Telling the stories of local 'freedom seekers'
Telling the stories of local 'freedom seekers'
Plus the news of the week: New guidance on masks, a push for vaccines, city set to pass nondiscrimination ordinance, Hornets make acquisitions; And Teen Talk
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New exhibit at Historic Brattonsville, 45 minutes south of Charlotte, to highlight stories of escaped slaves; part of shift toward fuller picture of antebellum South
Historic Brattonsville, located in McConnells, S.C., about 45 minutes south of Charlotte, is working to share the experiences of enslaved men who escaped the plantation — part of a move toward telling history that incorporates the perspectives of a broader range of people. (Photos by Lindsey Banks)
by Lindsey Banks, QCity Metro
For years, Historic Brattonsville has sought to tell the stories of the enslaved people who lived, toiled and died there. Now the historic site outside of Rock Hill, S.C., is adding to its collection of narratives — by telling the stories of enslaved men who escaped.
Using newspaper records from the 19th century, Zach Lemhouse, a historian for York County’s Culture & Heritage Museums, has identified four “freedom seekers” — Bob, Lewis, Henry and a man named James Williams — who fled Bratton Plantation in search of freedom.
Those newspapers — The Mecklenburg Jeffersonian, The Lincoln Courier and The Yorkville Miscellany — each carried listings of runaway slaves submitted by their enslavers.
The Brattonsville exhibit comes on the heels of the once-popular television drama Underground, which aired for two seasons through 2017. It also comes as historic sites throughout the South are taking a fresh look at how they tell the complex story of American slavery.
Reflecting that trend, Lemhouse said Historic Brattonsville is trying to be “very intentional with telling the stories of the disenfranchised.”
The exhibit, he said, will be ready for public viewing in the near future.
Part of a national effort
The exhibition, still unfinished, will become part of the federal Network to Freedom program, which is administered by the National Park Service.
The Park Service currently lists 680 locations enrolled in the program. Historic Brattonsville was among 16 sites recently selected.
Lemhouse said he was excited that Historic Brattonsville was chosen because the location has “such an important story to tell about the enslaved African American population.”
The historic site works closely with actor-interpreters and local descendants whose ancestors were enslaved at Bratton Plantation.
The “freedom seekers” exhibit will focus in large part on James Williams, who escaped the plantation in 1865 to join the Union Army to fight against the Confederacy. He later returned to York County, where he advocated for civil rights for local residents who had been enslaved. He was lynched in 1871, according to Lemhouse and printed histories.
When the exhibit is complete, it will be housed in the site’s historic Brick House, which is currently under renovation.
Less is known about the other freedom seekers. Lemhouse said he hopes to uncover more as his research continues.
Reassessing the past
The narratives of American slavery and its lingering aftermath have triggered intense debate in recent years, especially as several U.S. cities have taken down Confederate monuments and mothballed other relics of the antebellum South.
Earlier this summer, Mecklenburg County cut ties with a nonprofit organization that had long managed Historic Latta Plantation in Huntersville. The separation came after the nonprofit, Historic Latta Inc., proposed a Juneteenth program that some critics viewed as sympathetic to the Confederacy.
All the while, many historic sites are embracing new narratives about slavery, Reconstruction and the Jim Crow era of racial segregation.
In an article published this year in the Washington Post, a reporter described Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia as having some of the most “progressive and insightful theater in America.” The historical site has made changes to include the city’s slaveholding past in every tour, telling the stories of its Black population in the 1700s.
Beth Kelly, Colonial Williamsburg’s vice president of education, told The Post that in the past, research at the site was always done with an Anglican-European point of view.
Earlier this year, Historic Columbia launched a new history trail that highlights historical sites and people dating back to Reconstruction, when the state had a majority-Black legislature.
“Our work for probably the last 15 years has really been about uncovering and preserving the true story of what happened on our properties and what life was like for people at that time,” Renee Chow, the organization’s director of marketing, told QCity Metro earlier this year.
Part of that effort, she said, has involved dispelling some “grand notions” about the Confederacy.
Living connections
Margaret Crawford Parson-Willins and Wali Cathcart represent one of seven Black families with ancestral connections to Historic Brattonsville. Their great-grandmother, Lila, was enslaved there in 1865.
The two cousins joined the descendants’ group in 2007.
Cathcart said he and Parson-Willins knew they were related and had ancestors from Brattonsville, but they didn’t know the specifics until Historic Brattonsville helped them make the connection.
“We didn’t get any information about her (Lila) as I was growing up because of the subject of slavery,” Parson-Willins said. “We African-Americans were hush-mouthed about that. We didn’t want to talk about it.”
Cousins Margaret Crawford Parson-Willins (left) and Wali Cathcart on the front porch of the Historic Brattonsville visitor’s center. They talked about their great-grandmother, Lila, who was enslaved on Bratton plantation until 1865.
With a personal goal to help change how history is taught, Parson-Willins said she joined the descendants’ group to show other descendants that they need not be ashamed of that history.
“My history books certainly didn’t have a lot, and today’s textbooks probably don’t have a lot of African American history,” she said. “I’m hoping to play a catalyst in getting that changed.”
Historic Brattonsville has been open for tours since 1977. Parson-Willins and Cathcart both said the site has improved significantly in telling the stories of enslaved people since they joined the descendant’s group.
“Early on when I came here, this issue of presenting the enslaved perspective was rather subdued,” Cathcart said. “That’s the case at many plantations. Brattonsville has come a long way, but there’s always room for more growth.”
He added:
“It’s not Black history; it’s American history. Slavery is a part of American history. To try to omit that or try to revise it, is omitting part of history that this country was constructed on. None of us are served well by ignoring it or trying to deny it. It will come back in the future to haunt you. Only the truth frees you.”
