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News

Witness Stones Project to Partner with the Farmington’s First Church of Christ, Congregational, and the Stanley-Whitman House to Recover the History of the Enslaved

WSP · Aug 11, 2023 ·

The Witness Stones Project, a nonprofit educational initiative whose mission is to restore the history and honor the humanity of the enslaved individuals who helped build our communities, today announced a new partnership with the First Church of Christ, Congregational, and the Stanley-Whitman House, both in Farmington, Connecticut. The church and the museum will be using the Project’s research, curriculum, and landscape markers to help uncover, share, and memorialize the history of the enslaved individuals who lived in Farmington.

The First Church of Christ, also known as First Church 1652, is an historic church, whose mission  is to serve and build a welcoming faith community shaped and enlightened by the love and teachings of Jesus, in covenant with each other; empowering and assisting one another to do justice and grow in the love of God, neighbor, and self.

The Stanley-Whitman House is a living history center and museum that teaches through the collection, preservation, research, and dynamic interpretation of the history and culture of early Farmington, Connecticut.  Programs, events, classes, and exhibits encourage visitors of all ages to immerse themselves in history by doing, acting, questioning, and engaging in colonial life and the ideas that formed the foundation of that culture.

 

Connecticut Church Creates Interfaith Collaboration to Learn the State’s Slave History

WSP · Jun 22, 2023 ·

A Witness Stone describing the life of formerly enslaved man John C. Wally is ready to be placed at the Wilton, Connecticut, Historical Society thanks to research by three congregations to learn his story.

By St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church on Episcopal News Service on June 22, 2023

During the COVID-19 pandemic, St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church in Wilton, Connecticut, began to explore the church’s complicity with racism since its founding in 1802. At its 2020 annual convention, The Episcopal Church in Connecticut adopted a resolution “to direct each Parish, Worshipping Community, and Intentional Episcopal Community to take steps to discover and document historic complicity in racism in their parish and communities.” Early research showed that founding members of St. Matthew’s were enslavers while later, many freed Black individuals had been active members.

Known as the “Georgia of the North” by abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison, Connecticut was a key participant in the Triangular Trade that brought Africans to the Americas via the Middle Passage. Slavery existed in New England just as it did in the South in colonial times, with Connecticut finally abolishing it in 1848. Parishioners learned these facts alongside personal stories of people enslaved in Connecticut, which were collected from primary documents by middle school students and their youth leaders of congregations in three different towns in Connecticut during the first six months of 2023. Continue reading.

Congregants at St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church Reflect on the Witness Stones Project

WSP · Jun 20, 2023 ·

“The story of the African-American people is the story of the settlement and growth of American itself, a universal tale that all people should experience.” —Henry Louis Gates, Jr.

Beginning in October 2021, St. Matthew’s (through our Social Justice & Racial Healing group) began to explore how we might engage with The Witness Stones Project as one avenue of exploring our church’s complicity with racism over the course of history since the church’s founding in 1802. We recognized that during the 17th and 18th century many individuals, including clergy in local communities, had enslaved others – Indigenous and African. In Connecticut, our towns were settled for the most part by Puritans who came to be known as the Congregational Church and soon after the Church of England that became the Episcopal Church. And our communities enslaved others.

We knew this project was one we could not, and should not, do alone. So we began to seek partners from neighboring congregations. As people of faith, no matter our doctrine or belief system, we all believe in the dignity of every human being. In the spirit of collaboration, we give thanks to all who supported this work in a multitude of ways: spiritually, financially, and educationally – especially The Episcopal Church in Connecticut, St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church, The Unitarian Universalist Congregation in Westport, St. Paul’s on the Green in Norwalk, Wilton Historical Society, and Dr. Julie Hughes whose research provided us with more than we could ever have or imagined.

On June 10, 2023 we celebrated the installation of our first Witness Stone Memorial to commemorate John C. Wallyat Wilton Historical Society where the stone will be placed for the wider community to view. Read the John Wally Program Book from the ceremony as well as Comments by Julie Hughes sharing how important this acknowledgment of John C. Wally’s humanity is to his descendants, and Cannot Unring that Bell by Nate Pawelek of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation in Westport.

The Last Woman Enslaved in Woodstock, Connecticut

WSP · Jun 19, 2023 ·

First Congregational Church, Woodstock, Connecticut. Photograph by John Phelan.

