Tag: commemoration

(Alabama) Horace King Memorial Bridge

.Reading time 2 minutes.
Horace King Memorial Bridge

Horace King Memorial Bridge and Garden is in located Valley, Alabama.⁣
⁣
Horace King was born into slavery in Cheraw, South Carolina in 1807. In 1824 Horace King assisted with the construction of Pee Dee River Bridge. Horace King’s enslaver, Edward King died in 1830. John Godwin who also worked on the construction of Pee Dee River Bridge purchased Horace King, his mother and siblings soon after. ⁣
⁣
John Godwin was contracted to construct a 560 foot bridge across the Chattahoochee River from Columbus Georgia to Girard Alabama. King assisted Godwin with the project. After the bridge was completed, Godwin continued to utilize King’s skill set and together the two constructed 40 cotton warehouses; courthouses and bridges in Georgia, Alabama, and Florida. ⁣


Horace King married Frances L. Thomas (a free woman of color) in 1839. The Alabama State Legislature freed Horace King in 1842. The couple’s first son, Washington W. King was born in 1843. ⁣
⁣

Watson Mill Bridge located in Madison County Georgia. A vehicular bridge constructed in 1885. Designed and built by Horace King’s eldest son, Washington W. King. [photo source: Library of Congress Historic American Engineering Record. Photographer Jett Lowe]⁣
Watson Mill Bridge located in Madison County Georgia. A vehicular bridge constructed in 1885. Designed and built by Horace King’s eldest son, Washington W. King. [photo source: Library of Congress Historic American Engineering Record. Photographer Jett Lowe]⁣


Horace King died May 28, 1885. King’s children Washington, Marshall, John, Annie and George continued to build bridges and other structures in LaGrange, Atlanta, and east Alabama – the King Brothers Bridge Company. ⁣
⁣
Horace King was posthumously inducted into the Alabama Engineers Hall of Fame at the University of Alabama. ⁣

⁣

Via outline.com “ Say Goodbye to Your Happy Plantation Narrative”

.Reading time 1 minute.

Follow Instagram: @TheMergingLanesProject

Photos by Zoe Beery

Full Story Via Outline.com

Pictured is Cheyney McKnight, an Atlanta native and founder of interpretation company, “Not Your Momma’s History”. Raised in a home that encouraged her to learn everything from Civil Rights to the Great Migration, McKnight would eventually go on to attain a political science degree from Simmons College.

Immediately after, she spent 3-years of independent study, traveling to archives and historical sites in NY, VA and Pennsylvania. Then she started participating in Living History Re-enactments, which can be defined as a portrayal of everyday activities such as cooking, cleaning, and medical care from a particular historical period. Her first re-enactment was during the 150th Anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg. She portrayed a 22 year-old freewoman of color

McKnight is committed to influencing diversity in Living History interpretations. She recognizes the voice it can lend to contemporary movements such as Black Lives Matter.

Today, there is a small representation of Black Living Historians and she is committed to changing that. She is confident that in 10 years she will not be the only one doing this forecasting, “there will be 20 black women living historians just in New York” alone.

Proposed New Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge

.Reading time less than 1 minute.

News (Washington DC) ||

Street names, buildings and other infrastructure are a means of encouraging Public Memory. In 1950, The Frederick Douglass Bridge, a swing bridge that runs over the Anacostia River was built.

Pictured is the proposed new Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge. It will be the largest construction project in all of DC’s history, with an expected completion date of 2021.

Mayor Muriel Bowser described it as a “fitting memorial for a remarkable American icon.” This year marks Frederick Douglass’ 200th Birthday.