Category: Black History
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Welcome to Illuminating the Unseen
The Old North Foundation is thrilled to introduce our brand new video series, Illuminating the Unseen. Written and presented by our Research Fellow, Dr. Jaimie Crumley, the series dives into the Old North Church’s archival documents to shine a light on the Black and Indigenous people who have often been excluded in the church’s broader…
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99% Sure | Ep 9: The Humphries Family
The Humphries were a free Black family who worshiped at Old North Church in the 1740s and 50s. They appeared frequently in church documents for around a decade before slowly disappearing from the record. Our researcher T.J. Todd pieces together their poignant story. See below for the video, episode transcript, extra information, and sources! Episode…
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The People in the Pews: The Humphries Family
John and Elizabeth Humphries were a free Black couple who first appear in the Old North records in March 1748 with the baptism of their daughter, Deborah. Over the next four years, they would baptize seven more children at Old North: Robert, Richard, James, Catherine, Elizabeth, Thomas, and Ruth. Five children were baptized on the…
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The People in the Pews: Upper Level Gallery
“And who sat up there?” This is a question often received in reference to Old North’s upper gallery. From the lower level, the pews above seem miles away; a looming set of white rows disconnected from the world below. This observation, perhaps, points directly to the answer of who occupied those pews. The gallery was…
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The People in the Pews: The Pulpit – Rev. William Croswell
One of the ministers to preach from this wine glass pulpit was Rev. William Croswell. Church historian Mary Babcock described Croswell as “the very pulse of the machine…animating and vitalizing the whole fabric from bells to altar.” But while other Old North ministers have become well-known leaders in the history of the Episcopal Church, Rev.…
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Juneteenth: A Reflection
On Friday, June 19, we mark 155 years since Union General Gordon Granger announced General Order Number 3 (proclaimed on June 19, 1865), which informed the people of Texas that the institution of slavery had ended and that previously enslaved people were free. It had taken considerable time for this information to reach Texas (the…
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The Shaw Memorial: A Reflection of Black Struggle
The Messenger series features scholarly articles exploring how Old North and our region fit into a greater historical perspective while celebrating the academic work of a variety of voices from students to casual history buffs to published authors and leading academicians. The Shaw Memorial: A Reflection of Black Struggle In 2016, Massachusetts unveiled a redesigned driver’s license,…
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The Amistad Case and the Power of Collective Action, Part 3 of 3
This article is the third in a three-part series. Read Part 1 and Part 2 first. Ultimately, the most compelling part of the story, though, lies in the strength found in community and how everyone can have a role to play in fighting for a cause. The story of the Amistad is not one of…
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The Amistad Case and the Power of Collective Action, Part 2 of 3
This article is the second in a three-part series. Start with Part 1 here. The odds were even more stacked against the Amistad rebels in the Supreme Court: five of the nine justices, including Chief Justice Roger B. Taney (of the infamous Dred Scott decision), were southerners. Even Justice Joseph Story, from Massachusetts, had earlier…
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The Amistad Case and the Power of Collective Action, Part 1 of 3
This article is the first in a three-part series. In the early morning of July 2nd, 1839, off the shore of Cuba aboard a Spanish schooner called La Amistad, a group of illegally kidnapped and enslaved Africans managed to free themselves from their chains and fight back in an attempt to re-secure their freedom. Their…