Black Heritage: StoryWays
Mary Francis Fair Burks "a Force to be Reckoned with:" An Educator, a Scholar and a Civil Rights ActivistDr. Clara Small, a retired Salisbury University professor, a local historian, and specialist in African American heritage on the shore, has written the story of Mary Francis Fair Burks, learn about this educator, scholar and civil rights activists here.
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The Unforgettable Legacy of Kemit Travers, Sr. : Journeying with the Last Black Skipjack Captain.Dr. Clara Small, a retired Salisbury University professor, a local historian, and specialist in African American heritage on the shore, has written the story of Captain Kermit Travers, Sr. Learn about the last black skipjack captain here.
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From Princess Anne to Powerhouse: The Inspiring Story of John A. Wilson, D.C.'s Trailblazing Clivil Rights ActivistDr. Clara Small, a retired Salisbury University professor, a local historian, and specialist in African American heritage on the shore, has written the story of John A. Wilson. Learn this local hero here.
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The Fight Against Jim Crow Transportation on the Eastern ShoreAndre Nieto Jaime, a Salisbury University graduate with a passion for local history, has written an article describing the Eastern Shore's struggle against Maryland's 1904 "Kerbin Act," a Jim Crow law that required segregation on trains and steamboats. Learn how the Black community banded together to get the law repealed in a movement that lasted nearly half a century.
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Women of the 6888thIn World War II, 150,000 American women had enlisted in the military, but only four percent were African American. The 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion, an all-Black battalion in the WAC under the command of Major Charity Adams that was tasked with various support roles including postal work. Out of the 855 women that served in the 6888th, nineteen have connections to Maryland, four of which were originally from the Eastern Shore.
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Warriors Beyond the Battlefield
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Our short documentary, Warriors Beyond the Battlefield, highlighting the untold stories of brave African Americans who have served in the United States military from the Civil War to present day, was voted Audience Choice Award during the Ocean City Film Festival. Featuring personal, emotional narratives and archival resources, the documentary explores struggles against racial injustice, key contributions to American history, and the complex legacy of service and sacrifice. Unscene Productions, producer of the documentary, has been invited to the Chesapeake Film Festival in October.
We’re beyond grateful for the opportunity to bring Beach to Bays’ vision to life and to shine a light on these incredible individuals. Thank you to our cast and crew that made this film possible: Cast: Deborah Scott Wallace Purcell George Purcell Newell Quinton Willie Nicholson |
Driving Tour of Faith and FreedomNOTE: You can download the file by clicking on the link to the right. You can also click on the image and see the entire driving tour in pdf form. That image also gives you the option of downloading the file, but you have to log into the scribd system to do that. The download link at the top is easier
StoryWays: A Journey of Faith & Freedom on Maryland's Eastern Shore is our African American heritage driving tour of Maryland's Lower Eastern Shore. Click on the image to the right to get access to the brochure. This area encompasses Wicomico County, Worcester County and Somerset County. There are cemeteries, homes, churches, schools and more that will take you back in time on a journey of faith and freedom on the Eastern Shore. Come explore with the Beach to Bay Heritage Area as we take you on a driving tour through 300 years of African American history.
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* The information on Dr. Charles Albert Tindley contains an incorrect statement. Dr. Tindley did not pen "We Shall Overcome" or "Stand By Me," but rather his hymns were inspirations for those songs. We apologize for the error.
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Black Heritage Murals
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Beach to Bay Heritage Area Dedicates Mural of Dr. Charles Albert TindleyThe sun shone in downtown Berlin on June 18, 2022 after days of rain and scorching heat. Jay F. Coleman, the muralist hired to paint a tribute to Dr. Charles Albert Tindley on the side of the Bruder Hill building in downtown Berlin, painted into the middle of the night to ensure that the mural was complete for the dedication in the morning. Tindley family members from far and wide joined the local family members to remember the man and his amazing accomplishments. The Tindley family choir sang hymns penned by Dr. Tindley.
