A Guide to the John Terry Chase Manuscript Papers on "Gum Springs: The Triumph of a Black Community", 1987-1989
John Terry Chase Manuscript Papers on "Gum Springs: The Triumph of a Black Community"
MSS 08-22
The John Terry Chase Manuscript Papers on "Gum Springs: The Triumph of a Black Community",
1987-1989
Extent
.63 linear feet
Creator
Chase, John Terry (1934-2014)
Language
English
Abstract
The John Terry Chase Manuscript Papers on Gum Springs: The Triumph of a Black Community (1990) consists of .63 linear feet
and spans the years 1987-1989 and contains copies of primary and secondary historical documents, author’s notes, and manuscript
drafts. Subjects covered are the Gum Springs neighborhood in Fairfax County, Virginia; Gum Springs’ founder West Ford; the
relationship between Gum Springs and Mount Vernon; African-American history; and race relations.
Virginia Room, Fairfax County Public Library. City of Fairfax Regional Library. John Terry Chase Manuscript Papers on “Gum
Springs: The Triumph of a Black Community”. Box #, Folder #.
Acquisition Information
Unknown
Processing Information
Carol Abrams, 2015 EAD generated by Ross Landis, 2024
John Terry Chase was born on November 7, 1934 in Deerfield, Massachusetts. He graduated from Reed College in 1959 with a BA
in History and later received an MA in History from George Mason University in 1987.
After relocating to Arlington, Virginia, Chase served as a speech writer for the Environmental Protection Agency during the
Carter Administration. He later taught American history at the International School in Bethesda, Maryland from 1989 to 1995.
He authored a number of history books, including "Gum Springs: Triumph of a Black Community" (1990), which was commissioned
by the Heritage Resources Branch of the Fairfax County Office of Comprehensive Planning. The book focused on the dynamics
of community building and history in Gum Springs. The community earned its name from a gum tree on the property that George
Washington’s nephew, Bushrod, willed to freedman West Ford.
Chase also wrote "The Study of American History: Volume 1" (1974) and "Recreation for Urban America" (1979) with the National
Committee for Urban Recreation. In addition, he and his wife Sara Lee Hannum Chase co-edited two anthologies of contemporary
and nature-related poetry: "To Play Man Number One: Poems of Modern Man" (1969) and "The Wind is Round" (1970).
Chase died of a stroke at age 79 on June 1, 2014 at a retirement community in Mitchellville, Maryland.
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