The Freeman Homestead at Derby Neck. Nancy Freeman, the wife of Roswell Freeman, a Black Governor, is pictured.
DERBY - Join the Kellogg Environmental Center, part of CT State Parks & Public Outreach, at 1 p.m. Sunday, June 20 for a virtual presentation by Anthony Martin, PhD from Central Connecticut State University, Department of Anthropology.
In recognition of Juneteenth weekend, Martin will speak about Black Governors and the historical connections with Osbornedale State Park.
From the mid-18th to mid-19th century, African- American communities in New England developed their own political and cultural structure headed by elected officials known as Black Governors or Black Kings.
Black Governors/Kings operated at the local level and performed several important social functions including heading events, resolving conflicts, and advocating for the African-American community.
Since 2010, Central Connecticut State University professors and students, volunteers, and descendants of Black Governors/Kings have been excavating the homesite of one, and potentially two, Black Governors: Quosh Freeman and his son Roswell.
The excavation in Osbornedale State Park aims to raise awareness of the Black Governors as part of the historic African-American presence in Derby.
Additionally, since the homesite was occupied for 110 years, the archaeological site provides an understanding of the daily life of three generations of the Freemans and their establishment and maintaining of home place across a racialized landscape.
Online access details will be shared with registered participants.
Please register for the free webinar through the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Calendar of Events https://www.depdata.ct.gov/calendar or contact donna.kingston@ct.gov for registration assistance.
The Kellogg Environmental Center, a facility of the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection’s State Parks & Public Outreach Division, is open 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. It is located at 500 Hawthorne Ave.
For further information or directions email donna.kingston@ct.gov or call 203-734-2513.
This is a press release from the Kellogg Environmental Center.
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