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.
#LettuceBaileyCT20
Witness Stones Project Completion Allows Town to Honor Local Enslaved Woman
By Jesse Williams on ZIP06.COM on August 19, 2020.
GUILFORD MADISON —Though the pandemic prevented a large community ceremony, Madison saw the installation of its first Witness Stone in front of the First Congregational Church earlier this month, with students from The Country School (TCS) completing the year-long research project into the life of Lettuce (pronounced leh-TOOS) Bailey, a woman who was enslaved in Madison in the late 18th- and early 19th century. Continue reading.
Lettuce Bailey Memorial Ceremony
We invite you to watch the installation of the Witness Stone to remember and honor Lettuce Bailey. The ceremony was hosted by The Country School of Madison.
Country School Students Record, Honor Life of Enslaved Madison Resident
By Jesse Williams in Zip06.com on July 8, 2020
MADISON — After months of research, writing, and conversations, students from The Country School (TCS) have finished up their research on one of Madison’s enslaved residents as part of the Witness Stones Project, with plans to come together and install a marker in front of the First Congregational Church next month. Continue reading.
Country School Students Tell the Stories of Slavery in Their Community
From The Country School, published April 2020.
Eighth Graders at the School began participating in the Witness Stones Project in the fall of 2019, setting out to tell an untold story about a woman named Lettuce Bailey, who was enslaved in Madison, Connecticut, until she was freed in the late 18th century, first in 1791 and then again in 1793. By recovering and sharing Lettuce’s story and installing a brass Witness Stones memorial in her honor, students also sought to tell a broader, and largely unknown, story about our local community. Continue to the Country School website.
From The Country School website, published April 2020.
