Syphax was born into slavery in
Alexandria County, Virginia, Syphax's father was
Charles Syphax, a slave at
Mount Vernon who had overseen construction of Arlington House. By the mid-1820s Charles had been taken by Custis to Arlington when he took over the property. Custis allowed Maria and Charles to marry in the house. In 1826 Custis sold Maria Syphax, her eldest child Elinor, and William to a
Quaker living in
Alexandria, Virginia, perhaps so that the man could manumit Maria and her two children. In 1826 Custis gave Maria a bequest of 17 acres of land from the south part of the Arlington estate. Syphax was the board's first president. He supported the notion of a unified public school system and equal educational standards. He oversaw the construction of the
Charles Sumner School and the
Thaddeus Stevens School. In 1870, Syphax organized The Preparatory High School for Colored Youth, later named
Dunbar High School, a prestigious academic high school.
Death Syphax died of undisclosed causes at his home at 1641 P Street NW on June 15, 1891. He was interred at
Columbian Harmony Cemetery in Washington, D.C. ==Legacy==