The story does not end with slavery. In this lecture, historians Teresa Vega, local genealogist and family historian, and Maisa Tisdale President and CEO at The Mary & Eliza Freeman Center, will tell us about two free Black communities in Fairfield Country, CT. Originating during time of slavery, Hangroot and Little Liberia outlasted the institution that once bound their residents and created important networks of family and fellowship within the region.
Hangroot, a little known and long-lost Greenwich community of Native and African Americans, was once situated in the north of Greenwich. The name “Hangroot” refers to the use of root cellars and storage of winter vegetables hanging from rafters in the basements. This largely farming community was home to almost 200 people, including Teresa’s ancestors, at its height of its inhabitance.
Little Liberia was a seafaring community of free people of color located in Bridgeport. It boasted Bridgeport’s first free lending library, a school for children of color, businesses, fraternal organizations, and churches. Of about 36 structures that comprised Little Liberia, only the Freeman Houses survive on original foundations. The Freeman Houses are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Join us to learn about the creation and lasting impact of these incredible communities.
This Program is done in Collaboration between the Greenwich Historical Society and NorSC (The Northern Slavery Collective).