Peerless Rockville was thrilled to help cut the ribbon last week at the new Civil War Trails site at North Washington Street and Wood Lane in Rockville to honor Zedekiah Thompson. A local formerly enslaved Black man, Thompson self-emancipated and later served in the U.S. Army’s 1st United States Colored Infantry.

The project was led by Rutgers University doctoral student Hugh Goffinet with research support from Peerless Rockville, Montgomery History, and Rockville’s Historic Preservation Division. Mr. Goffinet first visited Peerless Rockville’s archives to do research when he was a middle school student in Montgomery County Public Schools – we are thrilled to see the outcome of his continued scholarly work. You may have seen him sharing Zedekiah Thompson’s story at our “Maryland’s Glory” event on U.S. Colored Troops from Rockville and Montgomery County.

Civil War Trails, Inc. developed and installed the signage with backing from the Maryland Office of Tourism Development.

Image: Hugh Goffinet with the sign.