New York Almanack

History, Natural History & the Arts

John Brown Lives

Ceremony To Celebrate Renaming Adirondack Stream in Honor of Black Settler

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John Thomas Brook, formerly known as Negro Brook in Franklin County, NYOn Saturday, September 16th at noon there will be a public unveiling of a historic roadside marker to celebrate the recent naming of John Thomas Brook. The new name pays homage to 19th-century Black settler John Thomas.

Thomas escaped enslavement in Maryland and established a successful farm near the small stream in Vermontville that was formerly known pejoratively as “N***** Brook,” then as “Negro Brook.” Thomas, his wife Mary, and their son, Richard, are buried in Union Cemetery in Vermontville, in Franklin County, NY. [Read more…] about Ceremony To Celebrate Renaming Adirondack Stream in Honor of Black Settler

North Country Colors of Freedom Community Award Nominees Sought

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north star underground railroad musuemThe North Star Underground Railroad Museum at Ausable Chasm, NY, is seeking nominees for their North Country Juneteenth Colors of Freedom Community Award, which celebrates the region’s role in the fight against slavery. This year’s event will take place on June 17th, 18th, 19th, and 20th. [Read more…] about North Country Colors of Freedom Community Award Nominees Sought

Freedom Story Project Continues to Collect Stories

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Freedom Story ProjectThanks to a grant from AARP Community Challenge, John Brown Lives! (JBL!) is continuing to collect first person narratives which seek to bridge generational boundaries while collecting freedom and justice narratives, using the OurStoryBridge model, as part of their “Freedom Story Project.” [Read more…] about Freedom Story Project Continues to Collect Stories

$100K Awarded To Museum Educators

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Pomeroy FundThe Pomeroy Fund for NYS History has awarded 20 history-related organizations across New York State $5,000 each during its fifth grant round to bring back or hire museum educators. [Read more…] about $100K Awarded To Museum Educators

North Country ‘Colors of Freedom Tour’ to Celebrate Juneteenth

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colors-of-freedom-banner-2022Clinton and Essex counties were a center of the roiling abolition controversies before the Civil War, helping many freedom-seekers fleeing enslavement follow the Lake Champlain corridor to Canada in the 1830s, 1840s and 1850s.

A first-ever North Country Juneteenth celebration of the region’s role in the fight against slavery will highlight Underground Railroad work in the area, as well as prominent anti-slavery Quakers and abolitionist John Brown. [Read more…] about North Country ‘Colors of Freedom Tour’ to Celebrate Juneteenth

‘Blues at Timbuctoo’ Music Event At John Brown Farm Sunday

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blues at timbuctooJohn Brown Lives! and Grand Adirondack Hotel will present the 7th annual Blues at Timbuctoo featuring Jerry Dugger; Karl Schwarz; Split Rock Ramblers; Soul Sky Duo with Mark Emanatian and Jeremy Walz on Sunday, September 19th, from noon to 5 pm. [Read more…] about ‘Blues at Timbuctoo’ Music Event At John Brown Farm Sunday

John Brown Lives! Marking 125 Years of John Brown Farm Historic Site

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John Brown Lives 125th Anniversary CommemorationJohn Brown Lives! will commemorate the 125th anniversary of the State of New York acquisition of the John Brown Farm State Historic Site, home of abolitionists John and Mary Brown on the condition that it be used “as a public park or reservation forever,” on Saturday, July 17th. [Read more…] about John Brown Lives! Marking 125 Years of John Brown Farm Historic Site

A Prison in the Woods: Environment & Incarceration in the North Country

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John Brown Lives! has announced A Prison in the Woods: Environment and Incarceration in the North Country, a virtual book talk with author Clarence Jefferson Hall, Jr. set for Wednesday, May 19th. [Read more…] about A Prison in the Woods: Environment & Incarceration in the North Country