New video highlights Gum Springs role in Fairfax County history

Fairfax County has released a new video highlighting the Gum Springs community as part of the county’s 275th anniversary celebration.

Gum Springs, located east of Richmond Highway in the Hybla Valley area, was founded by former slave West Ford in 1833. The video features Ron Chase, the Executive Director of the Gum Springs Historical Society and Museum, who recounts Ford’s story and the role the Gums Spring community played for free blacks and runaway slaves in the pre-Civil War era.

You can learn more about the Gum Springs Museum, which is located at the Gum Springs Community Center, here.