Backyard History: Sept 2, 1846, When Alexandria Retroceded from DC
A proposal to outlaw slavery in the national capital also influenced the referendum, as Alexandria was then a major slave-trading center with the city’s economy relying heavily on slave labor, both downtown and in the rural agricultural areas that surrounded it.
When the vote was tallied at the courthouse on North Columbus Street, some African Americans sat on the curb and cried, realizing that a return to Virginia governance would end educational opportunities for black schoolchildren in Alexandria. (Source: Office of Historic Alexandria)