A series of events and programs highlighting Alexandria’s local history and African American heritage are scheduled for February and March 2026. The City of Alexandria is offering a four-part “Grown-Up Field Trip” series to mark the 100th anniversary of Black History Month, beginning with an event at the Freedom House Museum on February 20. This series will give adults the chance to engage with objects, primary sources, and discussions focused on African American history in Alexandria.
Other upcoming field trips in this series include visits to the Alexandria Black History Museum, the Alexandria Archaeology Museum, and the city’s Archives and Records Center. Additional information about Black History Month events can be found at alexandriava.gov/BlackHistoryMonth.
Throughout February, student posters celebrating Martin Luther King Jr. are displayed at the Charles Houston Recreation Center as part of an annual exhibition sponsored by the Alexandria Black History Museum.
Several specialty tours are also planned. At Gadsby’s Tavern Museum, visitors can learn how figures like Washington, Lafayette, Jefferson, Madison, and Burr were connected to local history during tours inspired by the musical Hamilton. The Lee-Fendall House Museum offers lantern-lit night tours focusing on its residents from 1785 to 1972 and special programming on women who lived there.
The Alexandria Historical Society is hosting a virtual program titled “How Martha Washington Spent the Revolutionary War” on February 25. Mary V. Thompson will discuss Martha Washington’s experiences during that period: “Most Americans know about George Washington’s life and leadership during the American Revolution. Far fewer are familiar with how his wife, Martha Dandridge Custis Washington, spent those harrowing years,” Thompson says. She adds that her talk will “shed light on her essential but often overlooked role in sustaining the Revolutionary cause.”
Preservation-focused walking tours will explore lost buildings in historic neighborhoods such as The Berg & Parker-Gray. Another tour at Lee-Fendall House highlights enslaved and free African Americans who lived there from 1785–1969.
At the Alexandria Black History Museum on February 28, authors Jeff Gottesfeld and Michelle Y. Green will present their new book about Samuel Wilbert Tucker and his fight for library reading equality in 1939.
Women’s contributions to both revolutionary America and medicine will be explored through lectures at Carlyle House Historic Park and specialty tours at Stabler-Leadbeater Apothecary Museum.
Ongoing exhibitions include one at Fort Ward Museum focusing on Civil War naval history in recognition of the U.S. Navy’s founding anniversary; another exhibit explores epidemics’ impact on Alexandria’s past at Stabler-Leadbeater Apothecary Museum.
Alexandria museums play a key role in interpreting local social and cultural history for residents and visitors alike (https://www.alexandriava.gov). Among these sites is the Alexandria Black History Museum, which documents African American heritage (https://www.alexandriava.gov).
The city continues efforts toward racial equity by incorporating it into policies for fair outcomes across its community (https://www.alexandriava.gov). Its government operates under a council-manager system (https://www.alexandriava.gov), serving residents within defined boundaries as an independent city (https://www.alexandriava.gov).
The Virginia 250 Passport initiative invites families to visit historic destinations statewide—including several museums in Alexandria—offering prizes for participation starting November 2025.
In support of historical preservation research locally, commissions such as the Alexandria Archaeological Commission partner with agencies and residents for archaeological work (https://www.alexandriava.gov).
For more information or accessibility accommodations related to any events or museum visits listed above, contact details are available via alexandriava.gov/Historic.
