Witness Stones Project Inc.

Restore History, Educate, and Honor Humanity

Witness Stones Installation Ceremony

Juneteenth Celebrations Begin with Witness Stones Installation in Old Center Cemetery

· ·

State Rep. Tammy Exum. Juneteenth Witness Stones Project at Old Center Cemetery Photo Credit: Sophie Christensen.

By Sophie Christensen and Lily Guberman on We-Ha.com on June 19, 2021

Even before entering the cemetery, the powerful sound of Afro Caribbean drumming could be heard from a block away. The sounds of the drums traveled far, but they could not overpower the enthusiastic voices of the crowd, about50 people of many ages and backgrounds.

Sixteen speakers each placed a new Witness Stone in the cemetery. Before placing the stones, speakers shared information about the enslaved person’s life. They also shared poems and words of gratitude for the organizers of the Witness Stones Project. Similar sentiments ran through every speech: triumph and joy for Juneteenth’s status as a national holiday, but also sadness and solemn acknowledgement for the history of enslavement in West Hartford. Continue reading.

Suffield to Celebrate Juneteenth on Saturday

· ·

Journal Inquirer Staff on June 18, 2021

SUFFIELD — A local group is planning to hold the town’s first Juneteenth celebration Saturday on the town green. Juneteenth is a celebration of the day in 1865 when enslaved people in Texas learned that they were freed by the emancipation proclamation. The local celebration is organized by Anti-Bias, Anti-Racist Suffield, or ABAR. It will be held from 10 a.m. to noon on the town green. Continue reading.

Town Dedicates Second Witness Stone in Honor of Madison Woman

· ·

By Jesse Williams on Zip06.com on June 15, 2021

MADISON — More than 200 years ago, here on the same beaches where Madison residents are currently laid out on the sand catching some sun, a shipwreck washed ashore. From that ship, a handful of people emerged, people who mostly would be spending the rest of their lives working, living, praying, and raising families in what was then known as East Guilford.

Very little is known about these shipwreck survivors. For the most part, their lineages haven’t been traced; their descendants cannot look back on old letters or follow some long record of property ownership to a plot of land in Madison, as many others in town can.

That is because these people were enslaved by the Reverend John Todd of Madison First Congregational Church, having been forcibly removed from their families and homes likely in West Africa, enduring the long Middle Passage across the Atlantic to become unwilling, unsung early settlers on the Connecticut shoreline. Continue reading.

West Hartford Juneteenth Activities Begin with Witness Stones

· ·

By Katrina Koerting in the West Hartford News on June 14, 2021

The weekend of events kicks off at 10 a.m. Saturday with an installment ceremony of the Witness Stones Project at Old Center Cemetery. This is the project’s fourth installation, which brings attention to the enslaved people and honors their contributions to West Hartford through research, education and civic engagement. Continue reading.

Bringing to Life the Hidden Lives of Four Greenwich Slaves with Honor and Witness Stones

· ·

Faculty, students, and honored guests at the Greenwich Historical Society Installation Ceremony.

By Anne W. Semmes in the Greenwich Sentinel on June 12, 2021

Forces have joined in the town of Greenwich to tell its hidden history, “To return the colors to the historical fabrics of our community,” so said Dennis Culliton, co-founder of the Connecticut-based Witness Stones Project that “seeks to restore the history and to honor the humanity and contributions of the enslaved individuals who helped build our communities.” Continue reading.

Witness Stones Celebration Highlighted Installation of Plaques Marking Sites of Enslavement in Old Lyme

· ·

Katie Huffman, Director of the Old Lyme Phoebe Griffin Noyes Library, welcomes guests to the ceremony, the inaugural event for the library’s new patio. All photos from the ceremony courtesy of the Florence Griswold Museum. Courtesy of LymeLine.com.

OLD LYME – The Old Lyme Witness Stones Partnership held an installation ceremony last Friday, June 4, celebrating the town’s newly installed Witness Stones—historical plaques commemorating the lives of 14 individuals, who were once enslaved on Lyme Street.

The project expands the understanding of local history and honors the humanity and contributions of those formerly held in bondage. Continue reading.

Students from the Country School Remember Tamar

· ·

In the fall of 2020, eighth graders at the Country School began researching the life of Tamar.  Tamar began her life in west Africa around the year 1744 and was captured and transported to New England, where she was enslaved by the Reverend Jonathan Todd, the second pastor of the First Congregational Church of East Guilford (now Madison). Student artwork and writing inspired by their research can be found here. A Witness Stones for Tamar was installed alongside her daughter Lettuce’s Witness Stone. These memorials honor the mother and daughter and all they brought to our community.

Honoring the Forgotten

· ·

 

By Jim Altman on Fox61 News

OLD LYME, Conn. — The Witness Stones Project, a non-profit initiative that honors enslaved people that worked and lived in Connecticut centuries ago has now made its mark in Old Lyme.

Outside the Phoebe Griffin Noyes Library, a ceremony took place to recognize 14 Witness Stones that are along Lyme Street in town. Continue reading.