Chinquapin Village or Chinquapin Village War Housing Project was a United States Military housing development located on King Street in Alexandria, Virginia.

History

edit

Built in 1941 by the United States Military, the village housed white workers from Alexandria's nearby torpedo factory.[1][2][3] Cameron Valley, another military housing development, also housed white war workers.[4] Ramsay Houses, located on North Patrick Street in Alexandria, housed African American war workers.[3][5]

Chinquapin Village consisted of 150 wooden duplexes that housed 300 families.[6] One, two, and three bedroom units were assigned by lottery based on family size.[7]

The village homes were demolished in 1958.[3]

Today

edit

The Chinquapin Park Recreation Center & Aquatics Facility and a community garden now occupy the land where the village once stood.[8]

References

edit
  1. ^ WETA. "The Torpedo Factory Art Center: Alexandria's World War II Landmark". Boundary Stones: WETA's Washington DC History Blog. Retrieved 2022-07-03.
  2. ^ "A Chinquapin House Historical Marker". www.hmdb.org. Retrieved 2022-07-03.
  3. ^ a b c Kelly, John (2014-09-06). "Damn Alexandria's World War II torpedoes; plus: Khrushchev didn't shop at Giant, but his deputy did". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2022-07-03.
  4. ^ Moon, Krystyn (2016). "The African American Housing Crisis in Alexandria, Virginia, 1930s-1960s". Virginia Magazine of History and Biography. 124 (1).
  5. ^ "The Ramsey Homes: An Example of Early Public Housing in Alexandria". City of Alexandria, VA. Retrieved 2022-07-03.
  6. ^ Kelly, John (2014-08-30). "From 'tin fish' to fine art: the story of Alexandria's Torpedo Factory". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2022-07-03.
  7. ^ "World War II Chinquapin Village - City of Alexandria, VA" (PDF). alexandria.gov.
  8. ^ Allen, Rick (1985-11-21). "Change of Name is Being Debated For Alexandria Recreation Facility". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2022-07-03.
edit