was found in the colored section of the 1942 land tax book. It is assumed that she died a few years before this because her land was sold by her children in 1941. There was no record of her death found.
The deed for Mary Brooks land was made on April 26th, 1906. This deed was made 19 years after she received the land. The reasoning for this is unknown but a possibility is that she received this land through a verbal agreement and the deed was written as a formality. This deed was between Mary E Brooks, William Dandridge Smith, his wife Annie M. Smith, John A. Brown, and Elizabeth Gordan. This land belonged to the late Jane Smith.
After finding this information it was essential to investigate William, Annie, and Jane Smith. This information was found in the Virginia Room at the Fairfax County Public Library. Jane Smith (maiden name Ford) was married to Porter Smith, and they were the parents of William Dandridge Smith. Her death was in 1879 where her land was then divided and sold to the remaining Smiths, Mary E Brooks, Elizabeth Gordan, and John Brown. Mary Brooks received 14 ¼ acres.
Mary E Brooks Property Map
This image from the G. M. Hopkins 1878 Atlas of fifteen miles around Washington, including the county of Montgomery, Maryland shows Porter Smiths property.
Fairfax Deed Book U-6, Historic Records Center, Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse
Land Tax Records in Mount Vernon Magisterial District for the Year 1942, Historic Records Center, Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse
Mt. Vernon Dist. No. 3 | Library of Congress. (n.d.). Retrieved November 12, 2023, from https://www.loc.gov/resource/g3850m.gct00186/?sp=46&r=0.078,0.344,1.218,0.595,0
McNally, Keira