| Quander | |
|---|---|
| Current region | America |
| Earlier spellings | Quandoe Quando Kwando |
| Etymology | Amkwandoh |
| Place of origin | Fante Confederacy |
| Founder | Egya Amkwandoh |
TheQuander family is believed to be the oldest documentedAfrican-American family that has come from African ancestry to present dayAmerica. Historians believe so because they cannot find any records of any other African-American family whose ancestry has been consistently kept and published.
The Quanders are from theFanti tribe of theAkan peoples. Their origins began inGhana, and now the majority resides in eitherMaryland orVirginia/Washington DC[1] and more recently parts ofPennsylvania.[2]
The Quanders originated from theFanti tribe inGhana. A man by the name of Egya Amkwandoh was kidnapped during theAfrican slave trade in the late 17th century and transported to theUnited States.[1][a] According to official slave records, when slave owners asked for his name, he answered “Amkwandoh,” which was misinterpreted as “I am Quando.’ The next few generations of Quanders went by the name Quando rather than Quander.[4] Other variations used include Quandoe and Kwando. The name became recognized as the present day pronunciation “Quander” during the 19th century. Egya Amkwandoh had two sons, who were both taken away from him and split up. One was sent toMaryland and the other sent toVirginia. The first known records of the “Quando” family existing asfree people come from the Maryland side, specifically the family member Henry Quando. A slave owner by the name of Henry Adams fromPort Tobacco, Charles County, Maryland, included the freedom of the Maryland Quandos in his will on October 13, 1684. The Quandos who reside in Virginia are related toGeorge Washington, as well as the ones who remained in slavery up until the death ofMartha Washington.[1]
Where the family's freed members acquired land, Quander Road and later Quander Road Elementary School (now known as Quander School)[5][6] were named after the family. At least one home built along Quander Road has been standing for 100 years.[7]
Nancy Quander and her mother Sukey Bay were amongst the slaves who worked on the grounds of George Washington'sMount Vernon. Nancy Quander worked as a spinner for theWashington family and began her work once she was of age; 13 years old. She worked in a small back room behind the slave quarters.[8] Theslave quarters were two one-story wings, one a female wing and the other male. Even if the slaves were married, they had to sleep separately. The quarters consisted of a working area and sleeping room, both of which had conditions that wereunsanitary in addition to being small, and every room contained afireplace as well.[9]
In his will George Washington stated that he wanted his 124 slaves to be released upon thedeath of his wife,Martha Washington.[10] George Washington died on December 14, 1799, with Martha signing a deed of manumission in December 1800,[11] and the slaves were set free on January 1, 1801.[11] On that date, Nancy Quander being one of the slaves included in Washington'swill, was freed. She returned to histombstone with ten others about 30 years later to pay their respects in what was attributed to their loyalty to Washington, whom they claimed to have been like a father.[12]
The family is heavilyCatholic (despite the early influence of the largelyProtestant orDeist Washingtons), and one of their early communities was named "Chapel Hill" after the Catholic chapel near their homestead.[13] At least one recent reunion was hosted by Incarnation Catholic Church in DC (with a family history stop atSt Mary's inUpper Marlboro,Maryland), and one recent family event was aLenten fish fry held at Incarnation as well.[14]
There are three branches of Quanders; those who reside inMaryland, those who reside in theVirginia/Washington, D.C. area and those that reside in Pennsylvania in Philadelphia and surrounding areas. The family belongs to theAfrican-American upper class.
