Structure found in Md. may be linked to man who inspired 'Uncle Tom's Cabin'

Archaeologists have discovered what they think are remains of a barn or blacksmith workshop in North Bethesda that could date to the days of Josiah Henson, a former slave whose autobiography inspired the novel “Uncle Tom’s Cabin.”

Looking for evidence of what slave life in Maryland was like, archaeologists with the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission Montgomery Parks and the PBS program “Time Team America” began exploring the Josiah Henson Special Park on Monday. They found evidence of a buried foundation that may have existed in the late 1700s and early 1800s, when Henson worked on the homestead for landowner Isaac Riley.

The dig could accelerate fact-finding efforts that started in 2006, when Montgomery County bought the historic site from private owners. Since then, it has been open to the public for tours of what was Riley’s home, parts of which date to the early 1800s, and of the grounds where Henson worked. Read more.