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Beach to Bay Heritage Area Dedicates Mural Honoring Seventeen Individuals Who Helped Shape CrisfieldOn Saturday, October 5th, 2024, the Beach to Bay Heritage Area alongside the City of Crisfield, artist Michael Rosato, and the Crisfield community, celebrated a new mural honoring seventeen individuals who made an impact in Crisfield. From the area's first Black physician to the first skipjack owner in America, these monumental figures have helped shape the community into what it is today.
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Photo Credits: Lauren Roberts/Salisbury Daily Times
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Beach to Bay Heritage Area Celebrates Mural of Frederick DouglassOn October 15th, 2024, the Beach to Bay Heritage Area, Perdue, We Are Limitless Studios, the City of Salisbury, and the community held a ribbon cutting ceremony for the new Frederick Douglass mural commemorating Douglass' visit to Salisbury in 1880 to lecture at the Wicomico County courthouse. The mural was painted on the side of one of Perdue's buildings on 513 W. Main St. in Salisbury and will reflect a piece of our cultural heritage for years to come.
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Enduring Connections
Exploring Delmarva's Black History
A digital humanities project by the Nabb Research Center at Salisbury University
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Enduring Connections is a digital humanities project by the Edward H. Nabb Research Center at Salisbury University. Featuring a searchable database with digitized archival material, it highlights the deep history of Black communities across the Delmarva Peninsula. These sources reveal elements of Black life as well as important connections within them.
Explore their database and browse through:
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Black Heritage on the Lower Eastern Shore
African Americans were an integral part of the cultural heritage of the Eastern Shore. While the slave trade began in the 1640s, it did not slow down until the 1780s and did not finally end until the mid-nineteenth century. Though this region did not have many large slave holding, agrarian based estates, slavery did exist. In some cases, the lower Eastern Shore served as "market" for slave buyers from the western shore of Virginia. There are also cases of some slaves attaining early freedom, but their freedom may have been marginal at best with little improvement over slavery itself.
Later, as the seafood industry became the economic backbone of the region, African-Americans were an integral part of the workforce, particularly in the processing plants. Today, African-Americans are prominent citizens of the lower Eastern Shore and can still be found as a driving force in the seafood industry, agriculture, education and tourism. Princess Anne houses the University of Maryland Eastern Shore, a historic land grant university to educated young black men and women, which opened its doors in 1886. Today its multi-racial campus hosts faculty and students from throughout the world.
Prominent blacks from the past include Isaiah Fasset of Berlin, who was one of the last living Civil War veterans when he died in 1946; folk hero Sampson Harmon or "Sampson Hat", as he is known in "The Entailed Hat" a novel by George A. Townsend. He died at 106 and is buried in Furnace Town with his cat Tom. Some say that their ghosts can still be seen; William "Judy" Johnson of Snow Hill played over 3,000 baseball games for the Negro League from 1918 to 1939 and has been inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Later, as the seafood industry became the economic backbone of the region, African-Americans were an integral part of the workforce, particularly in the processing plants. Today, African-Americans are prominent citizens of the lower Eastern Shore and can still be found as a driving force in the seafood industry, agriculture, education and tourism. Princess Anne houses the University of Maryland Eastern Shore, a historic land grant university to educated young black men and women, which opened its doors in 1886. Today its multi-racial campus hosts faculty and students from throughout the world.
Prominent blacks from the past include Isaiah Fasset of Berlin, who was one of the last living Civil War veterans when he died in 1946; folk hero Sampson Harmon or "Sampson Hat", as he is known in "The Entailed Hat" a novel by George A. Townsend. He died at 106 and is buried in Furnace Town with his cat Tom. Some say that their ghosts can still be seen; William "Judy" Johnson of Snow Hill played over 3,000 baseball games for the Negro League from 1918 to 1939 and has been inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.
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Julius "Judy" Johnson Cooperstown Baseball Hall of Fame
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San Domingo, one of the few remaining Rosenwald Schools. Built in 1919
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Sign project by Lower Eastern Shore Heritage Area commemorating San Domingo School
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New Interpretive Signs
