National Park Service
U.S. Department of the Interior

PO Box 65
Harpers Ferry WV 25425

304 535-6748 phone
304 535-6244 fax

Harpers Ferry NHP News Release

Release Date: Immediately
Contact: Marsha B. Wassel
Phone: 304 535-6748

America Celebrates the Niagara Movement: the Cornerstone of the Modern Civil Rights Era

(Harpers Ferry, West Virginia)—Harpers Ferry National Historical Park, the Jefferson County Branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), and Harpers Ferry Historical Association are partnering to commemorate the centennial anniversary of the Niagara Movement at Harpers Ferry, West Virginia. A variety of activities are a part of this celebration.

Niagara Educational Institute August 14-18 (pre-registered participants)
Offers the opportunity for educators to explore Harpers Ferry’s role in our Nation’s struggle for freedom and equality.

Niagara Academic Symposium August 16-18 (pre-registered participants)
A symposium entitled, “The Niagara Movement and the Dawning of Twentieth Century Civil Rights” will be held in the same buildings that hosted the Niagara Movement one hundred years ago. The symposium is sure to stimulate unprecedented academic research, scholarship and debate on the subject of equality. In addition to the presentation of papers there will be an evening reception, guest speakers, including two time Pulitzer Prize winner, Dr. David Levering Lewis, Dr. Y. Du Bois Irvin, the grand-daughter of W. E. B. Du Bois and Harvard University professor, Dr. Evelyn Brooks Higginbotham. There will also be a dramatic presentation highlighting the life of Niagara member J.R. Clifford, an evening tour of Harpers Ferry National Historical Park, interpretive exhibits and ongoing book displays.

Niagara Centennial Commemoration August 17-20:
In August 1906, 46 members of the Niagara Movement, the first national civil rights organization in America, met on the campus of Storer College in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia. This meeting was monumentally and symbolically important—it was their first meeting in the United States. The founding meeting in July 1905 was held at the Erie Beach Hotel in Ft. Erie, Ontario, Canada. The group had been refused accommodations in Buffalo, New York, so W.E.B. Du Bois, the Movement’s leader, moved the meeting to the Canadian side of Niagara Falls. Harpers Ferry had been carefully selected as the location for the second meeting because of its connection to John Brown and his raid to free slaves in 1859. In fact, the meeting was promoted as “the 100th anniversary of John Brown’s birth and the 50th jubilee of the battle of Ossawatomie” (Brown was actually born in 1800, making this the 106th anniversary of his birth.) The connection to the martyred Brown was powerful indeed, but was not the only connection to African American history; Harpers Ferry was also home to Storer College. Storer had been opened in 1867 by the Freewill Baptist as a mission school educating former slaves. For 25 years, Storer was the only school in West Virginia that offered African Americans an education beyond the primary level. In the ensuing years, Storer expanded in acreage, curriculum and enrollment. In 1906, it provided the backdrop for this historic conference.

The second annual conference of the Niagara Movement concluded with an “Address to the Country.” Penned by Du Bois, this document was a five-point resolution demanding basic civil rights. We claim for ourselves every single right that belongs to a freeborn American—political, civil, and social; and until we get these rights, we will never cease to protest and assail the ears of America. The battle we wage is not for ourselves alone, but for all true Americans.

PLANNING YOUR VISIT :

Parking Considerations:
Visitors must park at the Cavaliers Heights Visitor Center parking areas and board shuttle buses to the event. This event, located on Camp Hill, is serviced by bus only. There is no visitor parking on Camp Hill. The NPS expects this to be a busy event, so plan to arrive early and allow for transportation time to reach the event. Parking is on a first come, first serve basis and when the lots are full, parking will be closed until spaces open up.

Maximum crowds are expected for this event. We ask your patience when arriving and leaving the event.

Visitors attending the Niagara activities on Camp Hill should park at the Cavaliers Heights Visitor Center parking area off Route 340 and board shuttle buses that will transport them to the activities.

Only small lap-sized coolers are allowed on buses, lawn chairs are not permitted.

If attending the Saturday evening Preservation Hall Jazz Concert from 8:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. on Bolivar Heights, visitors should park at Bolivar Heights. Parking opens at 6:00 p.m. Assistance will be provided to direct you to authorized parking areas on the lawn.

Alcoholic beverages are not permitted in the park at any time.

This event focuses on celebrating the Niagara Movement and its members, on the grounds of Storer College campus on Camp Hill, the site of the 1906 meeting. The campus is a confined space hosting many activities. Therefore, recreational equipment such as frisbees, footballs, etc. are not permitted at the event venue on Camp Hill.

Food and drink service will be available for visitors to purchase snacks and meals from 9:00 am to 10:00 pm on Saturday and 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 pm on Sunday.

It is primarily an outdoor venue and will be held rain or shine. Dress appropriately for the weather.

Commemorative items, books and music will be sold at the Harpers Ferry Historical Association’s Sales Tent on Camp Hill.

This is a handicapped accessible event, including restroom facilities.

If you plan to attend the Sunday morning pilgrimage, please wear comfortable shoes.

A children’s activity area, inside the Clifford Tent on Camp Hill, will host activities for children of all ages.

For updated information, please log on to the Niagara Centennial section of the park web site at www.nps.gov/hafe/niagara/index.htm or call the Visitor Center at 304-535-6298.

MEDIA ALERT:

All media personnel will need to obtain a PRESS ID from the Grandview School offices to gain access for coverage of the event. Contact 304-535-6455 for information prior to the event.

See schedule of events and information on guest speakers and performers (PDF)

-NPS-

Updated: Thursday, 03-Aug-2006 15:16:26 Eastern Daylight Time
www.nps.gov /archive/hafe/new/nr-niagara-2006.htm
Author: Marsha B. Wassel

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