LoCoHistory

Attend a free lecture on local African-American Cemeteries by Dr. Lynn Rainville at the Jefferson-Madison Regional Library Sunday, February 5th at 2pm in the McIntire Room (third floor, central branch of the library). Professor Rainville will discuss her research into historic, black burial grounds and the associated mortuary beliefs and funerary patterns. Come learn more about these “outdoor museums” of African-American beliefs and family connections.

Prior to the talk, explore a related website designed by Prof. Rainville that includes information about dozens of historic, black cemeteries in Albemarle and Amherst Counties. Below is an excerpt from a walking tour of Charlottesville’s historic Daughters of Zion Cemetery (located minutes away from the Downtown Mall). Clicking on the image will take you to a virtual tour but please get out to see the real thing!

Upcoming event, January 25th, 2012, Noon: “The Enduring Legacy of Henry Martin and Other Enslaved Laborers at U.Va.” (in the Harrison Institute auditorium). Later that day, at 5:30 p.m., a second event will be held to honor Mr. Martin as part of U.Va.’s commemoration of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (in the Rotunda Dome Room). Several scholars will discuss the lives and contributions of Mr. Martin and other formerly enslaved people at UVA during the lunchtime lecture.

Mr. Martin was born into slavery at Monticello on the day that Thomas Jefferson died: July 4, 1826. He was later sold to the Carr family, but eventually earned his freedom. In 1847 he was hired (as a free man) to be the bell ringer for the University of Virginia. Waking at 4am to begin work and tending to the bells throughout the day, he worked until his retirement in 1909. He died in 1915 at age 89. To read more about his life and the upcoming event, visit an external link to a UVA press release about Henry Martin and the upcoming events.