Brick chimney and flashing completed
Posted on | November 8, 2011 | No Comments
Robbins house on new foundation
Posted on | October 20, 2011 | No Comments
Update for the Drinking Gourd Project Advisory Council
Posted on | October 10, 2011 | No Comments
We have had a busy and productive spring and summer, and wanted to let you know how far we have come, and how much has been achieved.The move of the Robbins House took place on May 21st. Since then our contractors have worked under the direction and close supervision of our Co Project Managers, Larry Sorli, Preservation Architect, and David Fisher, Landscape Architect. The more modern shingles and clapboards (two layers) have been removed, the rotten sill has been replaced, some stabilization of the structure was found to be necessary, a new stone foundation was built, and the house was lowered into place in August.
We trenched to bring in an electrical supply; our Arborist, John Bakewell, continued removing invasive species, and grafted a Cox’s Orange Pippin onto an existing apple tree. We discovered that the window size was originally six panes over nine panes, so we have custom ordered nine new windows at approximately $1300.00 apiece; a more authentic and true to the time period front door has been ordered; clapboards, from specially milled Northern pine, are ready for delivery; close examination of the wood under the original trim has disclosed that the house was not painted for at least 50 years after it was built, so we are preparing to use preservatives and stain that will allow the appearance to resemble weathered wood, while still preserving it from damage.
In rebuilding the original central chimney, we were fortunate enough to receive a donation of five hundred hand-molded early nineteenth century bricks, and we are using those to build the top of the chimney – the piece that will show above the roof.
The new shingle roof is ready to be put in place – all this, we hope, will happen in the next few weeks, before that special Concord weather closes in.
In addition, we have partnered with the Old Manse and the Historical Collaborative to be part of the spring Anti-Slavery series, given numerous presentations – the Mass Humanities Conference, church groups, Mill Dames, the Sleepy Hollow Cemetery group, the METCO Family Friends, METCO Directors, a group of 1963 CCHS graduates. We are also working with Sue Merlino’s Concord Bike Tours, adding the African and Abolitionist tour to her repertoire.
We have also had a Drinking Gourd table and presence at the Picnic in the Park, at the METCO Picnic, at the Old Manse Fall Festival, the First Parish 375th Anniversary. The Old Manse has generously given us a room to use as office and storage space, and we are planning other programs with them for the spring and summer of next year.
We have been selling (and/or giving away) our updated version of the African And Abolitionist tour maps, which are for sale at the Concord Visitors’ Center and at the Old Manse, as well as other places in town. We have also published postcards, showing the stages in the Robbins House preservation, and one of the Boulder bench placed at the Brister Freeman home site in the Town Forest.
Our efforts to commemorate other slavery survivors and freedom seekers are also bearing fruit. We placed the boulder/bench at the home site of Brister Freeman in the Town forest in August. The inscription reads:
Near here lived Brister Freeman (d. 1822) formerly enslaved in Concord.
Fenda Freeman (d.1811) and their family.
‘Down the road on the right hand, on Brister’s Hill, lived Brister Freeman…there were grow still the apple trees which Brister planted and
tended….’
Thoreau. Walden (1854)
We are actively researching grants for the preservation and interpretation of the Robbins House, and also for our other activities, ie. The videography and documentation of the Robbins House effort, the boulder/benches for other commemorative sites (Cato Ingraham, Zilpah White, Peter Hutchinson’s grave), landscaping, interpretation and education. We have applied for CCP funding again for next year.
Our historian and archival experts are working on uncovering more information from deeds, tax records, land use records, etc, to give us as accurate a picture as possible of the Robbins farm holding, the sequence of loss and acquisition of the land and structures, and as soon as the house exterior is finished we will be applying for eligibility to the National Register of Historic Structures. Once we achieve that status, we will be eligible for various other grants.
Work on the interior of the house will begin after the exterior is finished – and when we have the money to do it. Landscaping will also be under way in the spring. The Toni Morrison Bench will be placed to the right of the house, and a set of (probably 4) rustic benches will also be to the right of the house, for groups to listen to presentations by guides.
All of our activity will depend on the funding, both from grants and from donations, that we receive. The postcards were funded by a donation, another donation paid for a graduate intern to do some historical research for us, the donation of bricks (valued at $1,500.00) enables us to finish the chimney in an authentic manner. We are fortunate in our friends!
The Old Manse & the Drinking Gourd Project Present African American Life in the 1800s
Posted on | October 4, 2011 | No Comments
Plan to visit Concord’s Old Manse during Columbus Day Weekend, October 8, 9, & 10, from 12 noon to 5pm, when we present our Open House and Living History event. The weekend will include free admission to the Manse, plus music, living history demonstrations, and more. Also, you can experience a behind-the scene tour of the attic, which were living quarters for enslaved and indentured servants, for $5 per person. During the weekend, take advantage of special sale prices on all books in The Old Manse specialty bookstore.In conjunction with The Drinking Gourd Project, the weekend includes a series of first-person interpretations and special programs related to Concord’s African-American history. On Saturday at 2 pm, actress and storyteller Gwendolyn Quezaire-Presutti appears as Harriet Tubman (1822-1913), who spoke on antislavery issues in Concord several times. During the presentation, Harriet weaves a tale of truth, pain, courage and determination that takes the audience into the life of an enslaved person, her home life, eventual escape, and enlistment by the United States Government to scout and spy during the Civil War.
