Hartford-Based Organizations Present “Hartford History Lecture Series”

This fall, a coalition of leading historic and civic organizations will present a thought-provoking lecture series exploring the history of Black community formation in 19th-century Hartford and its significant contributions to the emancipation and civil rights movements. 

The Hartford History Lecture Series will feature five fascinating presentations by local experts, along with an illuminating guided walking tour of the city. 

Events will include:

“Black Community Formation” Exhibit Opening and Curator Talk

Saturday, September 17, 10-11:30am

Exhibit Curator Dr. Frank Mitchell will discuss the process of creating this unique exhibition, which provides context for the anti-slavery reform movements of the 19th century. Dr. Mitchell will also share insights about the Talcott Street church, its school, its people, and its significance to understanding the history of Hartford’s Black community.

In person at Capital Community College, 950 Main Street, Hartford

Evangelical Empire: Hartford’s Religious Book Publishing Industry, 1795-1835

Thursday, September 22, 5:45-7pm

Local Historian Bill Hosley will speak on the “Second Great Awakening” and Hartford’s religious book publishing industry. From 1795 to 1835, a Protestant revival stimulated social and moral reforms, including temperance, the emancipation of women, and anti-slavery sentiment. 

In person at Connecticut’s Old State House, 800 Main Street, Hartford, or online at https://youtu.be/HM3IpWSWbtA

Rev. James W. C. Pennington: A National and Local Voice for Freedom

Thursday, September 29, 5:45 – 7pm

ECSU history professor Dr. Stacey Close examines the life of the Reverend James W.C. Pennington, pastor of the Talcott Street church in the 1840s and 1850s and author of the first African American history book.

In person at Connecticut’s Old State House, 800 Main Street, Hartford, or online at https://youtu.be/6p0GrXhu3l0 

Ann Plato of Hartford: Pioneering Black Writer

Thursday, October 6, 5:45 – 7pm

Capital Community College Professor Antoinette Brim-Bell, author and Connecticut Poet Laureate, explores how author Ann Plato, the first African American writer to publish a collection of essays in 1841, was able to use her publication to become socially mobile. 

In person at Connecticut’s Old State House, 800 Main Street, Hartford, or online at https://youtu.be/i_661_JUuaM

Justice & Faith Hartford Walking Tour

Saturday, October 15, 10-11:30am

Author and community organizer Steve Thornton leads a fascinating tour of Hartford’s East side, uncovering previously unknown stories about the vital community of enslaved and free African Americans who lived and worked to secure freedom there for close to 200 years.  

Meet at the Main Street side of Connecticut’s Old State House, 800 Main Street, Hartford

ENCOUNTERS: The Global Reach of the Local Talcott Church

Saturday, October 22, 10am-12pm

Dr. Fiona Vernal, UConn professor of History and African Studies, will lead a guided community conversation using the Mars family as a lens for exploring how the congregants of Talcott Street Church cast their advocacy far and wide.

In person at Connecticut’s Old State House, 800 Main Street, Hartford

Hartford History Lectures celebrate the value of local knowledge by revealing the narrative power of the past for the present. 

For more information, please visit: https://www.capitalcc.edu/hhp/hartford-history-lectures/

To register: https://bit.ly/2022HHS

The Hartford History Lecture Series is a collaboration between Capital Community College’s Hartford Heritage Project, William Hosley’s Historic Hartford Facebook Group, and The Connecticut Democracy Center at Connecticut’s Old State House, with funding by CT Humanities and the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving.