With my ongoing study of my neighborhood in Lorton, Va, I will be using the Special Collections & Archives (SCA) at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia. I will enter the SCA webpage through the GMU site. Using the 'Our Collection' button, I can locate information about my neighborhood. There are 12 different titles in the collections area to choose from and locate any type of information for my neighborhood.
One of the most interesting stories I have located in my neighborhood was the situation with the Women's Suffrage in Washington, DC. The Lorton Prison was located in my neighborhood and it was the location where it held many women who were arrested as they protested in Washington, D.C. They were held at the workhouse. In the table of contents, I located the subject "Guide to the League of Women Voters of the Fairfax Area records, 1948 - 2009" and the area "League of Women Voters of the Fairfax Area C0031" will shed a light on this subject. I look forward to continue my search to see how my neighborhood was used in the past.
An additional archive item I am interested in looking at is the "Guide to the Tom Davis papers, 1994 - 2008" which displays the "Memorandum of agreement on the transfer of the Lorton Correctional Complex out of Federal ownership, 2001" This was a huge event in my neighborhood as the correctional facility was closed and turned into a D. C. Workhouse of Arts. I want to be able to read these papers and see if gives me a better insight of why they closed the correctional facility and who purchased the land around it that allowed the construction of many facilities to help the growth of the area.
Looking at all the information from the Special Collections & Archives at George Mason University available for my neighborhood may give me a better look at it's history.
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