First Africans Day
First Africans Day at Stratford Hall
Saturday, July 26, 2025
Join us for First Africans Day at Stratford Hall — a powerful day of reflection, celebration, and remembrance as we honor the stories and contributions of the enslaved Africans and African Americans who shaped the history of Stratford Hall.
We are thrilled to announce that Dr. Edda L. Fields-Black will be our keynote speaker at 3 p.m.! A Pulitzer Prize-winning author, she teaches history at Carnegie Mellon University and serves as Director of the Dietrich College Humanities Center. She has written extensively about the transnational history of West African rice farmers, including in such works as Deep Roots: Rice Farmers in West Africa and the African Diaspora. Guests can look forward to a wealth of insight, highlighted in her recent book COMBEE: Harriet Tubman, the Combahee River Raid, and Black Freedom during the Civil War.
This commemorative day includes:
- Special performance by KanKouran West African Dance Company;
- Culinary demonstrations in the Historic Kitchen with Dontavius Williams;
- Music, art, tours, and food;
- Special ceremonies at the open and close of the day; and
- Historical interpreters and storytellers.
Admission is free and includes access to the Great House, grounds, and all First Africans Day activities.
