Bel Alton can be explored through a range of historical themes: a railroad village, the history of a segregated high school, Georgian architecture, and places connected to 1865. The Bel Alton Historic District was originally known as Cox's Station and is one of the largest and best-preserved railroad villages in Charles County. This variety gives a stay a clear cultural and historical focus. You can tailor your visit to your interests: settlement history, African American educational and social history, architecture, or Civil War history each offer a distinct perspective.
A Railroad Village with an Earlier Name
Cox's Station is the original name of the Bel Alton Historic District and draws attention to its character as a railroad village. The district is recognized as one of the largest and best-preserved railroad villages in Charles County. If you want to understand Bel Alton through its settlement history, this is a clear focus: the emphasis is on the character of a railroad village, rather than a single event. The former name and the current name also offer two different starting points for exploring the town's history.
Bel Alton High School and Its History
Bel Alton High School brings together architectural significance and African American cultural heritage and social history. The school opened in 1938 and closed as a segregated high school in 1966. These two dates frame its history as an educational institution; its status as a segregated school is also an explicit part of this historical context. This sets the subject apart from the railroad village: rather than a type of settlement, the focus here is a school and its significance to African American cultural heritage and social history. Those interested in the history of education will find a distinct focus here.
Architecture and Jesuit History
St. Thomas Manor offers a different architectural point of interest. The two-story brick building has seven bays and was built in the Georgian style. The seven bays describe the layout of the building and help characterize its form. It also has historical significance as a Jesuit residence: St. Thomas Manor is considered the oldest Jesuit residence in the world to have been continuously occupied by that order. Compared with Bel Alton High School, the emphasis is different: at the school, architecture and African American social history go hand in hand, while at St. Thomas Manor, the Georgian style and continuous use by the Jesuit order take center stage.
Rich Hill and the Events of 1865
Rich Hill in Bel Alton is significant both as a site of enslavement and of resistance. A specific episode from 1865 involved John Wilkes Booth and David Herold: after leaving Dr. Samuel Mudd's house, they sought food and shelter at Rich Hill. This incident is one part of the site's history; Rich Hill's significance in the history of enslavement and resistance is another focus. The site's history cannot be reduced to a single episode.
Booth and Herold hid in a pine grove near Bel Alton while waiting for an opportunity to cross the Potomac River into Virginia. This connection to the landscape adds another place and situation to the historical themes: the focus here is on waiting for a chance to cross.
Rich Hill is also included in the Waldorf-to-Popes Creek section of the “John Wilkes Booth: Chasing Lincoln's Assassin” route. The route provides a thematic framework for Rich Hill's history that extends beyond the site itself. If you are interested in these historical connections, Bel Alton can be explored through both the history of individual places and a named route section.
Discover more destinations: Port Tobacco Village, Indian Head, La Plata, and Waldorf.
For the broader travel overview: Charles County.
