Just over three weeks before the 2002 elections, in which 10 women will be vying for various governorships, the ghosts of the Lorton Women's Workhouse have already cast their ballots. They did that 85 years ago.
The linkage between the ratification of the 19th amendment to the U.S Constitution and the Lorton Women's Workhouse, at the former site of the District of Columbia Correctional Facility at Lorton, is the underlying theme of the Lorton Arts Foundation's proposal to establish an arts center within the walls of the detention area. If the past is prologue, it will happen.
A testament to that tenacity and dedication was evident at the recent Lobsterfest of Mount Vernon District Supervisor Gerald W. Hyland. The foundation was the only organization, with a proposal for the former prison site, to be represented at his annual fund- raiser.
Organized in October 2001, as a Virginia non-profit corporation, the Lorton Arts Foundation, Inc., stated its mission as, "to promote and support the arts in Lorton, Fairfax and neighboring counties, and the Commonwealth of Virginia. A primary goal of that mission is to preserve, renovate, and reuse the Lorton Complex's Workhouse facilities as a unique and interesting arts campus."
THE HISTORY PART is probably the most impelling of the rationales. The Women's Workhouse long ago served as a "platform" that eventually changed the political landscape of the nation much as the redevelopment of the prison site proposes to change the physical and aesthetic landscape of southeastern Fairfax County.
As described by Irma A. Clifton, president of the Foundation's Board of Directors, in her treatise, "The Woman's Workhouse: A Part of Lorton's History That Affected A Nation," few names and locations associated with the suffragist movement "are more infamous than the Women's Workhouse in Lorton."
It was here that the suffragists were imprisoned for protesting outside the White House in 1917. It was here that they endured conditions usually associated with the worst POW camps of World War II. It was from here that their cause ignited a national coalition, due to the inhumane conditions to which they had been subjected, which brought forth their first participation in a national election, November 1920.
Now, 85 years later, it's The Women's Workhouse that is out in front again. This time it is pointing the way to enhance the benefits of the arts in broadening the perspective of the electorate not in the electoral process but in the process of life itself.
As stated in the proposal to the Board of Supervisors, "In order to fulfill this vision ... the Foundation proposes to lease the 41.4 acre Workhouse property for $1 per year under a long-term 99-year lease with subsequent renewals...The Foundation will raise the funds necessary for construction, promotion and operation of the new Workhouse..."
Clifton said, "I would like the county attorney and Board of Supervisors to approve our proposal as soon as possible. If they act by the end of the year we can raise funds and start by next summer. It's all going to hinge on the county's decision."
She also noted, "We are meeting with individual county supervisors to answer any questions they might have. We are also meeting with Prince William County supervisors."
AT THE PRESENT TIME a task force has been formed to evaluate the potential uses for the entire Lorton complex. It is composed of persons appointed by the individual supervisors. Each supervisor has one appointment, except for Hyland, as vice chairman, and Katherine K. Hanley, as chairman, who each have two for a total of 12 members.
"I'm encouraging approval and have asked the Board to move this ahead of the overall review by the Task Force," Hyland said. "It's well ahead of all the other proposals in its planning."
According to Hyland there are 300 buildings remaining on the site.
The 22 which comprised The Women's Workhouse complex account for approximately 70,000 square feet which could be used to house artists, a large events hall, and facilities for small concerts and lively arts performances.
"The task force will help in determining which should be kept and which should be destroyed as well as what uses should be considered for the remaining buildings," he explained.
COST OF DEMOLITION and construction has been estimated at $10 to $12 million, according to Tina Leone, executive director of the Foundation. "We hope to preserve as many building as possible. They are very conducive to artistic work areas," she said.
"We envision the final product as a combination Torpedo Factory, Wolf Trap, cultural center, and museum all wrapped in one. It will be a facility for all types of artists and one that can be enjoyed by the general public as well," Leone said.
"We are encouraging input from everyone. It will be a wonderful thing not only for the new Laurel Hill development but for all of Fairfax County and the surrounding area. If you're interested in any type of art or music we will have it there," she insisted.
The Foundation is planning to fund the initial years of development and operations of the project primarily through grant awards and donations from individuals, agencies, corporations, and other arts organizations and foundations. "We expect to be approved for our 501-c3 status as a non-profit organization by both the federal and state governments shortly. All the paperwork is in," Clifton said.
Total funds required from these various sources is estimated by the foundation to be approximately $9 million for the years 2003 to 2005. They have already received in excess of $100,000 from private donors. The Foundation anticipates the project becoming self-sustaining by the end of 2006.
As stated by Clifton in her essay, "It is without a doubt that the appalling treatment of the suffragists at the Women's Workhouse galvanized public sentiment behind the women's rights movement. As dubious as that honor may be, it is still part of Lorton's history — a short period of time that had a major effect on our nation and our world today."
She and others are hoping that stimulus lives within the walls of the abandoned site to bring about a revitalization of The Women's Workhouse, this time as a place of creativity and joy to displace the ghosts of depravation and despair.