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Welcome back to the African Roots Podcast. You can reach me at AfricanRootsPodcast@gmail.com
May
Ft. Smith Arkansas May 18-19
“Memorial In May” Annual PAAC Conference (Preservation of African American Cemeteries) On May 18 – 19, 2012, PAAC will sponor its 6th annual Memorial in May Cemetery Preservation Conference. The conference will be hosted by The Lincoln Echo newspaper, Rowell – Parish mortuary, and the City of Fort Smith, Arkansas. The conference will be held at the Creekmore Community Center, located at Rogers Avenue and South 31st Street, Fort Smith, AR. Mayor Sandy Sanders, and the Historical Society of Fort Smith will be on hand to make this conference informative and exciting. For more information click link above.
Bass Reeves Legacy Initiative- The Dedication of the Statue to Bass Reeves
Next week, in western Arkansas, history will be made. The most dynamic and well known US Deputy Marshall and who happens to be a man of color will be honored when a statue dedicated to his honor will be unveiled. This is significant for Arkansas, for African American Western Frontier history and for American history.
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The SAGE Project, Orlando FL Exhibition Opens Today!
A group of African-American men and women, ranging between the ages of 85 and 106, will share their experiences as lifelong residents of one of the nation’s oldest African-American townships in a unique historical exhibition that opens today. There are 16 elders who will be featured as part of “The Sage Project: Hannibal Square Elders Tell Their Stories,” an event designed to mark the 125th anniversary of the incorporation of the city of Winter Park, which included the Hannibal Square neighborhood. There is an exhibition that is part of the project that will be hosted from May 11 through Saturday, Sept. 1, in partnership with the Winter Park Historical Association. An opening reception, in which the elders will be honored, is scheduled from 6 to 9 p.m., Friday, May 11 at the center. That reception will open with a performance by the Center for Contemporary Dance at the Ruby Ball stage
An article about the Project was featured in the Orlando Sentinel. More information can also be found at the website for Hannibal Square Heritage.
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Bernice Bennet’s Show
I hope you tuned into Bernice Bennett’s show last night. Her guest was Anne Bradshaw, author of True Miracles in Genealogy. Her show airs every Thursday evening at 9 pm EST on Blog Talk Radio. Also note that Ms. Bennet will be speaking next week in Louisiana at the Livingston Parish Library sharing her history on her Livingston Parish ancestors.
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University of Nebraska Lincoln (UNL) has announced a special digitization project. The professors are archiving the 19th-century petitions that, as a result of legislation enacted 150 years ago Monday, allowed slave owners in Washington, D.C., to receive government compensation for freeing their slaves.
The team has transcribed and put 200 petitions on a UNL website exploring the Civil War’s impact on the nation’s capital. They hope to have the other 800 or so on the site by next summer. More information can be found here.
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June
June 2, 2012, Philadelphia
The African American Genealogy Group will host an all day workshop at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. For more info about this event and others click this link.
Well, thank you for taking time to listen. Next week I will be coming to you from western Arkansas, from the site of the PAAC conference, and the following week I shall be coming to you from the dedication site of the new Bass Reeves statue!
Have a great week everyone and remember to keep researching, keep documenting and keep sharing what you find!
