Commemorating 40 Years of Boston African American National Historic Site

In recognition of Boston African American National Historic Site (BOAF) turning 40 years old, we have compiled a checklist of "40 ways to celebrate BOAF." We invite you to engage with the stories and places of our Park as well as find ways in your own communities to engage with Black history.

 

A youth group inside the sanctuary of the African Meeting House.

NPS Photo/Matt Teuten

 

 

☐ 1. Visit the Museum of African American History

Tucked away on Smith Court are two of Boston’s most historic sites: the Abiel Smith School (1835) and the African Meeting House (1806). Established in the 1960s, the Museum of African American History preserves and protects the stories and objects of Boston’s Black community. Stop by our partners at the Museum of African American History to learn more.

☐ 2. Register to vote or check your voting status!

100 years ago, women won the right to vote with the ratification of the 19^th Amendment. While the amendment legally guaranteed women the right to vote, women of color continued to fight for their right to political representation in the decades that followed. Are you registered to vote? Do you know who is on your ticket in November 2020? Make a voting plan by visiting Voting and Elections.

Live here in Massachusetts? Check your voter status.

☐ 3. Celebrate the 54^th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment

157 years ago, the Massachusetts 54^th Regiment began to break barriers even before they stepped onto the battlefield. Fighting not just to preserve the Union, they also struggled for equality and justice. Learn more about these men at A Brave Black Regiment.

☐ 4. Uncover abolitionist John Brown’s connections to Boston

John Brown launched his ill-fated assault on the arsenal at Harpers Ferry in October 1859. In this video series, Ranger Dana talks about the influence Boston’s abolitionist community had on Brown and how his memory continued in the work of these Bostonians.

 

Download and save this Boston African American National Historic Site 40th Anniversary Passport Cancellation Stamp.

☐ 5. Download the 40^th Anniversary Cancellation Stamp

Are you a Passport to Your National Parks® stamp collector? Download our 40th Anniversary Stamp!

☐ 6. Learn about the 54^th Memorial Restoration work!

In 2020, restoration work began on the Robert Gould Shaw 54^th Massachusetts Regiment Memorial in conjunction with the Friends of the Public Garden, City of Boston, and Museum of African American History. You can learn more about the restoration process from the Partnership to Renew the Shaw 54^th Regiment Memorial.

Want to virtually visit the Memorial in the meantime? Download the Shaw Memorial At Home App!

 

☐ 7. Watch the movie Glory

Released in 1989, Glory introduced many people to the 54^th Massachusetts Regiment. Why not host a family movie night and watch it together? If you cannot stream the film, check with your local library and see if you can borrow it!

☐ 8. Listen to our stories

Need something to listen to during your next walk? Download these episodes from Hub History featuring two of our staff discussing the Maritime Underground Railroad and the LGBTQ+ history of Beacon Hill.

☐ 9. Follow us on Social Media

Want to get daily updates and stories about our site and history? Follow us on social media! Not only is Boston African American National Historic Site on Facebook, but we also have Twitter and Instagram accounts. Let us know what stories you would like to hear on these platforms.

☐ 10. Flip through copies of William Lloyd Garrison’s The Liberator

In 1831, William Lloyd Garrison began publishing The Liberator newspaper as a trumpet for the abolitionist movement. Flip through the pages of this historic newspaper and see if you recognize any names that you’ve learned about from our tours and talks.

 

"A Community Conversation: Voting Rights and the Perilous March to Freedom"

Partnership to Renew the Shaw 54th Memorial

☐ 11. View the recording of one of the Community Conversations or join us for the next one!

The Partnership to Renew the Shaw 54^th Memorial has hosted a series of community conversations that delve into connections between the memorial, the men of the 54^th Massachusetts Regiment, and historical memory. View a recording of the first conversation: The Power of Public Monuments in a Time of Racial Reckoning.

Please consider joining us for the next Community Conversation on Friday, October 23, 2020 at 6pm: Voting Rights and the Perilous March to Freedom.

☐ 12. Take a virtual tour with our friends from the Museum of African American History

View the Museum of African American History’s page on Google Arts & Culture. You can learn more about the history of Boston’s Black activist community, browse through artifacts and photographs, and virtually navigate the exhibit space of the museum.

 

"Escape of a Fugitive Slave from a Vessel in Boston Harbor."

The Liberator, December 31, 1858.

☐ 13. Discover the Maritime Underground Railroad in Boston

While many people think of the Underground Railroad as solely a land route, freedom seekers along the coast often escaped via ships to the north. Learn about the history of the Maritime Underground Railroad of Boston and the stories of freedom seekers who chose this dangerous route to freedom.

☐ 14. Attend one of our virtual programs

Check out our online calendar for upcoming virtual talks that cover a range of topics related to African American history in Boston.

