Panel to Explore Black Enclaves in South Jersey

Lawnside is one of several communities where Black people settled and thrived in early New Jersey despite the obstacles. Many of these settlements still exist.

Panelists Morgan Lloyd of 1838 Black Metropolis, Ralph E. Hunter, Sr., founder of the African American Heritage Museum of Southern New Jersey, Paul Schopp of Stockton University, Guy Weston of the Timbuctoo Historical Society and C. Adrienne Rhodes of The Preserving Black Haddonfield History Project join Dr. Keith Green of Rutgers University-Camden to discuss these singular and historic communities of southern New Jersey.

Join the conversation and learn about these important places, Thursday, May 9 on Zoom only at 7 p.m. Advance registration is a must for this free program. Register at https://www.petermotthouse.org/events/.

Dr. Green, an associate professor of literature, is director of Africana Studies at Rutgers University-Camden and chairman of the Lawnside Historical Society’s board of trustees. He is author of the book “Bound to Respect: Antebellum Narratives of Black Imprisonment, Servitude, and Bondage: 1816-1861,” and co-editor of a collection of essays on bondage and subjection in the contemporary moment.

Mr. Schopp is assistant director of the South Jersey Culture and History Center at Stockton State University. With decades of experience researching Black communities and the Underground Railroad, he has written nine successful nominations to the National Register of Historic Places, four of which relate to Black history. He is a former executive director of the Camden County Historical Society and published author.

Ms. Rhodes is a leader of The Preserving Black Haddonfield History Project as a co-founder and executive editor/producer of “Preserve: Narratives from Historic Haddonfield’s African-American Community.” She is a great-great granddaughter of John Henry Lawson, Civil War Medal of Honor winner, a descendant of Lawnside’s Arthur family and a fourth generation Haddonfield native.

Mr. Hunter founded the African American Heritage Museum of Southern New Jersey 15 years ago with locations in Newtonville and at the Arts Garage in Atlantic City. An avid collector and archivist, he has curated numerous historical, art and culture exhibits and educational programs from nationally recognized artists to Civil Rights movement in South Jersey, Black media, sports and every facet of life in the region and beyond.

Mr. Weston, managing director of the Timbuctoo Historical Society, specializes in African American genealogy, history, and historic preservation. History and genealogy work focus on antebellum free Black communities in New Jersey, particularly Timbuctoo in Burlington County, where his family is rooted. He is director of publications for the Afro-American Historical and Genealogical Society, editing the AAHGS Journal.

Ms. Lloyd is president and co-founder of 1838BlackMetropolis.com, an innovative nonprofit that plumbs the rich trove of information hidden in archives about change-making Black Philadelphians of the era. She is a public historian, a member of the professional staff at the African American Museum of Philadelphia, podcaster and author.

--

The Lawnside Historical Society, founded in 1990 to preserve the heritage of New Jersey’s only incorporated Black municipality, is supported by funding from the Camden County Cultural and Heritage Commission, the official local history agency of the New Jersey Historical Commission.