A Former Plantation Begins To Tell A Fuller Story Of Slavery In America

Just outside Charlottesville, Va., the roads lose their markings as they wind through the woods, passing an occasional church, a cemetery and a plantation known as Highland, owned by America's fifth president James Monroe. For the first time in its 225-year history, the site has begun telling the stories of the African-American men and women who were enslaved there, and consulting with their descendants. 

One of those descendants is George Monroe, Jr. As a kid, Monroe, Jr. remembers his father driving these roads to visit relatives who have lived for generations in an area they called Monroetown. On their way, they'd pass Monroe's Highland.

"I used to always say, 'You know what Dad, that's pretty cool, that's our last name,'" recalls George Monroe, Jr. 

His dad wouldn't say anything, but as George got older, he persisted. "Are we linked?" he'd ask. It took years, but his family eventually began talking about it. They were descendants of the 49 men and women who James Monroe once enslaved and profited from at Highland. After emancipation, many kept the Monroe name, acquired land, built houses, and created Monroetown.