News Release
NPS
Release Date: February 12, 2024
Contact: Annette Rousseau, Program Manager
Finding Julia: Centering Black Women in Antebellum History Discussion
KINDERHOOK, New York – Martin Van Buren NHS and Columbia County Libraries invite the public to join a discussion on the life of Julia Chinn, a remarkable Black woman who was the enslaved wife of Van Buren's Vice President Richard Mentor Johnson.
Her story was suppressed and nearly forgotten until scholar Amrita Chakrabarti Myers embarked on a decade-long search for the truth in the new biography, The Vice President's Black Wife: The Untold Life of Julia Chinn.
Rangers will present topics: Crossing the Color Line - the social construction of race; Keeping the Family Together - the choices Julia made; and the Racist Archive - why don't we know this story? Each topic will be followed by a discussion period for questions and comments.
Join the free discussion and conversation in person at the Kinderhook Library on Sunday, February 25th. Register by emailing e-mail us.Or to attend virtually via zoom, email columbiacountylibraries@gmail.com.
For more information, email Martin Van Buren National Historic Site e-mail us, follow us on social media, or check our website at www.nps.gov/mava.
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Last updated: February 8, 2024