Happy Juneteenth — When Emancipation Arrived by Steamship 160 Years Ago

Happy Juneteenth! Juneteenth is the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the ending of slavery in the United States. Juneteenth is also the newest Federal holiday, signed into law in 2020. The holiday commemorates the arrival of emancipation in Galveston, Texas, … Continue reading

Celebrating DEI & Black History Month — Harriet Tubman & the Great Combahee Ferry Raid

Last week, the New York Times reported that Harriet Tubman posters, origami paper cranes and rainbows have been disappearing from the halls of the American schools at NATO headquarters in Belgium, a response to the Trump administration’s rollbacks of diversity, … Continue reading

Happy Juneteenth — When Emancipation Arrived by Steamship

Happy Juneteenth! Juneteenth is the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the ending of slavery in the United States. Juneteenth is also the newest Federal holiday. The legislation was signed into law by President Biden in 2020. The holiday commemorates when emancipation … Continue reading

Black History Month Repost — Harriet Tubman & the Great Combahee Ferry Raid

Born a slave, Harriet Tubman escaped from enslavement and became a leading “conductor” on the “Underground Railroad” which helped slaves escape from bondage in the South to freedom in the North and in Canada, prior to the Civil War.   … Continue reading

Happy Juneteenth — When Emancipation Arrived by Steamship

Happy Juneteenth, the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the ending of slavery in the United States. Juneteenth National Independence Day is also the newest Federal holiday. The legislation was signed into law by President Biden in 2020. The holiday commemorates when … Continue reading

Thanksgiving Repost — Whaling Ships, Sarah Josepha Hale, Mary’s Lamb & a Liberty Ship

Happy Thanksgiving to those on this side of the pond and below the 49th parallel. (The Canadians celebrated the holiday in October.) What do whaling ships, a child’s nursery rhyme, a female magazine editor, and Abraham Lincoln have to do … Continue reading

Happy Juneteenth — When Emancipation Arrived by Steamship

Happy Juneteenth, the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the ending of slavery in the United States. Juneteenth National Independence Day is also the newest Federal holiday. The legislation, passed by both the House and Senate, was signed into law by … Continue reading

Black History Month Repost — Harriet Tubman & the Great Combahee Ferry Raid

Born a slave, Harriet Tubman escaped and would become a leading “conductor” on the “Underground Railroad” which helped slaves escape from bondage in the South to freedom in the North and in Canada, prior to the Civil War.  Nicknamed “Moses,” she … Continue reading

Thanksgiving Repost — Whaling Ships, Sarah Josepha Hale, Mary’s Lamb & a Liberty Ship

Happy Thanksgiving to those on this side of the pond and below the 49th parallel. (The Canadians celebrated the holiday in October.) Here is an updated repost of a story I think is well worth retelling. Until the Civil War, … Continue reading

Happy Juneteenth, Newest National Holiday — When Emancipation Arrived by Steamship

Happy Juneteenth, the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the ending of slavery in the United States. Juneteenth National Independence Day is also the newest Federal holiday. The legislation, passed by both the House and Senate, was recently signed into law … Continue reading

Black History Month Repost — Harriet Tubman & the Great Combahee Ferry Raid

With the arrival of the newly elected administration, Harriet Tubman, abolitionist and underground railroad “conductor” is back in the news and may, before too very long, grace our currency. In 2016, the Treasury decided to put the image of Harriet … Continue reading

Matthew Fontaine Maury — From Hero, to Traitor, to “Lost Cause” Statue

Recently, four statues of Confederates were removed from city property in Richmond, Virginia. Three of the individuals represented by the statues were well know — Jefferson Davis, the president of the Confederacy, and the Confederate generals, Stonewall Jackson and J.E.B. … Continue reading

Remembering Robert Smalls – Slave, Pilot of the Planter, First Black Captain in the US Navy & Congressman

Robert Smalls is an unsung American hero. If all goes well, he may soon get some of the recognition that he deserves. Last year, it was announced that Charles Burnett is directing a movie about Robert Smalls for Amazon Studios. … Continue reading