Lindsey Banks is a journalism student at UNC Chapel Hill who is a reporting intern for The Ledger and QCity Metro. This article originally appeared in QCity Metro and is republished with permission.
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Teen talk: Build your vocabulary
Impress and delight the young people in your life by using the words they use. The Ledger shows you how in this occasional Saturday feature.
Today’s word: Simp
Pronunciation: “simm-p”
Definition: A person, typically a male, who overly expresses affection and sympathy towards the person they like.
**Can also be used as a verb
Used in a sentence:
“I can’t believe you actually bought her flowers and a teddy bear! You’re such a simp.”
“Man, I just want to find a girl to simp over this summer.”
“If you want to get a girlfriend, you’ve gotta stop being such a simp! You have to play hard to get!”
Ledger analysis: Some dynamics of teenage dating appear to have changed little over the decades. This word seems to refer to an overly doting male, or someone who in earlier times would have been described as “whipped.”
—Caroline Mecia, age 18
This week in Charlotte: CMS votes for masks, city set to debate nondiscrimination ordinance, Hornets reload, real estate deals keep humming
On Saturdays, The Ledger sifts through the local news of the week and links to the top articles — even if they appeared somewhere else. We’ll help you get caught up. That’s what Saturdays are for.
Education
CMS votes for masks: (WFAE) The Charlotte-Mecklenburg school board voted 8-1 on Friday to require students and staff to wear masks at school. The vote follows new federal and state health recommendations to have all K-12 students masked while indoors, regardless of vaccination status. Many districts surrounding Mecklenburg had voted to make masks optional.
Politics
Nondiscrimination ordinance on the agenda: (WFAE) The City Council is scheduled to discuss passing an ordinance on Monday that would ban discrimination against LGBTQ customers and add protections against bias in the workplace. The Ledger on Wednesday took a closer look at what the workplace rules might mean for employers (🔒).
The return of “Smuggie”? (The Charlotte Post) Former City Council member James “Smuggie” Mitchell says he’s thinking about running for office again. He left the City Council in January to become president of R.J. Leeper Construction, which has contracts with the city. But he’s no longer with the company and says he’s “considering coming back and trying to serve our city in some public capacity.” He added: “If I run for public office, it would definitely be for Charlotte City Council.” He served on the council from 1999-2013 and 2015-2021.
Business
Grappling with changing rules on masks, vaccines: (Ledger 🔒) New health guidelines this week on masks and vaccines are prompting businesses to re-evaluate their policies. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said masks should be worn indoors, and a Labor Department memo said employers can require vaccinations as a condition of employment — which a local employment lawyer said could open the door to more companies mandating vaccines.
Tax worries hastening real estate deals: (Friday 🔒) Local real estate investors are accelerating deal-making so that transactions are completed by the end of the year, in fear that Washington will increase capital gains taxes and drastically reduce a popular tax-saving provision known as a “1031 exchange.”
Something brewing with EchoPark? (Forbes, Ledger 🔒) Sonic Automotive said that it has “initiated a review process to evaluate potential strategic alternatives for its EchoPark business.” It didn’t elaborate in a news release or a subsequent earnings conference call but said it has hired Lazard and Kirkland & Ellis LLP as financial and legal advisors. EchoPark hit sales records last quarter, the company said. The obvious alternatives might be selling it or spinning it off as a separate company.
Sports
New Hornets: (WCNC) The Charlotte Hornets selected guard James Bouknight from Connecticut in the first round of Thursday’s NBA draft and traded to acquire former Duke star and Detroit Pistons center Mason Plumlee.
From the Ledger family of newsletters
The future of Charlotte transportation: (Transit Time) What are the odds that self-driving cars, hydrogen-powered trains and Elon Musk’s tunnels are in Charlotte’s future? And will we ever get flying cars like The Jetsons or Chitty Chitty Bang Bang? Ely Portillo of UNC Charlotte’s Urban Institute takes a closer look at new technologies for getting around.
South Carolina cashes in on N.C. liquor shortage: (Monday) Liquor stores across the border in South Carolina say their shelves are almost full, while North Carolina ABC Stores are suffering from shortages.
Step forward for urban park: (Friday 🔒) A group that has proposed a 220-acre park near NoDa on the site of a rail yard says it is making progress toward the idea. Friends of Queens Park received a grant for planning the project and says it wants to start smaller with a park that does not involve Norfolk Southern.
Driving tests not required: (Friday 🔒) In North Carolina, 16-year-olds are able to get their provisional drivers’ licenses without having to take a driving test — and they can receive them after only six months of driving (down from 12 months). Teens still must take a road test to receive a full license.
Big dreams, big heart: (Ways of Life 🔒) Tim Thomas, 31, was a promising artist from Charlotte who graduated from Northwest School of the Arts with dreams of pursuing a theater career. “He was the best cheerleader for everybody,” his fiancé said.
Next phase of 2040 Plan: (Monday) The city has started developing maps that will eventually be used to determine development regulations, and it’s inviting public input.
The Corcoran connection: (Wednesday 🔒) Two local real estate companies have a connection to “Shark Tank” judge Barbara Corcoran.
Newspaper leadership vacancies: (Wednesday) North Carolina’s two largest newspapers, Raleigh’s News & Observer and The Charlotte Observer, are looking for new editors. The N&O’s editor was promoted, and the Observer’s editor announced this week she is leaving “to step back and find some balance in life.”
Country club ordered to produce records: (Wednesday 🔒) A judge ordered Myers Park Country Club to hand over financial records, in a lawsuit filed by a club member seeking information on a controversial $27M renovation.
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