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Albert May
Last month we released an extension to our story on Black lion tamers in Hull and East Yorkshire. The latest feature was written by Martin Hale, the grandson of 'Black Joe' Maccomo. After reading our feature on the lion tamers, Martin was astounded to recognise his grandfather, Albert May, in the header of the story, showing him as part of the Manders Menagerie. Read Martin's feature on the fascinating life of Albert May. 2018 roundup Today we have published a blog post rounding up the project's activity in 2018, while looking forward to the next Our Histories Revealed exhibition which starts at Goole Museum on Tuesday 5 February 2019. Read this week's blog post.
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Black History Month 2018 has come to a close. If you missed our final daily tweets using the hashtags #BHM2018 and #fullfacthistory, you can catch up below.
Day 29 Lion tamers were a significant part of the travelling Menagerie show. The first Black lion tamer was Martini Maccomo, who performed with Manders' Royal Menagerie in Beverley as early as 1860. Others followed... Day 30 As we move closer to the anniversary of WW1, a reminder of the brave local soldiers of African descent who played roles in all conflicts. We remember Theophilus Davis in WWI, John Lewis Friday at Waterloo and many more. Day 31 The last of our daily tweets showcasing some of the many stories on the African Stories website. 31 years after Akyaaba Addai-Sebo and Ansel Wong's push for a Black history month, Black history should be in the everyday. It's time to re-tell history without bias. Follow @AfricansInYorks on Twitter. Black History Month 2018 is almost over! Here's a round-up of our daily tweets over the last week using the hashtags #BHM2018 and #fullfacthistory.
Day 22 Paul Robeson: athlete, film and stage actor, writer, singer, orator, lawyer and human rights activist. He visited Hull and East Yorkshire several times between 1931 and 1960 performing concerts to his adoring fans. Day 23 Adelaide Hall was an early Jazz pioneer at the Cotton Club, recorded with Duke Ellington and played at the Moulin Rouge in a bid to escape racism in America. She entertained troops during WW2 then came to Hull in 1948. Day 24 Within every family are a myriad of stories to be heard. We are delighted to have encouraged families to talk, listen and discover their own histories. Today we celebrate those in the present and their kin! Day 25 'First Black punk in Hull' Roland Gift led the '80s band Fine Young Cannibals with massive hits like 'She Drives Me Crazy' on their album The Raw and the Cooked. He starred as Danny in Sammy and Rosie Get Laid in 1987. Day 26 A Victorian fashion for showing off 'specimens' of the empire in human zoos saw six Congolese 'Brandesburton Pygmies' shown across the country over a period of three years. This came a century after the Hottentot Venus in 1811. Day 27 England vs New Zealand in Hull tonight is a reminder of some of the pioneering rugby players of African descent who enjoyed success: Clive Sullivan, Roy Francis and Zook Ema. Day 28 Ira Aldridge, the 'African Roscius', was the first famous Black actor on the stage in Britain and a world reknowned Shakespearean actor who made some of his earliest appearances here in East Yorkshire between 1829 and 1859. Follow us on Twitter at @AfricansInYorks. It's the third week of Black History Month 2018 and we've continued our daily tweets using the hashtags #BHM2018 and #fullfacthistory.
If you haven't been following us, here's a round-up. Day 15 A father and daughter who both contributed to the two war efforts. In WW1, Marcus Bailey of the Royal Navy served on the HMS Chester and likely participated in Jutland. In WW2 Lilian Bader joined NAAFI, then the WAAF. Day 16 Day 16 takes in the issue of race and crime in Hull and E Yorks. Evidence and context helps us understand the wider social and economic climate that people of African descent endured. Day 17 Dusé Mohamed Ali: writer, businessman, entrepreneur and Pan-Africanist. As an actor in Hull, he was a founding member of the Shakesperean Society in 1903 and gave elocution lessons! Day 18 When does a slave become a servant? When they are transported across oceans and baptised. Evidence of those who served notable families in Hull and East Yorkshire can be found within our Black servants' stories. Day 19 Hull's sailors. Many were regarded as useful in wartime and discarded in peacetime. Thomas Biggs and many others featured in our maritime stories, including the Hull riots. Day 20 Physician and activist Dr Harold Moody: "the great work of Wilberforce was made necessary, not because of the sins of my own people, but the sins, the selfishness, and the short-sightedness of your own people.” Day 21 The Fisk Jubilee Singers, a cohort of determined former slaves whose emotionally charged performances of 'slave songs and spirituals' raised sufficient funds to save the Fisk University in the US. Follow us on Twitter if you haven't already at @AfricansInYorks. We've continued our daily tweets this week to celebrate Black History Month 2018.
