Click below to read and view the full story by reporter and guest blogger, Rebecca Burnett.

“I’m more that what they called me.”: Loudon woman traces her family tree to Oatlands Plantation.

By 1860, Oatlands Plantation enslaved 133 people. Through research of her own, Loudoun County resident Ellen Thaxton has discovered several of her family lines take root at Oatlands Plantation. She’s been climbing the roots of her family tree since the fourth grade.

NOTE: Rebecca Burnett is an AP nominated multimedia journalist for WDVM 25. For two years, she’s been covering Northern Virginia’s local news from WDVM’s Chantilly bureau. Before graduating from Virginia Tech with a degree in multimedia journalism, she enjoyed an internship in NBC News’ political unit in Washington, D.C. 

Uncategorized Black History Month Ellen Thaxton Guests Rebecca Burnett