Dr. Rex Harris, a curator at the National Museum of African American History and Culture was on TV today discussing the new exhibit honoring Black History Month, which is Monticello's joint exhibition with the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture gallery located on the 2nd floor, East Wing inside the National Museum of American History on the National Mall in Washington, D.C
The exhibit includes descendant interviews, physical examples of the hardships slaves endured such as carrying buckets full of sand and Mulberry Row, which was a residential and industrial complex where slaves who showed enterprising abilities were put to work in different trades based on their demonstrated skills and abilities. Unbeknownst to many, it also included slave homes. The exhibit includes many artifacts from Mulberry Row including foods, flatware, brushes, coins, bucks, bottles, shards of pots, and blacksmith works. Children as young as 10 and 11 years old were used as skilled labor sent to Mulberry Row, which also included a textile mill, and farm land for agricultural production.
One of the slaves featured in the exhibit is John Hemmings who was a master carpenter, a man of faith and a family man who was married to Priscilla Hemmings. On her deathbed, she said to him, “I have something for you, you might want under the bed.” It was a box which included a curvet, a lock of her hair and a headband. The love they shared and how they connected with each was remarkable and included a stroke of luck, which allowed them to stay together and married although marriage was illegal for slaves at the time. The importance of family and faith in the black community, what they valued, believed and hoped for as a result of the life they lived are all reflected in the exhibit.
Hours and Admission:
The exhibit opened Jan 27 and closes on Oct. 14, 2012.
Admission is free and open 10:00AM to 5:30PM every day except December 25.
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