On Saturday, May 25, members of Pleasant Prospect Chapter, National Society Daughters of the American Revolution (NSDAR) and the John Hanson Chapter, Sons of the American Revolution (SAR) gathered to remember two soldiers who fought in the American Revolution. They raked leaves and cleaned the historic gravesites of Isaac and Nathan Walker, located behind Golden Triangle Drive in Greenbelt. Isaac Walker was a lieutenant during his service and his son, Nathan Walker, was a private during the American Revolutionary War.
Established in the mid-18th century, the Walker homestead, along with several other parcels of land, would one day become part of the City of Greenbelt. The colonial Walker home, named Toaping Castle, was located on what is now Greenbelt Road, across from Greenbelt Park.
The tradition of cleaning the Walker gravesites began in May 2009 and has continued off-and- on each Memorial Day weekend to the present.
Today, Pleasant Prospect Chapter, NSDAR is a merger of two Prince George’s County DAR Chapters ‒ Toaping Castle and Marlborough Towne Chapters. Toaping was founded on June 22, 1945, as a Hyattsville DAR Chapter and Marlborough Towne on October 15, 1966, as an Upper Marlboro Chapter. The ladies of Pleasant Prospect Chapter continue their annual Memorial Day Walker gravesite clean-up, which is now a labor of love for everyone. The tradition has grown to include members of the John Hanson Chapter of SAR, also a Prince George’s County chapter.
Walker family history says that Isaac Walker was a loyal Jacobite and was a survivor of the Battle of Culloden Field in Scotland in 1746. After the battle, Walker escaped to France with his wife and young son, fearing for his life and that of his family. With a price on his head, Isaac escaped by himself on a ship destined for America where he hid for several years. After the Jacobites were pardoned, Isaac’s wife and son joined him, arriving at the Port of Alexandria in Virginia. Isaac received a land grant and named the estate Toaping Castle, after the home he left behind in Scotland. He built a log cabin on the land (circa 1750). As his family increased, additions were made, and the original family home eventually became a large colonial home.
The Walkers and their Lester and Simonds descendants lived in Toaping Castle until the land was acquired for the Greenbelt Project.
Years later, the original house deteriorated, was vandalized and fell into such decay it was demolished. The land was cleared for the Golden Triangle Business Park (Patriot Business Park). The burial plot, within walking distance of the original Walker homestead, was preserved. A stone block was placed in the cemetery by descendants. In October, 1936, a bronze marker was attached by the Prince George’s County Chapter, NSDAR, whose members included several descendants of the Walker family.