Witness Stones Project Inc.

Restore History, Educate, and Honor Humanity

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Ridgefield Students to Research Stories of People Enslaved by One of Town’s Founding Families

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The David Scott House on Sunset Lane in Ridgefield, Connecticut. Ridgefield students will research the stories of those enslaved by Scott, the patriarch of one of the town’s founding families.

 

By Kendra Baker in the Ridgefield Press on June 23, 2022

RIDGEFIELD — Eighth graders in town will embark on a project-based learning experience next fall that not only teaches historical inquiry skills, but allows them to honor former enslaved residents whose stories have not been fully untold.

The students will work with the Witness Stones Project — an organization that works with schools and community groups to “restore the history and honor the humanity” of enslaved individuals in Connecticut — to tell the story of two enslaved people from Ridgefield’s past. Continue reading.

 

Poetry Reading: Long-Silenced Voices

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Poetry Reading: Long-Silenced Voices

Co-sponsored with Ridgefield Community Partners

April 23, 2022 · 2 – 4 p.m.
The Meetinghouse, Ridgefield, Connecticut

Inspired by the Witness Stones Old Lyme Project, which honors those once enslaved in the community by researching their histories and placing memorial plaques at the site of their servitude, four esteemed poets give voice to those long denied their humanity.

Join us in the historic Meetinghouse as Marilyn Nelson, Antoinette Brim-Bell, Kate Rushin, and Rhonda Ward share powerful poems depicting the lives of enslaved men, women, and children, reimagined from the research of historian Carolyn Wakeman.

The reading will be held at the Meetinghouse, 605 Ridgebury Road, Ridgefield, CT 06877.

The event will also be shared via Zoom. Register here or for Zoom access here.

Witness Stones Project Comes to Ridgefield

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The Witness Stones Project, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to restore the history and honor the humanity of the enslaved individuals who helped build our communities, today announced a new affiliation with the East Ridge Middle School, the Ridgefield Historical Society, and Scotts Ridge Middle School. The Ridgefield community will be using the Project’s curriculum and landscape markers to expand their teaching of the history of slavery in colonial Connecticut.

Students will examine primary source documents, such property, church, and vital records; wills and probate inventories; and census data, in order to understand the reality of slavery and to restore the memory of those individuals who were enslaved. They will learn how to document and describe the dehumanization and paternalism of slavery; the economic and legal framework that supported slavery; and, the agency, resistance, and contributions of the enslaved to our local and national history. Finally, these students will be inviting their communities to witness as they install memorial stones for individuals who were enslaved in their town.

The  goal at the East Ridge Middle School is to support the growth and development of the whole child in reaching their full potential.

The Historical Society’s purpose is to preserve, interpret, and foster public knowledge of Ridgefield’s historical, cultural, and architectural heritage.

Scotts Ridge Middle School’s mission is to provide engaging, relevant, and personalized learning experiences so all students can pursue their interests and prepare for life, learning, and work as global citizens.

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