2023 Fall Speaker Series | Early Black Life In and Around Fairfield County: Education and Community

From the early settlement of Fairfield through the late 19th century, African descendants—enslaved and free—have had a presence in the town and the larger county. Despite the system of slavery and the broader challenges of systemic racism, this population sought to develop opportunities to pursue education and social mobility and build vibrant communities. Discover  the ways early Africans and their African American descendants pursued opportunity despite the odds against them.

About the Presenter

Markeysha D. Davis, PhD, is a cultural historian and literary theorist. She was the chair of Africana Studies at the University of Hartford (2017-2023) and assistant professor of Literature and Africana Studies with Hillyer College at the University. She has been published by The Black Scholar and American Studies Journal.  She currently acts as co-lead teacher and American Literature instructor with Hartford Youth Scholars, an educational access program serving diverse students from 7th grade through their final year of college. She will continue working with junior and senior high school students in the fall at Baystate Academy Charter Public School in Springfield, MA. She is a native of Detroit, MI, and lives in Western Massachusetts.

About the 2023 Fall Speaker Series – Calling Fairfield Home: Stories from Creating Community

Join the Fairfield Museum and History Center for the 2023 Fall Speaker Series, exploring the new research and discoveries featured in the Museum’s renovated flagship exhibition Creating Community: 400 Years of Fairfield Stories. Discover the people and stories unique to Fairfield directly from historians and experts from throughout Connecticut.

Additional Lectures in the Series:

October 1 | Mary Fish Silliman: A Woman in Revolutionary America | Patricia E. Kane, PhD

November 5 | Stories of the Survival of the Indigenous Peoples of Connecticut | Darlene Kascak

Light refreshments provided. Registration is required. $15 per talk | $35 for the series, $30 for Members

Image: Installation view of Creating Community: 400 Years of Fairfield Stories, Fairfield Museum and History Center. Photo: Kate Eisemann