Data model
The data in Memorializing the Enslaved in Arlington is organized around a few key kinds of entities that work together to tell each person’s story.
At the center of the model is the Event that affected the life of an enslaved person. An event represents something that happened — a sale, a birth, a census registration, the creation of a memorial, or any other recorded moment in time. Events carry details such as name (Sale of Almira), date (1813-04-21), and type (Sale).
Each event is connected to one or more People. These include the individuals who were enslaved, as well as buyers, sellers, advertisers, or others involved in the event. People records contain information such as a name, life dates, and a status type that helps describe their role or condition — for example, enslaver, enslaved, or freed.
People and Event records often link to Locations. When geographic coordinates are available, they allow the location where events occurred to be mapped and viewed spatially.
Finally, each event is grounded in a Source — the record or document that provides evidence for what happened. Sources may include newspaper advertisements, tax lists, court records, etc. These provide citations, dates, and identifiers that connect the data to archival materials. The actual archival records are not in the database.
Together, these entities — Events, People, Locations, and Sources — document the lives of enslaved individuals through the historical records that describe them.
Example: The Sale of Almira
https://enslavedarl.org/s/memorializing-the-enslaved-in-arlington/item/31871
This example illustrates how one event — the Sale of Almira — connects people, places, and sources through the project’s data model.
The Event, titled Sale of Almira, represents a documented sale involving several individuals.
It records that:
- The enslaver was George Washington Parke Custis, who carried out the sale.
- The person sold was Almira, one of several individuals named in the deed.
- The source for this information is the archival record:
“Deed of Sale of Rachael, Marsolina, and Almira Branham.” (1813) 1814. In Alexandria County Deed Book Y:351. FamilySearch (restricted).
- The location of the event is the Residence of George Washington Parke Custis, where the sale took place.
The same Place — the Residence of George Washington Parke Custis — also connects to both Almira and George Washington Parke Custis. The link between Almira and the Residence of George Washington Parke Custis has been inferred from the other relationships.
Through this model, the Sale of Almira event serves as the hub connecting several people (the enslaver, the person sold, and others mentioned in the deed), one place, and one documentary source. A researcher could start from any of these points — the person, the place, or the deed — and follow the linked data to the same event.