☐ 15. Read a book about Black History

Go to your local library and check out one of the many interesting books on Boston’s Black History. For kids, this could include The First Step: How One Girl Put Segregation on Trial by Susan E. Goodman or Two Tickets to Freedom: The True Story of Ellen and William Craft by Florence Freedman; and for adults, we recommend Black Bostonians: Family Life and Community Struggle in the Antebellum North by James Oliver Horton and Lois E. Horton and More than Freedom: Fighting for Black Citizenship in a White Republic, 1829-1889 by Stephen Kantrowitz. For more books that feature the African American experience, check out this list created by the Boston Public Library.

 

Frederick Douglass bust in Faneuil Hall.

NPS Photo

☐ 16. Imagine listening to Frederick Douglass speak in Boston

Well-known abolitionist Frederick Douglass spoke at numerous events throughout Boston, calling upon his audience to help end slavery. Imagine listening to him repudiate the Fugitive Slave Law at Faneuil Hall or encouraging agitation at the John Brown Anniversary meeting. Douglass also spoke in favor of women’s suffrage at Tremont Temple, calling himself “a radical woman suffrage man.”

☐ 17. Reflect on 400 years of the African American Experience

The National Park Service's short film Twenty & Odd combines scenes that “[explore] the trauma, resilience, and beauty of the African American experience in our country” with the narration of Maya Angelou’s poem, “Still I Rise.”

 

☐ 18. Read about one of the many notable Black women of Boston we feature in our park

From early anti-slavery activist Nancy Prince to civil rights activist Melnea Cass, we highlight the contributions of Black women who have long shaped this city. Learn how sites on the Black Heritage Trail® served as spaces for women’s rights activism, such as the Charles Street Meeting House, where Josephine St. Pierre Ruffin and women of the Woman’s Era Club organized a final meeting of the 1895 First National Convention for Colored Women.

☐ 19. Watch a video on the Boston Female Anti-Slavery Society

Join Ranger Amelia as she introduces this abolitionist organization that laid the foundation for women’s entry into political activism.

☐ 20. Check out Revolutionary Spaces’ virtual exhibit on Crispus Attucks, victim of the Boston Massacre

This exhibit explores the life of Attucks as a man of Indigenous and African descent, the fateful day of the Boston Massacre, and the constantly evolving legacy of Attucks in the centuries that have followed.

 

Frontispiece engraving of Phillis Wheatley.

National Portrait Gallery

☐ 21. Recite the poetry of Phillis Wheatley, acclaimed 18^th century poet

As a child, Wheatley became enslaved in Senegal and sent to Boston. After learning how to read and write, she began writing poetry as a teenager. Wheatley published her first collection of poetry in 1773 to international acclaim, becoming the first known African American woman to do so.

☐ 22. Follow the routes of freedom seekers who traveled to Boston

Individuals risked capture, arrest, and punishment as they navigated the Underground Railroad in search of freedom. Our story maps of Thomas Sims, William and Ellen Craft, Shadrach Minkins, Anthony Burns, and others show the various paths north taken by those hoping to escape slavery.

☐ 23. "Throwback” with this 1987 video of the African Meeting House Restoration

After acquiring the historic space in 1972, the Museum of African American History and the National Park Service undertook a massive restoration project in 1987. The interior of the sanctuary we see today is the result of a second restoration completed in 2011, designed to return the African Meeting House to its 1855 appearance. To learn more about the 1987 restoration project, watch this video.

 

☐ 24. Become a Junior Ranger!

Complete our Junior Ranger Activity Book and join others who have pledged to learn about and protect Boston African American National Historic Site for generations to come.

☐ 25. Take a Virtual Black Heritage Trail® Tour

Through the Virtual Black Heritage Trail® Tour you can explore all of the sites on the trail. This website will guide you as you walk the trail yourself, or allow you to learn the stories of activism, bravery, and resilience from your own home.

 

Smith Court in Beacon Hill

NPS Photo

☐ 26. Tap into the history of Smith Court

Smith Court Stories, a digital classroom, features the history of Beacon Hill’s Smith Court. Stories featuring the topics of Activism, Education, and Community incorporate a digitally curated collection of archival documents and archaeological artifacts that show how this court served as the center of Boston’s African American community in the 19^th and early 20^th centuries.

☐ 27. Find a Black History Trail near you

Learn about local Black History by locating a Black History Trail in your community or by contacting your local historical society.

 

Cartoon of Anthony Burns, c. 1855

Library of Congress

☐ 28. Trace the events leading to the rendition of Anthony Burns

Anthony Burns escaped slavery in Virginia by navigating the Underground Railroad north to Boston. Arrested under the 1850 Fugitive Slave Act, Burns stood trial in Boston in a case that galvanized the city and nation. Watch the video A Man Kidnapped! The Rendition of Anthony Burns to learn about the turbulent days in 1854 surrounding the arrest and rendition of Anthony Burns and how Bostonians responded.

