Pinkster Celebration Recognizes the Practice of Slavery in the Hudson Valley

“Discover Pinkster!” recalls a special time in colonial American history when slavery was practiced at Philipsburg Manor in Sleepy Hollow. Pinkster was a festive occasion that celebrated the arrival of spring and allowed slaves who may have been separated from friends and relatives to reunite for a day.

Presented by Historic Hudson Valley on Saturday, May 14, 2016, the one-day program includes storytelling, drumming, dancing, music and open-hearth cooking demonstrations conducted from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. A Pinkster Parade begins at 11 a.m. African drumming will take place on several stages throughout the day. Musical performers will participate with banjo, fiddle and flute as well.

The manor house will offer a new exhibit called “How We Know What We Know: Enslavement at Philipsburg Manor” and in the Marketplace, visitors can purchase African jewelry, print fabrics, brooms, and switches. Tours of the working gristmill will also be conducted.

Try African-American cuisine

African-American cuisine prepared by Nikki Toi’s Soul Food and snacks from Geordane’s of Irvington will be available.

“Pinkster” is derived from the Dutch word for Pentecost and it was a Dutch spring holiday observed by settlers that combined religious and secular traditions. But Africans in New York and New Jersey were so successful at incorporating their own cultures into the celebration that by the early 1800s, Pinkster was considered an African-American holiday.

Tickets can be purchased online at www.hudsonvalley.org/events/discover-pinkster at $14 for adults, $12 for seniors and $8 for children from 3 to 17 or onsite at an additional cost of $2 per ticket. Admission is free for Historic Hudson Valley members and children under 3.

Philipsburg Manor is located at 381 N. Broadway, (Route 9), Sleepy Hollow NY 10591, 914-366-6900.

Photo:

Fiddler Henrique Prince. PHOTO BY BRYAN HAEFFELE