Day 8 Today highlights two literary giants and social critics who gained honorary doctorates from the University of Hull: James Baldwin and C.L.R. James. Day 9 In the spotlight today are stories of the American anti-slavery campaigners who crossed the seas to raise awareness and gather support: Alexander Crummell, Moses Roper, William Craft, Sella Martin and Henry Box Brown. Day 10 Three racially motivated deaths fuelled by prejudice and with limited accountability. Today we remember Christopher Alder, David Oluwale and Mahmood Hussein Mattan. Day 11 Today we focus on care professionals; Beverley Prevatt Goldstein - a social worker focused on multiculturalism and fostering; Cecilia Anim - president of RCN and Uduak Archibong - an acclaimed nurse. Day 12 Our local connection today features a giant amongst men, John Kufuor, the charismatic leader who advanced healthcare and education during his two presidential terms in Ghana. He visited Hull in 2006 and 2017. Day 13 Two families with origins in the Caribbean: Aubrey Bowers, a Jamaican born in 1892 and Nathaniel Weeks, a Barbadian born in 1871. Their families stayed in East Yorkshire and remain proud of their African heritage. Day 14 A day of the clergy: John Henry Hector, the Temperance Black Knight; Agnes Foster, the Jamaican Salvation Army pioneer and Desmond Tutu, the charismatic humanitarian. Follow @AfricansInYorks on Twitter for more updates every day in October. As October is Black History Month, we're sending out daily tweets to highlight the fabulous stories in our African Stories project.
It is our aim to make history more inclusive on Twitter by using #fullfacthistory and #BHM2018 as alerts. Catch up on your reading from this week's posts: Day 1 A whole menu of oral histories from our Contemporary Voices series. Day 2 Explore the global connections in Black British local history through the African Stories project. Day 3 Three stories from the African Stories project that turned out to have the same Chapman-Wattley-Riley family thread. Clue 1 was a mystery photograph of the Russian Outrage. Day 4 From Barbados plantation owners to Goole. Rev Edward Cragg-Haynes became one of the first Black clergymen in England. His school was attended by Joseph, the father of J Arthur Rank. Day 5 A mother's dying confession unravelled a family secret. Laureen went from 'Homes for Waifs and Strays' to stardom, with the Rolling Stones as visitors. Day 6 Two activists who came to Hull; Una Marson - journalist, poet, and feminist, and Salim C. Wilson - enslaved by Arabs, sold for 6 yards of calico, then campaigned against contemporary slavery as early as 1928. Day 7 Two emotive family stories that left their mark:
Follow us on Twitter for more updates every day in October. The Drowning of Richard Lisles
Last month we released the story of Richard Lisles, written by guest writer John D. Ellis. The story covers the events surrounding the drowning of Lisles, an African American soldier, in the River Humber in August 1820. Read the story of Richard Lisles. Third exhibition We're delighted to announce that we'll be bringing Our Histories Revealed, the African Stories in Hull and East Yorkshire exhibition, to Goole Museum between 5 February and 6 April 2019. More updates will follow in due course. Thank you for your continued support. Hull’s sailors of African descent and the Second World War
On Monday we released a follow-up story to our feature on seamen of African descent in Hull in the twentieth century. Our latest piece focuses on a selection of men who sailed as part of the Merchant Marine during the Second World War. Many of these sailors had survived the first global conflict, however sadly died during the second. Read the story of Hull sailors in WW2. Fred Weeks: Flight Engineering Officer In early 2017, we released a story on the Weeks family. This piece garnered a lot of attention and has led to the project team developing a close relationship with Richard, who has been extremely supportive of our endeavours. Recently through Caroline Gaden, Richard has found out more information about the exploits of his father during the Second World War and has kindly shared this with us for a follow-up piece on Fred which we released yesterday. Read our blog post on Fred Weeks. The Wyng family: Venus Ivy Wyng
Last month we were contacted by Stuart Bell, who revealed his father, Barrie was the son of Venus Ivy Wyng and therefore he was her grandson. Barrie gave us further information about the Wyng family and travelled to the opening of our East Riding Treasure House exhibition to share his collection of beautiful photographs with us. As a result, we have been able to produce an additional story on the Wyngs which has a greater focus on Venus Ivy’s branch of the family. Read our story about Venus Ivy Wyng and her family. “My Name is Not Uncle Tom!” - Josiah Henson in Britain 1876-1877 Yesterday we released a fantastic blog post about Josiah Henson by guest writer Dr Hannah-Rose Murray. Sadly, although there is no evidence to suggest that Henson travelled to East Yorkshire during his time in Britain, a picture of him in the Wilberforce Museum Collection and his important place in Black history has meant he is a source of interest to our project. Read Hannah’s post about Josiah Henson. The Chapman-Wattley family In March we were contacted by Nadine Hodgson who had seen our blog post on the Russian Outrage. Nadine wrote, "I think that the Black man in the photo may possibly be my grandfather John James Wattley who was born in St Lucia in 1884." Nadine had already explored her family history extensively and as this story unfolded we came to realise that she was able to bring two seemingly unconnected stories together with a common familial thread, that of the Russian Outrage and Leon Riley. Read the story on the Chapman-Wattley family. East Riding Treasure House exhibition
Our second exhibition opened at Beverley Treasure House last Saturday when over 30 people attended our ‘first look’ event. It was fantastic to see so many more people come and go throughout the afternoon - especially the families who have engaged with our project.
On Tuesday evening, our Lead Project Researcher Dr Lauren Darwin gave a talk about the experience of men, women and children of African descent in Hull and East Yorkshire at the Treasure House. We would like to thank those who attended. Unfortunately, due to unforeseen circumstances tomorrow's study day (Saturday 12 May) is cancelled. We apologise for the inconvenience. The Our Histories Revealed exhibition runs from 5 May until 30 June at East Riding Treasure House, Beverley. Entry is free, so please come along! |
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