Newspapers / The Charlotte Post (Charlotte, … / Feb. 9, 2006, edition 1 / Page 12
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4B LIFE/tCtt CtiarUtte ^Kt Thursday, February 9, 2006 hstoty iMontn-^ Former slave goes out of bondage to the pulpit 77/A ASSOCIATED PRESS ST. PAUL—Robert T. Hickman, who received his surname from a prominent Missouri slave holder who owned him, was probably dassifred as “contraband” when he came to St. Paul dur ing the Civil War with a large group of black men, WDmen and children. Tlie new arrivals of 1863 saw themselves as “pilgrims” on a journey out of bondage. Tbday. Hickman’s portrait is etched in stained glass above the sanctuary of St. Paul’s Pilgrim Baptist Church, which he headed after becoming Minnesota’s first licensed black min ister The saga of the pilgrims is among the stories recounted in rebroadcasts this month of Twin Cities Public Tfelevision’s 2004 documentary “North Star Minnesota’s Black Pioneers,” A local theater artist, Brian Grandison, is also developing a play. “Adrift, on the Mississippi,” that dramatizes their journey The pilgrims who settled in St. Paul were part of a single-year influx that neariy doubled the state’s black population, which had num bered only about 260 in 1860. One of the first things a gioup of them did was organize a church, headed by Hickman, who had been a “slave preacher” in Missouri, But for more than a decade, Hickman officiat ed for funerals, weddings and other events, while ordained white preachers signed the doc uments of record- “I don’t think when Robert Hickman started out that he knew what the end results would be—that he would become an ordained minis ter, living in fiee territory and running a church in St. Paul,” Grandison said. “Life pulled him into events that were imexpected, which is indicative of the promise of what fi’ee- dom can bring ” However’ Minnesota’s new anivals received a mixed welcome. Aaiording to one account, a riverboat cany- ing some of the Hack immigrants and towing others on a makeshift raft, was prevented from docking in St. Paul by angry laborers who feared competition for menial jobs. The boat continued upriver to Fort Snelling, where the passengers disembarked without incident and fanned out to several areas in the state, according to the account. Grandison, who grew up in Jefferson City, Mo., says he has been trying to learn the details of events tliat took Hickman out of slav ery and brought him to Minnesota, He believes Hickman escaped slavery by joining the Union Army “By doing that, he would have been consid- Hampton University professor documents Rosenwald schools WE ASSOCIATED PRESS NORFOLK, Va.-Fast dis appearing finm the landscape of once rural South, Rosenwald schools are a reminder of the nation’s seg regated history and a philan thropist's goal to educate black children in the South and Southwest. T^ically, the structures are made of white clapboard fac ing east to west to capture the day’s light and have mature trees in the fix)nt yard to shade the porch. Many also are bordered by gardens used to teach students about grow ing plants. Tlie schools were named for Julius Rosenwald, a million aire who teamed with educa tor Booker T. Washington to build more than 5,300 school buildings in 15 in southern and southwestern states, according to^ the National 'IVust for Historic Preservation. The schools generally closed when pulidic schools integrated. Anne Pierce, an eissodate professor of education at Hampton University, is docu menting rural schools dating fix)m 1898 to 1948, where education graduates from Hampton Institute, as it was called then, established teaching gardens “It’s become a passion.” Pierce said. “When I take a drive or a trip in the South, I always look because they are so distinctive.” So far, Pierce’s project has identified about 14 to 15 com- mimity gardening sites, including the headmaster’s home for the former Gloucester Agricultural and Industrial School on Cappahosic Road in Gloucester. William G. Price, a member of the class of 1890 at Hampton Institute, served as principal of the school fix)m 1899 to 1933. Tlie school itself is gone, but the Price home cleariy shows the Rosenwald influence. Gertrude Hairy, an associ ate professor in the education department at Hampton University, has lived in the Price homestead for 24 years, and has foimd numerous early-1900s textbooks and student records left there. She grew up in Hampton, but spent many childhood sum mer days in Cappahosic. She feels a special closeness and commitment to the house, and plans to preserve its his toric image. “I believe I was given this opportunity, as an Afiican- American educator, to pre serve this part of history," she said Locating the schoolhouse sites is only the first step in Pierce’s project. Next, she hopes to record ca*al histories from people who went to those schools before they become too elderly to recall details or pass away Her pro ject is flmded by a grant fiom the \^iginia Foundation for the Humanities. We preserve millions of families' most valued possession; their history. for every wedduig.gruJuiiiion or new adUiiion lo yourlaniily. liisiory is Ix'ing ni:Kk-. i\aJ Uus is ilic rc-usoo Nutiunwidc uodcrsiamh ihc iniportiincc of cek-bnuimt Bl^ck Hii^ory Monlii. Wc ie aJwavs on yoor side lo lielp proleci llie tlunns lluu nie:m ibc mosa lo yvo; your ianuly, your lieasures... your lusiory. 1 877 On Your Side-' □ Nationwide' On Your Side' Auto Home Uk Buonas t=l tow mieiM tl>eN»t»-'a^i4ciM>»k»tf ifrntt cam 4NMai>avi4c SMa>llMKwcC«cifMlvX*Yovtid«UtCc«(«■(V^•rHla•4 t(« Mtricc auiluclXj>Ka«>ieMd(«ubf«BacCoap*aT. Miltnns4ae(vtmr«a4^ptoraj m m Opyc.i»»aity towtt Ulr ewKw« asiicnrccwa Hminfk ■ 4 lawpaiv Njinamlfk iihI (XSiat' (Ml We Salute Black History Month u Walter B. 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The Charlotte Post (Charlotte, N.C.)
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Feb. 9, 2006, edition 1
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