By Christopher C. Child on Vitabrevis.americanancestors.org on June 19, 2023

I read two stories of interest in a recent issue of The Woodstock Villager, a local newspaper from my grandfather’s Connecticut hometown. The first story (on page A3) concerned a Witness Stone for Cuff Fellows (1762-1848), who spent half of his life enslaved in Woodstock. The marker was placed at the First Congregational Church (where my grandfather was baptized, where he married his wife, and where both were buried in the nearby cemetery along with several generations of my ancestors, and, maybe someday, myself). The article notes that Cuff Fellows was enslaved by Isaac Fellows and emancipated in 1798 by Isaac’s widow Leah (Paine) Fellows. Leah was the daughter of Daniel and Leah (Paine) Smith of Woodstock, the great-great-grandparents of my great-great-granduncle (by marriage) Lt. John Merrick Paine (1845-1916), who had served in the 29th Connecticut Colored Infantry Regiment during the Civil War. Continue reading.

West Hartford Pays Homage to Those Enslaved in Witness Stones Installation Ceremony

WSP · Jun 18, 2023 ·

West Hartford Witness Stones. Photo Credit: John Lyons

By Bridget Bronsdon in We-Ha.com on June 18, 2023

Through a deeply local perspective, West Hartford local leaders and students had the chance to come together in the days before Juneteenth to hold a Witness Stones Installation Ceremony – commemorating and paying tribute to local slave history.

The Witness Stones Project aims to “restore the history and honor the humanity of the enslaved individuals who helped build our communities.” Through immense research, exploration, and analysis of local history, West Hartford, which began a Witness Stones Project in 2018, was able on Saturday to honor another 10 of the 100-plus formerly-enslaved individuals who walked the same grounds we do today. Continue reading.

‘Witness Stones Old Lyme’ Hosts ‘Juneteenth’ Celebration of Jazz, Poetry at ‘The Side Door’, Saturday

WSP · Jun 14, 2023 ·

On Saturday, June 17, in honor of Juneteenth, New Haven jazz legend Jesse Hameen II will perform with his Jazz Quartet at The Side Door at The Old Lyme Inn. Photo Jesse Hameen II.

In LymeLine.com on June 14, 2023

OLD LYME – On Saturday, June 17, in honor of Juneteenth—a federal holiday that commemorates the emancipation of enslaved African Americans—Witness Stones Old Lyme will present a celebration of Jazz and Poetry on the lawn of The Side Door at the Old Lyme Inn.

The celebration takes place from 2 to 4 p.m. Admission is free. All are welcome.

The event features a quartet led by New Haven jazz legend Jesse Hameen II and new work by Connecticut poets Marilyn Nelson, Kate Rushin, Rhonda Ward, and Antoinette Brim-Bell, who in 2021 created a tribute in verse to those enslaved in historic Lyme. The jazz quartet features the inspirational percussionist Jesse Hameen II, drums; Rodney Jones, guitar; Zwelakhe Bell Le Pere, bass; and Joe McWilliams, piano. Continue reading.

West Hartford to Hold Annual Juneteenth Celebration and Witness Stones Dedication

WSP · Jun 12, 2023 ·

By Ronnie Newton on We-Ha.com on June 12, 2023

 

It was the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, but West Hartford held a small-scale Juneteenth celebration in June 202o. This Saturday, June 17, 2023, the town will officially hold its third annual celebration and the event will be bigger and better than ever, said organizer Adrienne Billings-Smith.

“I’m so excited,” said Billings-Smith, who is now the equity coordinator in West Hartford’s Office of Equity Advancement. The third annual full-scale celebration will include music, art, inspirational messages, and other activities for people of all ages. Continue reading.

Installation Ceremony Honoring John C. Walley

WSP · Jun 10, 2023 ·

The community in Wilton gathered on June 10, 2023, to remember and honor John C. Wally. We invite you to click on the image before to read the full program.

The History Is with Us: Remembering New England’s Forgotten Role in Slavery

WSP · Jun 7, 2023 ·

Old Saybrook, CT – A “Witness Stone” honoring the life of Rose Jackson, a woman who was once enslaved in Old Saybrook sits on the Northwest corner of the grounds of the Historical Society. The dedication was organized by Middle School and the Witness Stones project which guides Connecticut students and communities to research and restore their history of enslavement.

By Diane Orson on Connecticut Public Radio on June 7, 2023

When we think of slavery in the U.S, we don’t often think of the North. But residents of one Connecticut town recently honored the legacy of a woman who — centuries ago — was enslaved in their community. Her story and those of other enslaved people who lived in Connecticut are coming to light through a program called Witness Stones. Continue reading and listening.

The Witness Stones at the Foote School

WSP · Jun 7, 2023 ·

Students from the Foote School began working with the Witness Stones Project in 2019. In 2023, they created a website to document their research. Please click here to visit their site.

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