Abingdon (Plantation : Va.)

Abingdon (also known as the Alexander-Custis Plantation)[1] was an 18th- and 19th-century plantation that the prominent Alexander, Custis, Stuart, and Hunter families owned. The plantation's site is now located in Arlington County in the U.S. state of Virginia.

Abingdon is known as the birthplace of Eleanor "Nelly" Parke Custis Lewis (March 31, 1779 – July 15, 1852), a granddaughter of Martha Washington and a step-granddaughter of United States President George Washington.[2][3][4] Published accounts have credited Abingdon as being the home to the progenitor of all weeping willows (Salix babylonica) living in the United States.[5] Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, which occupies part of Abingdon's grounds, contains indoor and outdoor displays that commemorate the plantation's history.[6]

In 1778, John Parke Custis (nicknamed "Jacky"), the son of Daniel Parke Custis and Martha Washington and the stepson of George Washington, purchased Abingdon and its 1,000-acre (400 ha) estate from Robert Alexander.[6][9][14][15][16] Custis had been eager to obtain real estate in the Abingdon area on which to raise his family.[16]