Selina Gray
Selina Norris Gray, the daughter of Leonard and Sally Norris, was a second-generation Arlington enslaved person. Selina Norris and Thornton Gray were married by an Episcopal clergyman in the same room of the house where Mary Custis had married Robert E. Lee in 1831. While the church recognized the marriage, the unions of enslaved people were not legally binding. Enslaved people, as property, could not enter into legally binding contracts. Selina and Thornton would have eight children and raise their family in a single room in the South Slave Quarters.
Selina was the personal maid of Mrs. Robert E. Lee. In 1861, under the threat of union occupation, the Lee family evacuated Arlington and Mrs. Lee entrusted the household keys, symbolizing that the responsibility of the families material possessions was left to Selina Gray. Locked away inside Arlington House were many of the “Washington Treasures.” These pieces were cherished family heirlooms that had once belonged to Mrs. Lee's great-grandmother, Martha Custis Washington, and President George Washington.
The United States Army assumed control of the Arlington Estate on May 24,1861. Later, U.S. Army officers occupied the house. When Mrs. Gray discovered some of the treasures had been stolen, she confronted the soldiers and ordered them "not to touch any of Mrs. Lee's things." Gray alerted General Irvin McDowell, commander of the United States troops, to the importance of the Washington heirlooms. The remaining pieces were sent to the Patent Office for safekeeping. Through Selina Gray's efforts, many of the Washington pieces were saved for posterity.
Selina and her family were freed by the will of George Washington Parke Custis in December, 1862, but continued to live on the estate for several years. Their descendents are numerous and some still live in the area. Her children were instrumental in the restoration of Arlington House in the 1920s and '30s.
(taken from Selina Gray - Arlington House, The Robert E. Lee Memorial (U.S. National Park Service) (nps.gov))
This is a nano cache located across the street from a new development which has designated their open space as Selina Gray Square.