On October 24th we hosted an enlightening online lecture with Marjory O’Toole. This lecture was free thanks to a grant from the Weston Cultural Council, supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council.

The recording of the lecture can be viewed on our YouTube channel. Link HERE.

In 2016 the Little Compton Historical Society marked the 200th anniversary of the end of slavery in their small Rhode Island community with a major public history project restoring the voices of over 250 historic people of color to the local history. The project included a book, If Jane Should Want to be Sold: Stories of Enslavement, Indenture, and Freedom in Little Compton, Rhode Island, an exhibit, a memorial, a research database with over 1000 primary sources, and a variety of public programs that explored Little Compton's 150 year history of slavery, indenture, and hard-fought freedom.

Executive Director Marjory O'Toole explained both the research and the public phases of the project, how the project was received by the community, and how other New England communities have been inspired to do similar work.

If you would like to read the book, you can purchase one here:

If Jane Should Want To Be Sold

This program was made possible by a grant from the Weston Cultural Council which is supported by the Mass Cultural Council, a state agency.