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HBCU’s Canvas Print
HBCU’s Canvas Print
35″” x 35″” Juneteenth by Synthia Saint James Canvas Art Print – Masterpiece Art Gallery
35″” x 35″” Juneteenth by Synthia Saint James Canvas Art Print – Masterpiece Art Gallery
Amanti Art Funeral Procession Framed Art Print
Amanti Art Funeral Procession Framed Art Print
(27×40) Eve’s Bayou Movie Samuel L Jackson Lynn Whitfield Original Poster Print
(27×40) Eve’s Bayou Movie Samuel L Jackson Lynn Whitfield Original Poster Print
The Goodbye Kiss (Buffalo Soldier) – Katherine Roundtree 24×32 Black Framed – African American Black Art Print Wall Decor Poster
The Goodbye Kiss (Buffalo Soldier) – Katherine Roundtree 24×32 Black Framed – African American Black Art Print Wall Decor Poster
Dancing in The Living Room (Girls) – Katherine Roundtree 24×32 Black Framed – African American Black Art Print Wall Decor Poster
Dancing in The Living Room (Girls) – Katherine Roundtree 24×32 Black Framed – African American Black Art Print Wall Decor Poster
GULLAH GEECHEE HERITAGE IN THE GOLDEN ISLES (PAPERBACK)
GULLAH GEECHEE HERITAGE IN THE GOLDEN ISLES (PAPERBACK)
Goddesses by Synthia SAINT JAMES Canvas Wall Art 3 Piece
Goddesses by Synthia SAINT JAMES Canvas Wall Art 3 Piece
MASTER PIECE JOOK JOINT GULLAH ISLANDS WALL ART, 35X35
MASTER PIECE JOOK JOINT GULLAH ISLANDS WALL ART, 35X35
A Different World (TV) 11 x 17 TV Poster – Style A
A Different World (TV) 11 x 17 TV Poster – Style A
MY KIND OF NET ART PRINT BY GULLAH LIVING SERIES BY SAMANTHA CLAAR – X-LARGE
MY KIND OF NET ART PRINT BY GULLAH LIVING SERIES BY SAMANTHA CLAAR – X-LARGE
Gullah Spirit: The Art of Jonathan Green
Gullah Spirit: The Art of Jonathan Green
227 – TV SHOW 80’S CLASSIC SHOW PRINT, GIFT FOR BEST FRIEND, FOR MOM, HOME DECOR, BLACK ART POP ART, FEMINIST
227 – TV SHOW 80’S CLASSIC SHOW PRINT, GIFT FOR BEST FRIEND, FOR MOM, HOME DECOR, BLACK ART POP ART, FEMINIST
GULLAH IMAGES: THE ART OF JONATHAN GREEN
GULLAH IMAGES: THE ART OF JONATHAN GREEN
MASTER PIECE LESSONS GULLAH ISLANDS WALL ART, 35X35
MASTER PIECE LESSONS GULLAH ISLANDS WALL ART, 35X35
35″ X 35″ GULLAH GEECHEE CONJURE WOMAN BY SYNTHIA SAINT JAMES CANVAS ART PRINT – MASTERPIECE ART GALLERY
35″ X 35″ GULLAH GEECHEE CONJURE WOMAN BY SYNTHIA SAINT JAMES CANVAS ART PRINT – MASTERPIECE ART GALLERY
Yes. Jesus Loves Me (Religious) – Katherine Roundtree 16×20 Black Framed
Yes. Jesus Loves Me (Religious) – Katherine Roundtree 16×20 Black Framed
LEROY CAMPBELL CAREFREE HAND SIGNED AFRICAN AMERICAN ART
LEROY CAMPBELL CAREFREE HAND SIGNED AFRICAN AMERICAN ART
MASTER PIECE GATHERING GULLAH ISLANDS WALL ART, 30X40
MASTER PIECE GATHERING GULLAH ISLANDS WALL ART, 30X40
‘Beyonce’ Graphic Art Print on Wrapped Canvas Size: 18″ H x 26″ W x 1.5″ D
‘Beyonce’ Graphic Art Print on Wrapped Canvas Size: 18″ H x 26″ W x 1.5″ D
RING SHOUT GULLAH ISLANDS – UNFRAMED PRINT ON CANVAS WORLD MENAGERIE
RING SHOUT GULLAH ISLANDS – UNFRAMED PRINT ON CANVAS WORLD MENAGERIE
Gullah Spirituals – by Eric Sean Crawford (Paperback)
Homecoming
America’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities: A Narrative History, 1837-2009
Gullah Spirit: The Art of Jonathan Green
Brown Sugar Kitchen Cookbook
Juneteenth Paper Dolls:
Black Girl Baking: Wholesome Recipes Inspired by a Soulful Upbringing
In Pursuit of Flavor: The Beloved Classic Cookbook from the Acclaimed Author of The Taste of Country Cooking
Little People Big Dreams Maya Angelou Book
GULLAH CUISINE: BY LAND AND BY SEA
GULLAH HOME COOKING THE DAUFUSKIE WAY: SMOKIN’ JOE BUTTER BEANS, OL’ ‘FUSKIE FRIED CRAB RICE, STICKY-BUSH BLACKBERRY DUMPLING, AND OTHER SEA ISLAND FAVORITES (PAPERBACK)
MAMA DOONK’S GULLAH RECIPES (PAPERBACK)
GULLAH IMAGES: THE ART OF JONATHAN GREEN
GROWING UP GULLAH IN THE LOWCOUNTRY (PAPERBACK)
AFRICAN AMERICAN LIFE IN THE GEORGIA LOWCOUNTRY: THE ATLANTIC WORLD AND THE GULLAH GEECHEE (RACE IN THE ATLANTIC WORLD, 1700–1900 SER.)
G IS FOR GULLAH
BLACK BORDER : GULLAH STORIES OF THE CAROLINA COAST
GULLAH NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS (HARDCOVER)
TALKING TO THE DEAD : RELIGION, MUSIC, AND LIVED MEMORY AMONG GULLAH/GEECHEE WOMEN
GULLAH CULTURE IN AMERICA (PAPERBACK)
GULLAH DAYS: HILTON HEAD ISLANDERS BEFORE THE BRIDGE 1861-1956
THE JOHN HOPE FRANKLIN AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY AND CULTURE: MAKING GULLAH: A HISTORY OF SAPELO ISLANDERS, RACE, AND THE AMERICAN IMAGINATION (PAPERBACK)

