Monday, April 18, 2016

Introducing, the Black History Seekers of Baltimore County Maryland

Betty Stewart, Aureilia Whelchal  William Holliefield, Angela Walton-Raji on in the field exploring sites.



"We are not makers of history, we are made by history"
Dr. Martin Luther King
~~~~~

It is time for an introduction. We are a small group of history enthusiasts have decided to roll up our sleeves and explore the African ancestored history of Baltimore County.

The goal is to see what kinds of stories can be found, and to also walk the grounds and document the history of the people, and places that are part of the African American community. The group is focusing upon, but not limited to, the western part of the county. This includes Granite, Woodstock, Randallstown, Windsor Mill, Woodlawn, Catonsville, Reisterstown, and more.

Goals

The  goal is to go into the field, to explore find lost places, hear lost stories and document lost burial sites that are part of that story.
The goal is to identify some of those old landmarks, and photograph them as they appear today.
The goal is also to meet those people who contain the stories about many of those places.
The goal is to also support others who share the same interest in history, so that it will be preserved.

We shall go into the field, visiting old sites, including churches, cemeteries, schools and work sites. We shall also explore the records both federal and county, and we shall examine papers of both pre-and post Civil War era. In addition, we are interested in documenting 19th and 20th century records as well, and hope to tell the missing stories, and to put them back upon the historical landscape from which they came.

We also appreciate and acknowledge the work already shown in previous articles, and books about the region. Included among the works we admire are the efforts shown by Mr. Louis Diggs who assembled several books about Baltimore County over the years.

So, Our Projects Begin
One of the first projects of the Black History Seekers, has been to look at the African American history in the Woodstock, Granite Maryland area. In 2003 a survey of the African American districts in western Baltimore county focusing on Granite Maryland was conducted. The result of that survey is available online. From that survey there is much that can be gleaned about the community. In addition, there are images of properties owned by African Americans are included in the report as well as the names of some of the early Black residents of the community.

Readers are welcome to join us, share your old images, stories and artifacts that reflect the history of African American communities in Western Baltimore County Maryland.

~The Black History Seekers of Baltimore County~
Noreen Goodson
William Hollifield
Betty Stewart
Angela Walton-Raji
Aurelia Whelchal




5 comments:

  1. Hello:
    How do I join you? Do have a schedule for your outings in 2018? Does each person specialize in a particular area (i.e. oral histories, records research, etc.)?
    Thank you

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  2. Hello, I am the great great grandson of Wyatt and Betsie Mahardy. Thank you for your insight on my ancestors testimonies. Please feel free to contact me at my e-mail address nolan6447@yahoo.com.

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  3. Thank you so much for doing that article on my grandfather Clem Narcisse. It was so nice to find this information. I was able to find my families census from 1930 and his marriage license to my grandmother as well as his death certificate.

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  4. Hello Sir. I am the great great great great granddaughter of Betsy Mahardy and Sam Bruner. Their son, Richard Bruner was the father of Elizabeth Bruner Jackson my great great grandmother. She is buried in the same cemetery with them all. I would love to connect with extend family as we have limited information. My email address is lady.tjwilson@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete