invitation to freedom colonies symposium & testimony service!
DESCRIPTION
CELEBRATE TEXAS’ RICH AFRICAN AMERICAN HERITAGE! COME TO THE 1st TEXAS FREEDOM COLONIES SYMPOSIUM AT THE 2015 TEXAS PURPLE HULL PEA FESTIVAL, JUNE 27 IN SHANKLEVILLE, TEXAS!TRANSCRIPT
T H E T E X A S F R E E D O M
C O L O N I E S P R O J E C T An effort to preserve, honor, & sustain the legacy our first African American placemakers!
Look for Texas Purple Hull Pea Festival & The Texas Freedom Colonies Project on Facebook!
CELEBRATE TEXAS’ RICH AFRICAN AMERICAN HERITAGE! COME TO THE 1st TEXAS FREEDOM COLONIES SYMPOSIUM AT THE 2015 TEXAS PURPLE HULL PEA FESTIVAL,
JUNE 27 IN SHANKLEVILLE, TEXAS!
Who: Festival organizers are calling all descendants of Black settlements, museum curators, genealogists, educators, cemetery associations, Rosenwald School alumni, community homecoming presidents, archaeologists, archives, research institutes, Historical Landmark Commissioners, artists, and writers to participate in this historic, fun event.
What and When: Descendants of Freedom Colonies will share their origin stories, successes, and ways to support statewide preservation efforts in historic Black settlements at the first Freedom Colony Symposium at the 2015 Texas Purple Hull Pea Festival, June 27 in Shankleville, Texas. The Symposium will be 11 am-3 pm. During the event, Freedom Colony descendants will share stories, memories, and creative approaches to honoring their ancestors’ achievements including
Genealogical research
Family histories and recipes
Sustaining family land ownership
Getting a historical marker
Church, school, or homestead preservation
Working collectively to gain recognition for settlements across the state
Information about resources that can address current challenges to preservation will be made available. Authors and scholars will also be on hand to talk about the significance of Freedom Colonies to Texas’ past and its future.
Where: The festival is in Newton County, which is 3 hours from Houston and an hour from Beaumont. Jasper is approximately 18 miles away from the festival site.
Why: Former slaves founded more than 500 of these settlements, but today few remain due to overdevelopment, gentrification, and population loss.
The Texas Freedom Colonies Project is part of a University of Texas study on ways settlements can address these challenges and preserve their heritage. The Project is dedicated to
Recording descendants’ memories & stories of how these communities began
Documenting ex-slaves’ contributions to Texas & American history
Learning about descendants’ present-day community development & historic preservation concerns
Connecting descendants to planning & preservation resources and each other!
CONTACT US!
To volunteer, be a sponsor, or vendor contact Lareatha Clay at [email protected] and Pam Wright at [email protected] about booths and farmers market space. Vendor registration is online: http://www.shankleville.org/purple-hull-festival.html
Contact Andrea Roberts, Texas Freedom Colonies Project founder at [email protected] or The Texas Freedom Colonies Project and Texas Purple Hull Pea Festival on Facebook.
East Texas Freedom Colony Homecoming Presidents, 2014