From Absence to Presence, Commemorative to Enslaved Peoples of Southern Maryland (St. Mary's City, Maryland)
Dublin Core
Title
From Absence to Presence, Commemorative to Enslaved Peoples of Southern Maryland (St. Mary's City, Maryland)
Subject
Subject (Topic)
Enslaved persons
Maryland--St. Mary's City
Public art
Public sculpture
St. Mary's College of Maryland
Slavery--Maryland
Enslaved persons
Maryland--St. Mary's City
Public art
Public sculpture
St. Mary's College of Maryland
Slavery--Maryland
Subject (Object Type)
Commemorative sculpture
Commemorative sculpture
Description
The installation is shaped to evoke the frame of a slave cabin, constructed from alternating horizontal rows of wooden clapboards and mirror-polished, stainless-steel panels. The reflective surfaces mirror the surrounding environment, while the hollow interior, which is inaccessible to the public, suggests a private space for reflection and introspection. Inscribed across the stainless-steel panels are redacted text from slave advertisements and runaway slave notices from Southern Maryland—erasure poetry by Quenton Baker—that extend across the walls and roof, weaving erased memory and acts of commemoration into the entire structure.
Creator
Allbritton, Shane, 1974-
RE:site Studio
RE:site Studio
Lee, Norman, 1972-
RE:site Studio
RE:site Studio
Baker, Quenton (poet), 1985-
Date
November 20, 2020
Contributor
METALAB (design optimization/management); Merge Studios (fabrication/installation); The Commemorative Selection Committee; St. Mary's College of Maryland; Governor Larry J. Hogan and the State of Maryland; Dr. Jeffrey J. Byrd and Mrs. Elizabeth A. Byrd; Maryland Heritage Areas Authority; Maryland State Arts Council; Southern Maryland Heritage Area Consortium
Rights
St. Mary's College of Maryland, 47645 College Drive, St. Mary's City, Maryland, 20686, United States
Format
JPEG
Language
English
Type
Building and Structures
Visual Arts-Sculpture
Visual Arts-Sculpture
Coverage
47777 Mattapany Road, St. Mary's City, Maryland, 20686, United States
Has Part
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 built 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.
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 built 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.
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. Rows of erasure poetry are cut from mirrored surfaces, creating an oscillation between legibility and illegibility. We experience the loss or un-speakability within fragment historical narratives of slavery. The words of archival documents, from St. Mary's County, of historical runaway slave advertisements are "redacted" by clapboards to reveal an emergent narrative of enslaved people. The reflective nature of the walls suggests that even as viewers of the present day, we are not to penetrate the sacred private space of the enslaved people who were once present at the site.
The Commemoration creates a juxtaposition between the current site of a campus sports field with the past of a slave plantation field, causing us to reflect on how our lives are connected to the lives of the enslaved peoples throughout history.
At night, the words of poetry are illuminated and projected upon the ground, recalling the starburst motif found on some of the stoneware artifacts discovered at the St. Barbara's site. Academics speculate the star form may symbolize Anansi, a character originating in Asante folklore who unites society against hostile outside forces. Anansi undermined the plantation system, resiting slavery through self-emancipation.
The starburst form also evokes the North Star, which played a key role in helping enslaved peoples to find their way: a beacon to truth north and freedom. The illuminated structure appears as a beacon keeping eternal vigil to the memory and resilience of the enslaved peoples who once lived, loved, worked and resisted on the grounds of St. Mary's College.
Artists: Shane Albritton and Norman Lee (RE:site) with poet Quenton Baker.
Commissioning Agent: St. Mary's College of Maryland
This project was made possible with funds from: The State of Maryland, St. Mary's College of Maryland, Maryland State Arts Council, Maryland Heritage Areas Authority, Southern Maryland Heritage Area Consortium, Elizabeth and Jeffry Byrd.
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. Rows of erasure poetry are cut from mirrored surfaces, creating an oscillation between legibility and illegibility. We experience the loss or un-speakability within fragment historical narratives of slavery. The words of archival documents, from St. Mary's County, of historical runaway slave advertisements are "redacted" by clapboards to reveal an emergent narrative of enslaved people. The reflective nature of the walls suggests that even as viewers of the present day, we are not to penetrate the sacred private space of the enslaved people who were once present at the site.
The Commemoration creates a juxtaposition between the current site of a campus sports field with the past of a slave plantation field, causing us to reflect on how our lives are connected to the lives of the enslaved peoples throughout history.
At night, the words of poetry are illuminated and projected upon the ground, recalling the starburst motif found on some of the stoneware artifacts discovered at the St. Barbara's site. Academics speculate the star form may symbolize Anansi, a character originating in Asante folklore who unites society against hostile outside forces. Anansi undermined the plantation system, resiting slavery through self-emancipation.
The starburst form also evokes the North Star, which played a key role in helping enslaved peoples to find their way: a beacon to truth north and freedom. The illuminated structure appears as a beacon keeping eternal vigil to the memory and resilience of the enslaved peoples who once lived, loved, worked and resisted on the grounds of St. Mary's College.
Artists: Shane Albritton and Norman Lee (RE:site) with poet Quenton Baker.
Commissioning Agent: St. Mary's College of Maryland
This project was made possible with funds from: The State of Maryland, St. Mary's College of Maryland, Maryland State Arts Council, Maryland Heritage Areas Authority, Southern Maryland Heritage Area Consortium, Elizabeth and Jeffry Byrd.
Extent
240 x 180 in. (609.6 x 457.2 cm)
Medium
Steel frame; Polished mirror stainless steel; Tropical hardwood
Bibliographic Citation
St. Mary's College of Maryland. "About the Commemorative." Accessed May 3, 2021. https://www.smcm.edu/honoring-enslaved/about-commemorative/.
SEGD. "From Absence to Presence, The Commemorative to Enslaved Peoples of Southern Maryland: Honor Award 2022." SEGD, Projects. Accessed February 10, 2026. https://segd.org/projects/from-absence-to-presence-commemorative-to-enslaved-peoples-of-southern-maryland/.
King, Julia A. "Notice is Hereby Given: The Commemorative to Enslaved Peoples of Southern Maryland." In Grappling with Monuments of Oppression, eds. Christopher C. Fennell. 156-171. Routledge, 2025.
Wilder, Craig Steven. Ebony and Ivy: Race, Slavery, and the Troubled History of America's Universities. Bloomsbury Publishing, 2014.
Rights Holder
Renée Ater
Still Image Item Type Metadata
Original Format
Sculpture
Physical Dimensions
240 x 180 in. (609.6 x 457.2 cm)
Collection
Citation
Allbritton, Shane, 1974-RE:site Studio
, Lee, Norman, 1972-RE:site Studio
, and Baker, Quenton (poet), 1985-, “From Absence to Presence, Commemorative to Enslaved Peoples of Southern Maryland (St. Mary's City, Maryland),” Contemporary Monuments to the Slave Past, accessed October 1, 2026, https://slaverymonuments.org/items/show/1213.