The Quanders of Virginia and Washington DC have been celebratingannual family reunions since 1926. The Quanders of Maryland did not begin the tradition until 1974.[7] The Quanders had their 85th family reunion atMount Vernon for the first time in 2010, returning to the grounds on which their family was onceenslaved.[2] The family placed boxwood twigs andcuttings on the slave memorial in memory and respect to their ancestors who worked the grounds.[15]
A son or grandson of Egya Amkwandoh—the first Quander brought to America through theTrans-Atlantic slave trade—Henry established himself inMaryland to build a family and eventually become freed in 1684.[7] He was one of the first black males to adopt and act on the idea ofcivil rights, stemming from legal altercations involving his wife and daughters.[1]
Charles Quander is the father of Nancy Quander, and worked on Hayfield Plantation, a slave plantation in present-dayFairfax County (the land of which is nowHayfield Secondary School).[16] Once he was freed (probably after theCivil War), he bought two acres of land at a time up until his holdings amounted to 88 acres. When he died, his land around what became Quander Road was divided up among his children and then subsequently among their heirs.[8]
Nancy Carter Quander, one of the daughters of George Washington's slave Suckey Bay and by virtue a slave herself, married Charles Quander[1] of Maryland following her release to freedom. She was a spinner andlandscaper; records have been found and kept of her work on theMount Vernon grounds.[9] She worked in the back room of the slave housing, spinning cloth for George Washington's garments. It is believed that she was unable to read or write, therefore after her release from Mount Vernon, no records can be found of her life thereafter.[8]
Nellie Quander was a 1910 initiate ofAlpha Kappa Alpha sorority and served as its first international president. She led a group of five other sorority members (which included two founders) which ensured Alpha Kappa Alpha's perpetuity by securing legal incorporation on January 29, 1913. This strategic move enabled Alpha Kappa Alpha to grow by establishing chapters throughout the United States and, later, abroad. It also protected the name, colors, symbols and integrity of the organization. Nellie Quander also is closely related toGeorge Washington as she is a direct descendant ofWest Ford, son ofBushrod Washington, who was George Washington's nephew.[7]
Elizabeth Ann Quander was one of the first lead singers with theDuke Ellington Band. For a ceremony in her honor, she sang at the White House for presidentJimmy Carter in 1977, long after her retirement.[7]
Gladys Quander Tancil was a historical interpreter at Mount Vernon who worked to improve the historic site's coverage of enslaved people, including members of the Quander family.[17]
James Quander was the firstpermanent deacon ordained after theCatholic Church revived the office, and was also one of the first people to useinsulin as a treatment fordiabetes.[18]
Rohulamin Quander (1944-2025) was the founding president of the Quander Historical Society, as well as a retired Administrative Judge for the District of Columbia,Washington, D.C.[2][19][20] He earned both his B.A. and J.D. degrees from Howard University Washington, D.C. He was married to Carmen Torruella Quander, a well-known representational artist.[21] They had three adult children and one grandchild. He was notable for documenting the history of the Quander family, primarily through his published work, 'The Quanders: Since 1684, an Enduring African American Legacy.'[22] Originally published in 2021, the book has been updated periodically to include present events, with the latest edition published in 2024.
Jahmond “Jay” Quander is a descendant of the Quanders that worked on theMount Vernon Estate, and established theirfreed slave community where Quander Road and Quander Road School stand. Some family members still live on the land acquired after their ancestor's release. Jay is now the Director of Food and Beverage at the Estate in which his family was enslaved.[23]
Paul Alonzo Quander Jr. (1954 - 2016) was theWashington, D.C deputy mayor for public safety and justice, with responsibility for the police and fire departments, and for six months was acting chief of staff for then MayorVincent C. Gray.[24]
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Michael Quander is a former television journalist forWMAR-TV in Baltimore, Maryland,WREG-TV in Memphis, Tennessee, andWUSA-TV in Washington, D.C., consecutively between 2012 and 2021. He won a 2018National Capital/Chesapeake Bay Emmy Award for "Historic/Cultural - No Time Limit" for his segment on his family's history.[25] He has since moved on to consulting work.
Brig. Gen.Mark Quander grew up near Mt. Vernon. In 2021, he was appointed second-in-command at West Point.[26] In an NPR story about his new role, he was described as the fourth member of the Quander family to serve as a general officer in the U.S. military.[27]
In December 1800, Martha Washington signed a deed of manumission for her deceased husband's slaves, a transaction that is recorded in the abstracts of the Fairfax County, Virginia, Court Records. They would become free on January 1, 1801.
