Restore History, Educate, and Honor Humanity
Please join students from Henry James Memorial School as they restore the history and honor the humanity of the enslaved individuals who helped build our communities.
By Deidre Montague in the Hartford Courant on May 19, 2022
WEST HARTFORD — The West Hartford Town Council unanimously agreed to change the name of a city street this week, a small move that points to a larger goal — changing the town’s physical landscape to bear witness to its history and culture.
New Street in Blue Back Square will henceforth be named Dinah Road, in honor of two women named Dinah who were enslaved in West Hartford in the mid-18th century.
The change, a nearly year-long process of gathering signatures and support, was spearheaded by the Mayor’s Youth Council and the Witness Stones Project. Continue reading.
By Gabby DeBenedictis on Patch.com on May 19, 2022
WEST HARTFORD, CT — The West Hartford town council voted unanimously to rename New Street in Blue Back Square “Dinah Road,” and according to the Hartford Courant the name is designed to honor two women who were enslaved in town.
The women, a mother and daughter both named Dinah, were forced to work on an estate where Hall High School is now located in the mid-1700s, the Courant reported, citing town historian Tracey Wilson. Continue reading.
By Ronni Newton on We-Ha.com on May 16, 2022
A campaign by the Mayor’s Youth Council to rename a West Hartford roadway in honor of two women who were once enslaved in town was approved unanimously by the Town Council on May 10.
Mayor’s Youth Council members Tzionya Goldfischer, a student at the New England Jewish Academy, and Sarah Granquist and Priya Sinha, both students at Hall High School, have been working closely with Town Historian Tracey Wilson to gain approval to change the name of New Street, a roadway in Blue Back Square that runs between Raymond and Isham roads, to Dinah Road. Dinah, and her daughter, who was also named Dinah, were once enslaved in the West Division of Hartford, now known as West Hartford. Continue reading.
By Devin Leith-Yessian in the Record-Journal on May 12, 2022
WALLINGFORD — The descendants of a man who was enslaved on a Virginia plantation before coming to Wallingford with Union soldiers are reconnecting with their family’s history with the help of local researchers working on the Wallingford Historic Preservation Trust’s “Enslaved Wallingford” project.
Meriden resident Carol Naamon-Kelly first learned of the journey Allen Lorenzo Washington, her great grandfather, made from Virginia through the work of Bobbie Borne, who was writing about Washington’s life for a magazine article published in June 2021. Continue reading.
The Wallingford Historic Preservation Society will bring the community together to remember and honor Essau and Grace and to place Witness Stones in their memory.
Mansfield Middle School will bring the community together to remember and honor Titus and to place a Witness Stones in his memory.
Woodstock Middle School will bring the community together to remember and honor Caesar and to place a Witness Stones in his memory.
CREC Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts will bring the community together to remember and honor Abda and Hannah and to place Witness Stones in their memory.
RHAM Middle School School will bring the community together to remember and honor Cesar and Mundo and to place a Witness Stones in their memory.
