• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Open YEAR ROUND daily 10-5. Purchase a daily pass OR a membership today!
Tours to resume April 2021.

 

Oatlands

Historic House and Gardens

Quick LinksQuick Links
  • Calendar
  • Maps
  • Social Media
  • Gift Shop
  • Art Gallery
  • Cart
  • Contact Us
  • Our Partners
  • Donate
MENUMENU
  • Admissions & Tours
        • Grounds Pass

        • Book a Tour

        • Photography Passes

        • Multi-use Trails

  • History & Preservation
        • History: Then & Now

        • Reclaim Your Story

        • Education

  • Events
        • Art Classes & Gallery

        • Dance Lessons

        • Afternoon Tea

  • Memberships
  • Weddings
  • Accommodations

Martin VanBuren Buchanan of Gleedsville, Virginia

Martin VanBuren Buchanan

Martin VanBuren Buchanan was born in Gleedsville, Virginia between 1842 and 1845. Located outside of Leesburg, Gleedsville is northeast of Oatlands through fields and wooded areas. Martin’s father was Robert Buchanan, an enslaved man at Oatlands, while his mother, Mahala Jackson, was a free woman.  By Virginia laws of the day, Martin’s status in life followed that of his mother, and so he was born free.

In his young life, Martin was employed at Oatlands with his father, but he left in 1863.

It was as a free man that Martin enlisted in the Union Army’s newly formed 2nd Infantry U.S. Colored Troops, Company G when he was around 21 years old.  Attached to the District of Key West in Florida, this unit was eventually sent to the Gulf Coast area and saw duty in Louisiana and Mississippi as well as Florida.

The risk taken in volunteering for service was great. Martin and those he served with, faced possible execution if captured by Confederate forces. They also received about 30% less than their white counterparts, and were in some cases made to pay for a uniform “allowance” and worked with substandard equipment and training.

Nonetheless, Martin VanBuren Buchanan and some 180,000 other Black men risked everything to fight for freedom on the side of the Union. After the War, Martin returned to Virginia, and to Oatlands where he and his father, worked together once again, this time both as free men. In Gleedsville, where he helped construct the Mount Olive Episcopal Church, Martin married Amelia Gleed, and raised a family. 

Today and everyday, we honor Martin VanBuren Buchanan and all those who serve our country.

Born free, though his father was enslaved at Oatlands, Martin Van Buren Buchanan served in the Union army.
Though his father was enslaved at Oatlands, Martin VanBuren Buchanan’s mother was free, and therefore her child was born free.

Thank you to Ellen Young for guest writing this blog.

Primary Sidebar

Search Oatlands Originals

Tags

2nd Armored Division 4th of July Sweetheart Sunset Celebration American Navy Basil Turner Charles Morris Charlotte Haxall Noland Constitution dance classes at oatlands dance classes in leesburg Dance King Studios dance night date night date night events Edith Eustis engagement Enslaved Eustis Foxcroft garden General George Patton Hell on Wheels July 4th letters Levi P. Morton love Margaret Finley Morton Morton Eustis National Gallery of Art night out oatlands dance night Red Cross school Silver Star snake Sweetheart Dance sweetheart sunset picnic Theodore Roosevelt Unitarian Universalist Church of Loudoun (UUCL) Virginia History volunteer Volunteer at Oatlands wedding World War II WWII

Watch Videos

Footer

V I S I T   O A T L A N D S

Garden & Grounds open 10:00 am – 5:00 pm daily. Purchase tickets here.

Guided Tours by appointment.

Last tour at 3:00 p.m.

20850 Oatlands Plantation Lane
Leesburg, VA 20175
Tel: 703-727-0670

Contact Us
About Us
Our Partners
Volunteer
Employment
News
Media
Credits
Privacy Policy

Follow us!

youtube logo link

Copyright © 2021 · Oatlands Historic House and Gardens · Log in · Site Design | Relic CC