Appreciating Cambridge

A moonlit Autumnal Equinox night, an atmospheric setting, and a creative place-based play. All of these added up to an inspiring, engaging, and educational performance of Moonlight Abolitionists , written by Patrick Gabridge and staged at Mount Auburn Cemetery September 20-22. In the performance, six abolitionists interred at Mount Auburn told their stories through monologues and conversations with each other. Although I know a fair amount about Cambridge History, and have participated in tours of the grave sites of some of the many illustrious people interred at Mount Auburn Cemetery, I was only familiar with two of the six prior to the performance; Harriet Jacobs and Joshua Bowen Smith. The six abolitionists included: Harriet Jacobs (1813-1897) - played by Rached Cognata Charles Turner Torrey (1813-1846) - played by Alexander Platt Mary Stearns (1821-1901) - played by Amanda Collins George Stearns (1809-1867) - played by Lewis D. Wheeler Samuel Gridley Howe (...

I'm always excited to learn more about Cambridge history, especially newly researched or amplified stories that haven't been told. So I was excited to learn, through the Cambridge Black History Project , which served as a community partner, of the creation by students of the Abolitionist Women and Their Worlds course at Harvard College, of the African American Women of 19th Century Cambridge, MA Tour . The students put in hours of discussion, research, and writing to build this walking tour that "we hope will make the history of Cambridge’s Black community more accessible." Each stop on the tour includes information about the featured woman, a map, photos, references, and a text to speech option. The tour , which can be accessed via the Clio app (available for Apple or Android devices) or on a computer, with a downloadable PDF map option, highlights the following influential Black women of 19th Century Cambridge: - Maria L. Baldwin - Charlotte Hawkins ...