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Decoration Day: The Black Charleston Roots of Memorial Day

Decoration Day: The Black Charleston Roots of Memorial Day

Memorial Day is 50 years old. In 1971, Congress declared Memorial Day a national holiday to be observed the last Monday in May. It is a federal holiday, honoring and mourning the military personnel who have died in the performance of their military duties while serving in the United States Armed Forces (Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force, Coast Guard). From 1868 to 1970, it was observed on May 30. 

Of all of the federal holidays that are observed, Memorial Day is the most controversial in terms of the details of its founding. The original intention of Decoration Day was to honor the Civil War dead. Some 25 places claim to have originated the holiday, which is observed (never celebrated) somberly and soberly with volunteer organizations placing flowers and flags on the graves of veterans who died in the line of service.  Despite the various claims, there is not one indisputable founder of Memorial (Decoration) Day. However, there is one story few know or discuss to credit as one of the first (unofficial) ceremonies to honor slain veterans of the Civil War.

The story begins where the Civil War began, in Charleston, South Carolina, at the Washington Race Course and Jockey Club. Towards the end of the Civil War, the Confederate army turned the club’s grounds into a prison for Union captives. Approximately 260 Union soldiers died while interned as prisoners of war, and buried in a mass grave on the site. Local formerly enslaved men and women exhumed the bodies and prepared them for a proper burial in an allotted cemetery space with an archway bearing the inscription, “Martyrs of the Race Course.”

On May 1, 1865, thousands of Black church people and schoolchildren with white missionaries gathered together for a parade and ceremony that included the singing of hymns, preaching and speeches by former soldiers. The day ended with a picnic. All events were reported in the Charleston Courier newspaper and in the New York Herald Tribune

According to History.com, “In time, the old horse track and country club were torn down, and thanks to a gift from a wealthy Northern patron, the Union soldiers’ graves were moved from the humble white-fenced graveyard in Charleston to the Beaufort National Cemetery.”

Yale Historian David Blight has long contended that this is the first Decoration Day observance though his claims are not substantiated. If it is not the first, then it is most certainly one of the earliest. And it is most certainly one of the most important and touching as it demonstrates the gratitude of newly freed people in the form of a lasting tribute.

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Robin Caldwell

Robin Caldwell is the blogger behind freshandfriedhard.com and a public historian and researcher focusing on Black culinary traditions and foodways.

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Shop Our Favorites!
LEROY CAMPBELL CAREFREE HAND SIGNED AFRICAN AMERICAN ART
Gullah Spirit: The Art of Jonathan Green
35″” x 35″” Juneteenth by Synthia Saint James Canvas Art Print – Masterpiece Art Gallery
‘Beyonce’ Graphic Art Print on Wrapped Canvas Size: 18″ H x 26″ W x 1.5″ D
HBCU’s Canvas Print
A Different World (TV) 11 x 17 TV Poster – Style A
(27×40) Eve’s Bayou Movie Samuel L Jackson Lynn Whitfield Original Poster Print
Yes. Jesus Loves Me (Religious) – Katherine Roundtree 16×20 Black Framed
Dancing in The Living Room (Girls) – Katherine Roundtree 24×32 Black Framed – African American Black Art Print Wall Decor Poster
The Goodbye Kiss (Buffalo Soldier) – Katherine Roundtree 24×32 Black Framed – African American Black Art Print Wall Decor Poster
Amanti Art Funeral Procession Framed Art Print
Goddesses by Synthia SAINT JAMES Canvas Wall Art 3 Piece
227 – TV SHOW 80’S CLASSIC SHOW PRINT, GIFT FOR BEST FRIEND, FOR MOM, HOME DECOR, BLACK ART POP ART, FEMINIST
MASTER PIECE LESSONS GULLAH ISLANDS WALL ART, 35X35
GULLAH IMAGES: THE ART OF JONATHAN GREEN
GULLAH GEECHEE HERITAGE IN THE GOLDEN ISLES (PAPERBACK)
MASTER PIECE JOOK JOINT GULLAH ISLANDS WALL ART, 35X35
MY KIND OF NET ART PRINT BY GULLAH LIVING SERIES BY SAMANTHA CLAAR – X-LARGE
35″ X 35″ GULLAH GEECHEE CONJURE WOMAN BY SYNTHIA SAINT JAMES CANVAS ART PRINT – MASTERPIECE ART GALLERY
RING SHOUT GULLAH ISLANDS – UNFRAMED PRINT ON CANVAS WORLD MENAGERIE
MASTER PIECE GATHERING GULLAH ISLANDS WALL ART, 30X40
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Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission at no extra cost to you. All opinions remain my own.

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