Thrilled to learn that I was awarded a Phyllis Wheatley Award for my article, “Not Yet Completely Free: Gradual Emancipation, and Moses Williams’ Family, Philadelphia 1776-1833.” from the Sons and Daughters of the US Middle Passage (SDUSMP)! The article is in the AAHGS Journal v.43 Winter issue.
The Phyllis Wheatley Award Ceremony is coming up on Friday, June 6, 2025, at 6:00 PM, as part of the SDUSMP’s 9th Annual Genealogy and Community Learning Conference. This year’s conference theme is: From Bondage to Legacy: Interactive Paths to Reclaiming Our Heritage in the Age of Erasure.
Appreciate those people who have read various drafts, made suggestions or discussed issues with me; thanks to Guy Weston and the AAHGS Journal, for accepting the article for the journal, and to LaJoy Mosby, who invited me to be part of discussions on it. To Dean Krimmel, a deep appreciation of having the opportunity to talk about Williams; also to Nancy Proctor of The Peale Baltimore for encouraging my research on him and including me among a group of scholars and artists who continue to research him.
Deep thanks to Bernice Bennett, for having me on her new podcast, Ancestor’s Footprints. She gave me an opportunity to share what I learned about the Williams family and how they dealt with the terms of gradual emancipation in Philadelphia. Looking forward to Faye Anderson’s project of having a memorial marker installed in Philadelphia so more people can learn about Moses Williams. May his legacy and that of his family continue despite any attempt to erase or obscure this history.
May the ancestors rest in power.
