Credits

Lucy Terry Prince: African American Experiences in Early Rural New England

This project will produce an engaging website that will increase understanding of New England slavery and African Americans in early rural New England. Its focus will be on Lucy Terry Prince, the first documented African American poet. Her life, from birth and captivity in Africa c.1726 to enslavement in Deerfield, MA, to her death as a free woman in Vermont in 1821, encompasses key experiences in the lives of African Americans. Lucy’s life illuminates important aspects of the Revolutionary era: a) how the slave trade and enslaved African American labor were instrumental in creating a thriving maritime economy in colonial New England; b) how desire for independence fueled by that economy gave rise to Revolutionary political principles that enslaved people seized upon to obtain their freedom; c) how African Americans struggled to enact those principles after the Revolution; and d) how, in this context, African Americans cultivated and expressed their humanity and self-determination.

The Lucy Terry Prince website project grew out of PVMA’s African Americans in Rural New England project. Starting in 1994, the project has included an illustrated booklet Lucy Terry Prince: Singer of History by PVMA’s librarian, artist-in-residencies, African American history featured on our websites, installations memorializing African Americans, printed interpretive material of 23 African American sites in Deerfield, Black history exhibits, Juneteenth concerts, events, student and teacher programs, and an extensive database of early African American presence in the region.

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• © 2024
  Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this prototype website do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

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• This prototype website has been made possible in part by the National Endowment for the Humanities: Democracy demands wisdom.

• Project Director
• Timothy C. Neumann, Executive Director, PVMA

• Project Manager
• Dr. Barbara Mathews

• Website Designer
• Juliet Jacobson, Digital Gizmo

• Website programmer
• Don Button, Digital Gizmo

• Advising Scholars
• Dr. Joanne Pope Melish, co-lead scholar; Associate Professor Emerita, University of Kentucky
  Dr. Christy Clark-Pujara, co-lead scholar; Professor of History, University of Wisconsin
  Dr. Richard Bailey, Associate Professor of History, Canisius College
  Dr. Antonio Bly, Associate Professor of History, Sacramento State University
  Dr. Thomas Doughton, senior lecturer, Center for Interdisciplinary and Special Studies at the College of the Holy Cross (deceased February 2024)
  Dr. Jared Hardesty, Associate Professor of History at Western Washington University
  Dr. Tom Scheinfeldt, Professor of Digital Humanities, Department of Digital Media & Design/Department of History, University of Connecticut

• Research and Writing
• Dr. Barbara Mathews, Editorial Director
  Lynne Manring, PVMA Director of Youth Programs

• Illustrations
• David E. Cooper

• Website evaluation
• Kate Livingston, Expose Your Museum

• Donors
• Fox Rock Foundation
  Members and donors of the Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association, Deerfield, Massachusetts Massachusetts Cultural Council

• Contact Us
• We hope you enjoy exploring this website and would be happy to hear from you with questions or feedback about the site.
  
  Contact Information:
  Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association
  10 Memorial Street, PO Box 428
  Deerfield, Massachusetts 01342-0428
  [email protected], 413-774-7476