☐ 29. Discover the vibrant LGBTQ+ history of Boston

While Beacon Hill served as a center for the Black community in the 19^th century, it also has strong ties to Boston’s LGBTQ+ history. Explore our website to learn more about the various LGBTQ+ figures connected to our sites, including Charles Sumner and Prescott Townsend.

☐ 30. Support your local Black History Museums

Numerous institutions throughout the United States celebrate and preserve African and African American art, history, and culture. Boston serves as home to several institutions, including the Dillaway Thomas House at Roxbury Heritage State Park, the National Center of Afro-American Artists, and our partner, the Museum of African American History. Not sure where to get started? The Association of African American Museums provides a growing directory of affiliated institutions.

☐ 31. Get artsy!

Express yourself by coloring the 54^th Massachusetts Memorial, the African Meeting House, or the Charles Street Meeting House. Inspired by one of our sites or stories? Share your artwork with us on social media by tagging us and using the hashtag #BOAF40 in your post!

 

Shaw Memorial Cast at Saint-Gaudens National Historical Park

NPS Photo

☐ 32. Learn about the creator of the 54^th Massachusetts Regiment Memorial, Augustus Saint-Gaudens

Study the life and art of August Saint-Gaudens, the iconic sculptor of the 54^th Massachusetts Regiment Memorial. Saint-Gaudens National Historical Park encourages you to “Step into the world of one of America’s greatest artists,” where you can learn about his sculptures, including the 54^th Massachusetts Regiment Memorial.

 

☐ 33. Investigate the cases that upended slavery in Massachusetts’ Judicial System

In Massachusetts, several enslaved people filed “freedom suits” against their enslavers, arguing that the state constitution guaranteed their freedom. Three of these individuals, Quock Walker, Elizabeth Mumbet Freeman, and Belinda Sutton, paved the way for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to outlaw slavery.

☐ 34. Have a discussion on race

Use the National Museum of African American History and Culture’s “Talking about Race” resources to reflect on the historical roots of racism and how it impacts our society today. With friends and family, consider how your race “shapes [your] experience in society,” and how you can help create a more just and equitable world.

☐ 35. See the Black Heritage Trail® on “Boston Uncovered”

Join the Museum of African American History and the City of Boston on a quick tour of the Black Heritage Trail® through the web series: “Boston Uncovered.”

 

Spectator. "A crusade against slavery and counterfeit Christianity" (Boston, ca. 1850)

"Boston's Crusade Against Slavery" Digital Exhibit, Harvard University

☐ 36. Explore Boston’s anti-slavery history from Revolution to Reconstruction

Harvard University’s digital exhibit "Boston’s Crusade Against Slavery" tracks the history of anti-slavery activism in Boston and Massachusetts. Featuring items in Houghton Library’s collection, students and professors collaborated with Boston African American National Historic Site in developing this exhibit.

☐ 37. Dive into the archives to learn more about the history of Boston’s Black community

While finding Black voices in the archives can sometimes prove challenging, several Boston institutions have been working to elevate and record Black history in Boston. Boston Public Library, Northeastern University, and the Massachusetts Historical Society are among those that have digitally-accessible resources for interested viewers.

☐ 38. Take a crash course on the Underground Railroad in Boston

Boston: An Underground Railroad Hub provides articles and interactive digital maps that share stories of freedom seekers and Underground Railroad operatives in Boston. Check out Mapping the Underground Railroad in Boston to learn about different places and people in Boston’s Underground Railroad network.

 

Portrait of abolitionist Lewis Hayden

Public Domain

☐ 39. Be inspired by the life of abolitionist Lewis Hayden

Watch the Network to Freedom’s film, “Fighting For Freedom: Lewis Hayden and the Underground Railroad,” an 18-minute film about Boston’s legendary Underground Railroad leader. It follows the story of Lewis Hayden's escape from slavery to Massachusetts and the Underground Railroad network that spanned the United States and beyond. The film incorporates original cinematography, historically accurate re-enactments, and archival documents, including a letter Hayden sent to his former slave owner upon reaching Canada.

☐ 40. Explore other Network to Freedom sites

Established in 1998, the Network to Freedom collaborates with organizations and government entities to “honor, preserve, and promote the history of resistance to enslavement through escape and flight.” With over 600 Network to Freedom locations and programs in the United States, check out their website to see if one is near you!

☐ BONUS: Share a favorite memory of BOAF!

Over the past 40 years of Boston African American National Historic Site, we have collaborated with numerous partners, worked with thousands of students, and engaged the public in programs, tours, and events. We would love to hear memories of your experiences with us in social media posts. Be sure to tag us and use the hashtag #BOAF40 in your post!