About

The Center for Mason Legacies, led by librarians and departmental faculty, is an interdisciplinary research center established by the University Libraries and the College of Humanities and Social Sciences. Our mission is to preserve and examine the legacy of George Mason IV (1725-1792), his ancestors and heirs, and the plantation economy that shaped our region and nation.

We work with graduates and undergraduates to study the past through research driven by their questions that uses a combination of methods with an emphasis on digital scholarship, storytelling and community history. The notion of critical care—for subjects and practitioners—underlies our novel pedagogical model, which we call Affective Historical Praxis.

CML came into being as the result of a summer group-study project in which five undergraduates worked with three faculty members—Professor Wendi Manuel-Scott and Associate Professor Benedict Carton, both in the School of Integrative Studies, and Associate Professor of History and University Libraries History Librarian George D. Oberle III—to recover the histories of children, women and men enslaved at Mason IV's Gunston Hall plantation. Their project led to the founding of the Center for Mason Legacies and creation of the Enslaved People of George Mason Memorial, dedicated in 2022 to contextualize the campus's existing statue of George Mason, the man.

 

Landscape image, with statue of man (George Mason) at center, perhaps 60' away, seen from the rear in Revolutionary era dress with books at his right hand, on low brick pedestal that is catching the sunlight. The statue's image is framed at either side by the somewhat blurry cut-out of, nearer the camera, forged metal silhouettes of enslaved child Penny, holding a teapot, on left, and a wall or door at right.

We have kept the name and the statue. But we have put them to work, as educational tools to open a wider discussion and understanding of the full duality of George Mason’s nature. He was the author of some of the most radically progressive ideals in modern human history, which he embodied in the Virginia Declaration of Rights. He was also a slaveholder who could not live up to his own ideals ... As the Enslaved People of George Mason Memorial so powerfully illustrates, our namesake is the very embodiment of the duality of America, whose ideals have served as a beacon to humanity for centuries, but whose actual example has at times fallen far short of those ideals.

—George Mason University President Gregory Washington, excerpted from "What does it mean to be a Patriot?" July 1, 2020

Mission Statement

Our mission is to use the legacy of George Mason – the man, the family, and the institution – to challenge established historical narratives and help comprehend the lasting effects of racism on our present. This work is vital for understanding how racism is ingrained within society, hidden by seemingly unbiased academic practices. Our pedagogical approach teaches students that this work of uncovering not only should but can take place, training them in novel methodologies that make it possible. Such work improves society while also enhancing students’ own civic engagement. Celebrating community, diverse voices, local memory, individualized history, personal.

To accomplish this, we must understand that the ghosts of the past haunt the places we work, live, and learn. We teach students to critically evaluate sources with the understanding that no collection and recording of information is neutral. This analysis is sharpened by acknowledging that racism and other legacies of oppression are part of America’s paradox. 

We employ three models to help students critically engage with evidence to expose neglected histories in our region.

  • Affective Historical Praxis
    • Critical care for both students and subjects
    • Transdisciplinary melding of theoretical methods, tools, and approaches
    • Teaching a “people first” approach to digital and archival methods
    • Producing work in accessible formats for dissemination, community engagement, and advocacy 
  • Building History with the Community
    • Amplifying historically marginalized voices and lived experiences in ways that disrupt established narratives
    • Broadening the archive to encompass local memory and collections
    • Opening access to archives through digitization and interpretative storytelling
  • Forging New Connections
    • Linking local and regional histories to academic scholarship
    • Connecting classroom, campus, and community
    • Encouraging collaborative research
    • Opening historical publishing to varied scholarly and creative disciplines and a wider community of contributors