Run, Old Jeremiah

This Friday is Juneteenth, an important day of remembrance nationally and around the world. It was on this day in 1885 that the last of the slaves held in Texas were told they were freed two years earlier by President Lincoln on January 1, 1863. For some more information on the history scroll down to the June 4th post.

The fourth annual public commemoration of the day will be held in Diamond Park in Meadville from 1 pm to 7 pm., according to Melisa Burnett of the local NAACP Chapter. “A Community Celebration of Freedom” will focus on what has gone on before and and focus on the future of the freedom movement. There will be songs, dances, music and food and a lot of activities and educational events.

Some of the spiritual gospel music composed by Harry Burleigh, a native of the region, will be sung led by Angela Johnson and Charles Kennedy, president of the Burleigh Society, for more information on Burleigh and his life, click here. There will also be a public Ring Shout.

Ring Shout (pictured above) is a dance form which originated with slaves after they were forbidden to raised their feet a couple of inches from the ground. Ring Shout has two circles one inside the other, moving in separate directions. Each dancer can improvise their own dance movements.

Some of the dances have been recorded over time and one the most moving is “Run, Old Jeremiah”. Ring Shout is a powerful, defiant dance against evil, a dance of hope and freedom, a dance for America.

Northwestern Pennsylvania was a hotbed of the anti-slavery movement. The Underground Railroad, the largest mass civil disobedience movement in American history, rumbled constantly through the hills and fields of this region. John Brown lived in northwestern Pennsylvania and opearte a farm which is now a museum, well worth the trip.

A drive past any cemetery, large or small, at a four corners or forgotten farm, is a never to be forgotten view of seemingly countless GAR bronze plagues and American Flags. Thousands of northwestern Pennsylvanians died for the Union.
Largely rural and agricultural northwestern Pennsylvania, was a forerunner in many equality issues, African Americans, Women and Native peoples were public officer holders, voters, property owners and co-equal citizens long before other regions of the country. It is an amazing history of local civil rights.

Juneteenth celebrations are being held in areas across the country, as they have been for well over a hundred years, and are growing in popularity. If you can't make the Meadville celebration, or one in your area, spend some time and learn about the many fascinating issues and art forms that have evolved over time. Information is a powerful weapon against the hate and white supremacist groups in this country; no answers or justice are ever found in violence, so perhaps, Juneteenth is also a day to pray for one's enemies, both in the past and those to come.

Juneteenth: Get Involved

Juneteenth (June 19th) is a very important day locally in northwestern Pennsylvania and throughout the nation and actually throughout the world. On this day in 1865, which falls on a Friday this year, federal troops announced to a group of people in Texas they had been freed years earlier on January 1, 1863 when President Lincoln abolished slavery when he issued the Emancipation Proclamation. There are a lot of theories regarding the long-time delay.
Meadville, Pennsylvania will commemorate the day, on the 19th, with a number of activities as the community has done for many, many years. Melissa Burnett of the NAACP has been working hard on getting the events organized and will be sending a schedule of events has soon as it becomes finalized.
For several years, the day was marked by a long march from downtown Meadville to the John Brown Farm and Museum some 12 miles away in New Richmond. There was always a good turn-out and a nice picnic after the long walk Freedom Walk. Events this year, as last year, will be held at Diamond Park in the city.
John Brown was a leading abolitionist just prior to the outbreak of the Civil War. He is perhaps best known for his raid on the federal arsenal at Harper's Ferry. Brown, prior to that, had established a tannery and farm at New Richmond.
He was active, along with many other Meadville residents and churches, in the Underground Railroad, one of the largest civil disobedience movements in American history. Thousands of slaves found their way to freedom with the help of many farm families, churches and other organizations despite the strict penalties for helping the slaves. It was flat out illegal.
Historically, Meadville was a hotbed of unrest over the issue of slavery. The Civil Rights movement in the city and throughout the northwest Pennsylvania region, was always very active. There are many notable events such as early school desegregation, voting and property rights and political opportunities.
Thousands from this area served in the Union forces and thousands were killed, just visit any of the local cemeteries. These unsung and often forgotten heroes sacrificed for us today and helped to create the ongoing process of complete equality and civil rights, a struggle, while advances have been made, needs to be furthered. Juneteenth is the day to celebrate those folks and renew our efforts.
Once the schedule is set, it will be posted here, hopefully in a couple days or so. Get involved in the struggle, there is more to be done. For more information on some of the history click on any of the underlined links or click the title.

Memorial Day, the Civil War and the Oyster Plant

I wanted to do a post about the Jack in the Pulpit plants now blooming in the woods. However, the plants can wait a day or two since it is Memorial Day, one of America's most important national holidays.
Memorial Day is a day of remembrance for those military people who fought, served and died for this great country. Over the years, it has also become a time to remember everyone who has reached the “other side”, both family members and friends. Graves are decorated and there are quiet visits to cemeteries.
Originally, Memorial Day was called Decoration Day; a solemn day to remember those who were killed in the bloody and tragic American Civil War. Slavery was certainly one of the key issues in that tragic conflict.
It was an important day in many communities of northwestern Pennsylvania just after the formal hostilities ended. And it remains a solemn day today in many of those same communities; Meadville, Erie, Girard, Wattsburg, Union City, Phillipsville and so on.
Northwestern Pennsylvania is rich in Civil War history. The cemeteries, large and small, are filled with the graves of those who served, marked with GAR (Grand Army of the Republic) plaques and flapping American flags. Many were young men from farms in rural areas of northwestern Pennsylvania who have been long forgotten.
Northwestern Pennsylvania is also rich in Underground Railroad History, perhaps the largest civil disobedience movement in the nations history. Untold numbers of slaves were housed, fed and clothed in many rural farm houses and churches and then taken into Canada and freedom. It was a secretive movement because it was illegal to help a slave escape; persons caught were jailed and fined. It was a serious federal offense.
John Brown who led the ill fated raid on Harpers Ferry just prior to the Civil War spent nearly ten years in New Ricmond just north of Meadville. He was active in the Underground and other anti-slavery actions. For more information, click on the title.
Every rural community had a GAR post, an organization formed to help the veterans of that horrible period in American history. The GAR was the center of a town's cultural and social life for decades until the veterans slowly died off and the American Legion and the Veterans of Foreign Affairs organizations stepped forward as the advocates for veterans after World War 1.
I have read some of the minute books (1880-1910) from a GAR post from the Cranesville, PA area, the Colonel Lytle Post. Several times a year, usually in late winter or early spring, the post had an “oyster supper” for members and townsfolk. It is likely they didn't have real ocean oysters back in the late 1800's but more likely used salsify, a vegetable root crop which is also called the oyster plant.
Salsify is an old time vegetable favorite worth planting. It grows like a parsnip and can be harvested like a parsnip in late winter and early spring. Freezing weather makes this root crop much sweeter. Here is the recipe for oyster soup. So yes, Memorial Day is particularly important this year. We have elected Barak Obama as our president, something unthinkable even a decade ago; we need to support our troops who are fighting two separate wars; and vegetables gardens have taken on a new importance as we struggle through one of the worst recessions since 1929. Salsify is worth the try, it really is pretty darn good and healthy as well as historic.