The Stratford Historical Society presents Donna Dufresne in a program about Prudence Crandall. The meeting is free and open to the public, and refreshments will be served.
Prudence Crandall (1803-1890) was a Connecticut resident who tried to establish a school for AfricanAmerican girls. In 1833 she established the first Academy for African American women in New England. It only lasted 18 months. During that time Crandall and her students suffered tremendous persecution and hardship. She was put on trial twice in an attempt to close the academy and in the fall of 1834 such efforts succeeded and it was finally closed. Her courage and moral strength in the face of such adversity, however, led the state legislature to vote her an annual pension of $400. More recently, she has been designated the State Heroine and her house in Canterbury, which she attempted to turn into a school, has become a National Landmark.
Join Ms. DuFresne to find out why the status of State Heroine is so appropriate for Prudence Crandall. Donna holds a bachelor’s degree in American History from Lesley University and a master’s degree in Gifted and Talented Education from the University of Connecticut. While working on her undergraduate degree in history, she developed several historical characters which she performs as one woman shows, including Connecticut State Heroine, Prudence Crandall.
