Cultural Adventures

Last week, I went to the Anacostia Museum for a fascinating lecture by Ida E. Jones, Ph.D., a historian and assistant curator at the Moorland-Spingarn Research Center, on her new book, The Heart of the Race Problem: The Life of Kelly Miller. Miller was the first African American admitted to Johns Hopkins University, where he studied for a Ph.D. in math, physics, and astronomy. Unfortunately, he was forced to drop out after two years due to an increase in tuition fees. He went on to earn a master’s degree in mathematics and a law degree, both from Howard, where he became mathematics professor and later dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. Jones described Miller as a conciliator in the debates between W.E.B. DuBois and Booker T. Washington. Miller was a proponent of Washington’s self-sufficiency while also supporting a DuBois’ insistence on a classical education as the path to African American social and economic advancement. Miller also made important contributions to the burgeoning field of sociology, including his establishment of a department at Howard. Later in life, Miller clashed with Howard President Mordecai Johnson who vowed to block any campus recognition of Miller’s contributions to the university. Sadly, Johnson’s efforts were so successful that Miller’s 50 years of service to Howard were forgotten from Howard’s collective memory.  With her book, Jones’ is attempting to rectify this and to complicate the concept of race men and black intellectual history beyond the simple binary of the Washington-DuBois debates. After the talk, I met several interesting people, including some members of the National Association of Black Women Historians, who recommended local happenings for me to see and groups to join.

Hampton Mansion, on a hill overlooking the estate

Restored Slave Cabin

Over the weekend, I visited the Hampton plantation, which is now managed by the National Park Service. Unfortunately, the interpretative tour on the African American experience at Hampton had been postponed so I spent some time exploring the grounds and going on the tour of the mansion. The wealthy and well-connected Ridgeleys owned Hampton for over 200 years, at one time amassing 25,000 acres on the estate where 350 slaves toiled. I was aware of a famous photograph of Nancy Davis, an enslaved woman, pictured with her charge but just discovered that the little white girl was a Ridgeley from this plantation. According to the NPS website, Davis is the only African American buried in the family cemetery. Following Emancipation, Davis remained on the plantation working for the family until her death in 1908. After the Civil War, the family’s wealth, which was rooted in the agricultural output of the plantation, gradually declined until the last resident sold it a non-profit foundation which then donated it to the National Trust.