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The Gilmore Family

George Gilmore, born a slave at Montpelier in 1810, was emancipated at the close of the Civil War in 1865. After the defeat of the Confederacy, Gilmore used the skills he acquired during his 50 years of bondage and created his own farm only a mile away from Montpelier. Census records indicate that George and his wife Polly resided on or near the land where the cabin now stands as early as 1870.

Building his cabin in 1873 from the remains of the deserted Confederate Camp just to the north, George Gilmore established a homestead for his wife Polly and their five children. For freedmen, land ownership provided sustenance and shelter for their families and also secured their role as members of the community.

Progressing steadily in economic and social status, George Gilmore was listed as a farmer, rather than a laborer, in the 1880 census that indicates he held control over his own crop production. Cash income was most likely derived from their two older sons’ work as wage laborers. Archaeological discoveries of multiple beads, buttons, and sewing materials under the flooring of the cabin suggest that Polly Gilmore contributed to the family's income as well, as a seamstress. Family oral history also bears this out.

In 1901 George Gilmore bought the 16.1 acres, where his family had lived for the last 30 years, for $560 from Dr. James A. Madison, a great-nephew of President Madison. George Gilmore died a free yeoman farmer at the age of 95 in 1905. He and his wife Polly were buried on the land they owned.

At least three Gilmore generations subsequently occupied the cabin until the 1930's. The one-room addition made by George and Polly Gilmore's son William has since been removed to return the cabin to its original mid-1870's condition.

The transition from slavery to freedom was far from easy. Though Constitutional amendments and other acts of Congress attempted to ease the way for freed men and women, it was only through hard work and determination that a freed family could find security and stability. The Gilmore cabin stands as a legacy to those truly American characteristics.

In 2005 Montpelier restored the Gilmore Cabin to give visitors an opportunity to see the transition from slavery to freedom for African Americans. It stands as the only restored freedman's home in the U.S.