On Sunday at 2 pm, join us for Ms. Deborah Goss, vocalist and actress, who portrays a 19th century anti-slavery activist, as she sings and narrates the songs of abolition. Local MMNPS interpreter Judith Broggi portrays Concord Antislavery leader Mary Merrick Brooks with stories of her connections with Harriet Tubman, Frederick Douglass and other antislavery activists.
On Monday at 2 pm, experience a one-woman performance by actress Kathryn Woods entitled A Woman ain’t I?, depicting Sojourner Truth (1797-1883). Truth was born into slavery in Hurley, New York, as Isabella Baumfree. During her twenty-nine years as a slave she developed a close relationship with God which enabled her, in 1843, to walk away from slavery. She eventually took on the name Sojourner Truth. Joining other notable Abolitionists such as Frederick Douglass and Harriet Tubman, Sojourner took to the road to free her people, and became a powerful speaker against slavery and for the rights of women. During the presentation, Ms Woods uses Sojourner’s own words and spiritual music to recreate this truly inspiring woman.
During the weekend, The Drinking Gourd Project and Concord Bike tours will conduct tours of the Robbins House and Concord’s local African-American and Abolitionist history sites. To take the bicycle tour, call ahead and reserve a bike in your size: 978-697-1897. For these programs and other living history activities, visit the Manse during Columbus Day Weekend. Call 978-369-3909 for information, and see future issues of Action Unlimited for more details. The Old Manse, a property of The Trustees of Reservations, is located at 269 Monument Street, next to the Old North Bridge.
10/8-10/10: Open House and Living History Event
Posted on | September 28, 2011 | No Comments
Columbus Day Open House and Living History Weekend
The Old Manse
Plan to visit Concord’s Old Manse during Columbus Day Weekend, October 8, 9, & 10, from 12 noon to 5pm, when we present our Open House and Living History event. The weekend will include free admission to the Manse, plus music, living history demonstrations, and more. Also, you can experience a behind-the scene tour of the attic for $5 per person. During the weekend, take advantage of special sale prices on all books in The Old Manse specialty bookstore.
In conjunction with The Drinking Gourd Project, the weekend includes a series of first-person interpretations and special programs related to Concord’s African-American history. On Saturday at 2 pm, actress and storyteller Gwendolyn Quezaire-Presutti appears as Harriet Tubman (1822-1913), who spoke on antislavery issues in Concord several times.. During the presentation, Harriet weaves a tale of truth, pain, courage and determination that takes the audience into the life of an enslaved person, her home life, eventual escape, and enlistment by the United States Government to scout and spy during the Civil War.
On Sunday at 2 pm, join us for Ms. Deborah Goss, vocalist and actress, who portrays a 19th century anti-slavery activist, as she sings and narrates the songs of abolition.
On Monday at 2 pm, experience a one-woman performance by actress Kathryn Woods entitled A Woman ain’t I?, depicting Sojourner Truth (1797-1883). Truth was born into slavery in Hurley, New York, as Isabella Baumfree. During her twenty-nine years as a slave she developed a close relationship with God which enabled her, in 1843, to walk away from slavery. She eventually took on the name Sojourner Truth. Joining other notable Abolitionists such as Frederick Douglass and Harriet Tubman, Sojourner took to the road to free her people, and became a powerful speaker against slavery and for the rights of women. During the presentation, Ms Woods uses Sojourner’s own words and spiritual music to recreate this truly inspiring woman.
During the weekend, The Drinking Gourd Project and Concord Bike tours will conduct tours of the Robbins House and Concord’s local African-American and Abolitionist history sites. To take the bicycle tour, call ahead and reserve a bike in your size: 978-697-1897. For these programs and other living history activities, visit the Manse during Columbus Day Weekend. Call 978-369-3909 for information, and see future issues of Action Unlimited for more details. The Old Manse, a property of The Trustees of Reservations, is located at 269 Monument Street, next to the Old North Bridge.
First Parish in Concord: 375 Years
Posted on | September 24, 2011 | No Comments
The Drinking Gourd Project will take part in the First Parish Church 375th Anniversary Celebration October 14-23, Concord, MA
For full program, visit the First Parish in Concord: 375 Years Web Site
Saturday, October 15, 7:30 pm, First Parish in Concord. Reenactor 
Kevin Radaker gives a dramatic portrayal of Henry David Thoreau delivering excerpts from his three major anti-slavery speeches: “On Resistance to Civil Government,” “Slavery in Massachusetts,” and “A Plea for Captain John Brown.” Discussion follows. Radaker is a Professor of English at Anderson University, Indiana. This event is free and open to the public.
Co-sponsored by The Thoreau Society, the Drinking Gourd Project, and the Transcendentalism Council of First Parish in Concord. Prof. Radaker’s travel courtesy of Anderson University.
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