Master Slave Husband Wife:
An Epic Journey from Slavery to Freedom
An Epic Journey from Slavery to Freedom
A Conversation with Author Ilyon Woo & Clothing Historian Lynne Zacek Bassett
Tuesday, April 9, 2024 | 6:30 pm
In person at the Unitarian Society of Northampton and Florence, 220 Main Street, Northampton, MA
and as a virtual event on Zoom
and as a virtual event on Zoom
Master Slave Husband Wife
(Simon & Schuster) 2023 |
The story of Ellen and William Craft’s dramatic escape from slavery in 1848 is the subject of Ilyon Woo’s new book.
On their journey, Ellen Craft disguised herself as a wealthy, disabled, male planter, while William Craft played the role of her slave. To ensure accuracy, Dr. Woo worked with clothing historian Lynne Zacek Bassett about the particulars of what the couple wore. Together they will discuss the significance of clothing to the Crafts’ successful self-emancipation. Examples from the Historic Northampton collection of the types of clothing that they wore will be on display. Dr. Woo will also read from the book. The program will be introduced and moderated by Dr. Elizabeth Pryor, Associate Professor of History at Smith College. Learn More |
Upcoming Events and Programs
Behind the Seams:
Noticing Lives in the Details of Old Clothes April 3, 2024 | 4:30 pm at Smith College Learn More |
Week of the Young Child:
Special Hours for Families with Young Children April 11, 2024 2:30 pm |
Drawing on Fashion:
A Workshop with Artist Betsy Stone April 13, 2024 | 2 - 4 pm Learn More Registration Required |
Northampton's Bridge Street Cemetery: Rediscovering
Literary Legacies April 20, 2024 11:45 - 12:45 pm Learn More |
Dancing Your Age:
A Live Performance Sunday, May 5, 2024 12 noon - 2 pm Learn More Registration Required |
Acknowledging Indigenous history
Acknowledging Indigenous History
Here, we acknowledge that we stand on Indigenous land, inhabited by Native American people for roughly 11,000 years, since the glaciers receded. This place that we now call Northampton was known to Native people as Nonotuck or Norwottuck. Nonotuck homelands stretched across both sides of the Kwinitekw (now called the Connecticut River), including the present-day towns of Amherst, Hadley, Hatfield, South Hadley, Northampton, and Easthampton.
Nonotuck people were closely connected, through trade, diplomacy, and kinship, to other Native communities in the region: the Quaboag in present-day Brookfield; the Agawam in present-day Springfield; the Woronoco in present-day Westfield; the Pocumtuck in present-day Deerfield; and the Sokoki in present-day Northfield. During the early 1600s, these Native groups engaged in reciprocal trade relations with English colonial settlers and with other Native nations. By the late 1600s, however, the pressures of colonial warfare forced many Native families to relocate, taking shelter in other Native territories. We offer condolences for the Nonotuck people who were forced to leave their homeland, while also offering gratitude for the Native communities that took them in.
Despite the loss of land due to colonial settlement, a number of Native nations have persisted across the territory that we now call “New England.” These include: the Nipmuc to the East; the Wampanoag and Narragansett to the Southeast; the Mohegan, Pequot, and Schaghticoke to the South; the Stockbridge-Munsee Mohican to the West; and the Abenaki to the North, among others. Recognizing that the entirety of the North American continent constitutes Indigenous homelands, we affirm, honor, and respect the sovereignty of these and hundreds of other Indigenous Native American and First Nations peoples who survive today.
Learn More
Nonotuck people were closely connected, through trade, diplomacy, and kinship, to other Native communities in the region: the Quaboag in present-day Brookfield; the Agawam in present-day Springfield; the Woronoco in present-day Westfield; the Pocumtuck in present-day Deerfield; and the Sokoki in present-day Northfield. During the early 1600s, these Native groups engaged in reciprocal trade relations with English colonial settlers and with other Native nations. By the late 1600s, however, the pressures of colonial warfare forced many Native families to relocate, taking shelter in other Native territories. We offer condolences for the Nonotuck people who were forced to leave their homeland, while also offering gratitude for the Native communities that took them in.
Despite the loss of land due to colonial settlement, a number of Native nations have persisted across the territory that we now call “New England.” These include: the Nipmuc to the East; the Wampanoag and Narragansett to the Southeast; the Mohegan, Pequot, and Schaghticoke to the South; the Stockbridge-Munsee Mohican to the West; and the Abenaki to the North, among others. Recognizing that the entirety of the North American continent constitutes Indigenous homelands, we affirm, honor, and respect the sovereignty of these and hundreds of other Indigenous Native American and First Nations peoples who survive today.
Learn More
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