Bruin's Slave Jail

Historic human-trafficking site in Virginia

United States historic place

Significant dates

Bruin's Slave Jail
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Virginia Landmarks Register

Bruin's Slave Jail in 2022
38°48′15″N 77°3′32″W / 38.80417°N 77.05889°W / 38.80417; -77.05889
Area	less than one acre
Built	1819
Architectural style	Federal
NRHP reference No.	00000890^[1]
VLR No.	100-0047
Added to NRHP	August 14, 2000
Designated VLR	December 1, 1999^[2]

Bruin's Slave Jail is a two-story brick building in Alexandria, Virginia, from which slave trader Joseph Bruin imprisoned slaves. Bruin's company, called Bruin and Hill, transported enslaved Americans of African descent to slave markets in the Southern United States. At the start of the American Civil War, Bruin was captured and imprisoned in Washington, D.C. His property, including the slave jail, was confiscated by U.S. Marshals and used as the Fairfax County Courthouse until 1865. All that remains today of the entire compound is a two-story brick structure that housed the enslaved people. Bruin's home, kitchen, and wash-house no longer remain.

References

^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
^ "Virginia Landmarks Register". Virginia Department of Historic Resources. Archived from the original on 2013-09-21. Retrieved 2013-05-12.