Image Credit: “An Escaped Slave,” wood engraving based on a photograph, published in Harper’s Weekly, July 2, 1864. Public Domain.
“Finding Jesse: A Fugitive from Slavery in Vermont” traces Jesse’s life from enslavement in North Carolina to freedom in Vermont. His story is told through letters in the collection at Rokeby Museum and documents at the North Carolina State Archives.
The illustrated talk brings the narrative of one slave out of anonymity and explores his life and pursuit of freedom.
Finding Jesse: “A Fugitive from Slavery in Vermont”
By Vermont Humanities | April 25, 2019
This illustrated talk brings the narrative of one slave out of anonymity and explores his life and pursuit of freedom. It traces Jesse’s life from enslavement in North Carolina to freedom in Vermont.
The War Before the War: Radical Abolition in Antebellum America
By Vermont Humanities | June 28, 2016
Jane Williamson presents the philosophies, strategies, and tactics of the 1830s abolitionists who demanded immediate emancipation of slaves and equal rights for free blacks.
Our seasonal “Words in the Woods” program allows Vermonters and visitors to enjoy our state’s natural beauty while listening to and reading literature in the outdoors.
Humanities Camps are filled with reading and writing projects, field trips, and outdoor activities.
We won a 2020 Schwartz Prize for best public humanities programming in the U.S. for Vermont Reads 2019: “March: Book One.”
We supported the Chandler Center for the Arts’ Global Connections Youth Outreach program, which highlights artists from around the world.
Our free public events help bring the power of the humanities to communities across Vermont.
