From Absence to Presence, The Commemorative to Enslaved Peoples of Southern Maryland (St. Mary's College of Maryland)]]> Subject (Topic)
Mid-Atlantic United States
Public art
Public sculpture
Slavery--Maryland
St. Mary's College of Maryland--History

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Commemorative sculpture]]> RE:site Studio

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RE:site Studio

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]]> here.]]> History of site information plaque:
From Absence to Presence
Commemorative to Enslaved Peoples of Southern Maryland

History of the Site
Between 1750 and 1815, this field was home to three or four enslaved households. They labored for John Hicks and later John Mackall, both planters whose wealth was bulit on slave labor. Here along Mattapatty Road--then the main route into St. Mary's City--this housing compound, and another one across the road, would have been visible to all who passed by.

In 2016, St. Mary's College of Maryland archaeologists unearthed fragments of brick, ceramics, tobacco pipes and bottle glass suggesting where these families' cabins once stood. The archaeologists believe the houses were probably of rough log construction with wooden chimneys and brick hearths. The cabins probably had few or no windows and dirt floors.

Inside the cabins and out of sight of plantation surveillance, the families furnished their homes with both plain and decorated ceramics, possibly purchased with money made selling garden vegetables. Traces of garden features were found in this vicinity and documents show that enslaved families or nearby plantations sold their produce in the neighborhood. Although enlsaved, the families living here were probably able to travel to nearby farms, to church, and to the store in nearby St. Inigoes.

In 1814, during the War of 1812, the British Navy issued a call to enslaved people in Southern Maryland to join against Americans and thereby earn their freedom. Nineteen men, women, and children enslaved by John Mackall heeded the call and joined the British. Based on the absence of artifacts after 1814, archaeologists suspect that some of these individuals may have come from this compound.

A short three years later, on Easter Monday in 1817, the memory of those who had self-emancipated still fresh in everyone's minds, free and enslaved, a group of an estimated 150-200 enslaved men gathered at a dram shop, or tavern, near the store in St. Inigoes. When the local constable attempted to break up the gathering, the men resisted, a melee ensued, and some men were arrested for insurrection. No doubt men from the Mackall plantation were involved in the uprising, although their names were not among the arrested.

By uncovering this hidden Black landscape, both here in St. Mary's City and throughout Southern Maryland, we can understand not only the unfinished work of the American Revolution, but the African American role in the struggle for freedom for all.

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Object information plaque:
From Absence to Presence
Commemorative to Enslaved Peoples of Southern Maryland

Activist Angela Davis described the sacredness of slave quarters in the lives of enslaved people as "the only space where they could truly experience themselves as human beings."

This form is inspired by the 'ghost frame' architecture found on the site of Historic St. Mary's City.]]>
Erasure Poetry
" Erasure poetry is a form of found poetry that is created by erasing, or redacting, words from an existing piece of prose or verse. The redactions allow poets to create symbolism while also putting a focus on the social and political meanings of erasure. New questions, suggestions, and meanings in existing pieces of writing are revealed through erasure poetry. The erasure poetry that covers the structure is adapted from historical documents related to the Mackall-Brome plantation — one of three known plantations located on the land around St. Mary’s City. These documents include slave property and runaway slave advertisements, newspaper articles, and slave depositions of the Mackall-Brome family. These poems become the walls and roof of the structure revealing powerful stories hidden within the language of a dark past. " From About the Commemorative.]]>
Visual Arts-Sculpture]]> https://www.smcm.edu/honoring-enslaved/about-commemorative/.]]>
Memorial for Enslaved Laborers (The University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA)]]> Slavery
Mid-Atlantic United States
Public art
Public sculpture]]>
Commemorative sculpture]]>
"The design of a new Memorial to Enslaved African American Laborers on the grounds of the University of Virginia marks a critical moment to address the complex history of the University—and of the country. The Memorial to Enslaved Laborers responds to a deep need to address an untold and uncomfortable history - one that is still very much a difficult, though necessary, national conversation on race. It is vital to highlight those African American historical sites, ones that are often hiding in plain sight.

UVA’s Memorial to Enslaved Laborers should create a physical place of remembrance and a symbolic acknowledgement of a difficult past. The memorial should become a place of learning as well as a place of healing. The memorial must address multiple constituencies on UVA grounds and within the Charlottesville community, in particular the descendants of African Americans who built, worked, and lived at the University.”

The memorial is part of a larger, ongoing process at the University spearheaded by the President's Commission on Slavery and the University (PCSU). PCSU began in 2013, guided by the work of groups such as Memorial for Enslaved Laborers (MEL), the UVA IDEA (Inclusion Diversity Equity Access) Fund, and University and Community Action for Racial Equity (UCARE).]]>
Memorial to Enslaved Laborers, President's Commission on Slavery and the University, University of Virginia]]> https://www.virginia.edu/slaverymemorial/goals.html

Mary Hughes, Alice J. Raucher, Mabel Wilson, J. Meejin Yoon. "The Memorial to Enslaved Laborers at the University of Virginia Panel Discussion." Accessed January 31, 2021: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=388_x4oYmq8

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Slavery Memorial (Brown University, Providence, RI)]]> Slavery
Northeastern United States
Public art
Public sculpture]]>
Commemorative sculpture]]> here.]]> Inscription on stone plinth:

"This memorial recognizes Brown University’s connection to the trans-Atlantic slave trade and the work of Africans and African-Americans, enslaved and free, who helped build our university, Rhode Island, and the nation."]]>
Dark Work: The Business of Slavery in Rhode Island. New York: NYU Press, 2018.]]>
Unsung Founders Memorial (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill)]]> Slavery
North Carolina--History
Southeastern United States
Public art
Public sculpture]]>
Commemorative sculpture]]> For a 'virtual tour' of the monument, please click here.


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Inscribed around the edge of the table:

"THE CLASS OF 2002 HONORS THE UNIVERSITY’S UNSUNG FOUNDERS — THE PEOPLE OF COLOR BOND AND FREE — WHO HELPED BUILD THE CAROLINA THAT WE CHERISH TODAY."]]>
35.913620 , -79.052120 )]]>