Join us for the 6th Annual
4th of July
Declaration of Independence
Recitation Event.
Announcing the Friends of the 1836 Meeting House 6th annual Fourth of July Declaration of Independence Recitation Event. This family friendly event will take place on Friday, July 4th at the North Andover Common starting at 11:00am. Our program includes State Senators Bruce Tarr and Barry Finegold with State Representative Tram Nguyen reading the Declaration of Independence. Local activists and leaders will read other historic speeches. Students from the Civics in Action class taught by Patrick McGravey from NAMS will read the Bill of Rights and provide brief summaries of each right. This year our guests will hear segments from the William Jennings Bryan speech Imperialism, Frederick Douglass speech The Meaning of July Fourth for the Negro, Martin Luther King’s I Have a Dream speech. Also, local musicians will perform several songs relevant to our readings including I Hear Them All/This Land is Your Land original medley by Rockwood Taylor and an original song entitled United in America, written and performed by the Choral Majority. Joanna Kerr, Director of the North Andover Historical Society will narrate the program. Get more information at https://www.1836meetinghouse.org/
The Event is sponsored by the Friends of the 1836 Meeting House, the North Andover Historical Society with support from the North Andover Festival Committee and a generous grant from Mass Humanities provided through the Massachusetts Cultural Council.
Steeple and Meeting House Tours as part of REV250!
You can tour the Meeting House steeple and see the refurbished Paul Revere bell as part of the REV250 Bus Tour of North Andover & Andover on April 19. This tour is offered by the North Andover Historical Society with support from the Friends of the 1836 Meeting House, who will lead the steeple tour. Learn more about the REV250 Tour including the Revere Bell.
THANK YOU to all who attended our Trails and Sails historic tours of the 1836 Meeting House during September, 2024.
Thank you to all who joined us for the 5th Annual 4th of July Declaration of Independence Recitation Event, on the North Andover Common. Watch the Event Video.
The Friends of the 1836 Meeting House 5th annual Fourth of July Declaration of Independence Recitation Event was a great success. We had beautiful weather, a great crowd and awsome speakers and musicians. Thank you.
This family friendly event took place on Tuesday morning, July 4th at the North Andover Common. Our program included State Representative Francisco Paulino and Historical Society President Dave Kres reading the Declaration of Independence. Local activists and leaders read other historic speeches. This year we heard segments from the Frederick Douglass speech The Meaning of July Fourth for the Negro, Martin Luther King’s I Have a Dream speech and the Doctrine of Discovery, a Papal Bull (decree) sent from Pope Alexander VI to the king and queen of Spain in 1493 and Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address. Also, local musicians will performed several songs relevant to our readings including I Hear Them All/This Land is Your Land medley by Rockwood Taylor, an original song entitled United in America, written and performed by the Choral Majority and Lean on Me performed by Bill Putnam and John Chang of the White Street Band. Joanna Kerr, Director of the North Andover Historical Society narrated the program.
The Event was sponsored by the Friends of the 1836 Meeting House, the North Andover Historical Society with support from the North Andover Festival Committee and a generous grant from Mass Humanities provided through the Massachusetts Cultural Council.
Visual Arts Workshop: Painting with a Purpose - Where Community, Culture and Artistic Expression Meet. Presented by Conchetta Jenifer and Miriah Payne
Based on one of the readings by notable African Americans presented at the workshop, participants are invited to create an image based on the poem or passage that is meaningful to them. Time will be reserved at the end of the workshop for participants to share their art and thoughts about the activity. Canvas, easels and all other materials provided.
Conchetta Jenifer and Miriah Payne are the founders of Queens & Paint where you can be your own Picasso! They aim to create space for minds to relax, unwind, and enjoy artistic endeavors by providing a safe and comfortable environment for people to explore their art. Honoring Black History means cultivating a space to engage in meaningful conversations that will build community while creating art that honors our history!
Tickets are free, but seating is limited. Please register in advance via Eventbrite. For more information send an email to NA.BHM.Events@gmail.com
Concert: Oh, Glory! by James Dargan
James Dargan performs Passion Programs that combine music and spoken word to take audiences on a journey. Each program speaks to a specific social theme with music of different genres, interwoven with commentary on how they connect to our own lives.
Oh, Glory! grew out of a desire to celebrate Black American musical history; it gathers some of the core repertoire of five great Black musicians (Paul Robeson, Roland Hayes, Nina Simone, Billie Holiday, and Robert McFerrin, Sr.) to invoke their spirits, honor their accomplishments, and inspire us to question the status quo. Nina Simone said that “Freedom is the absence of fear", and music can help us taste that freedom.
James Dargan is a musician and writer from North Carolina; he is based in New York City, where he sings while composing, playing the violin, writing, and teaching. James has been a musician since he was a child, and has shared his voice and carefully curated programs all over the US and Europe. James also teaches on spirituals and other Black music, and is honored to walk in his family tradition of telling truthful stories. James relishes writing for Black singers, and he is currently writing two operas. Career highlights include solo work with The Boston Pops, and operatic work with esperanza spalding and Wayne Shorter. James is a founding member of the consortium Ring Shout.
Tickets are free, but seating is limited. Please register in advance via Eventbrite. Parking is available on Academy Rd; please reserve spots in front of the building for the elderly and disabled. For more information send an email to NA.BHM.Events@gmail.com
Lecture: The Singing Souls of Black Folk
In 1903, W.E.B. Du Bois published his classic The Souls of Black Folk where he used the sacred music of African Americans, "ten master songs," to shape the analytical foundations for interpreting their history and culture. In 1924, Du Bois expanded that analytical foundation with his lesser known but highly significant volume, The Gift of Black Folk: The Negroes in the Making of America. "The Singing Souls of Black Folk" uses Du Bois's analyses as a springboard to explore the role of African American music, sacred and secular, in the continued "making" of America and to highlight the importance of celebrating "the Arts" in the African American experience.
Cheryl Townsend Gilkes (Pronounced "Jillks") is the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Professor Emerita of African-American Studies and Sociology at Colby College (Waterville, Maine). An ordained Baptist minister, she is an assistant pastor for special projects at the Union Baptist Church in Cambridge, Massachusetts. She has served as visiting faculty at several seminaries and schools of divinity, most recently Chicago Theological Seminary. She will also serve as a Distinguished Professor, Community Liaison, and Research Consultant for the Hartford International University for Religion and Peace (formerly Hartford Seminary). She holds degrees in sociology from Northeastern University (B.A., M.A., Ph.D.), has pursued graduate theological studies at Boston University's School of Theology, and has received an honorary Doctor of Divinity (D. D.) from Ursinus College. In addition to her book, she has published articles in scholarly journals and edited volumes on race and ethnicity, the work of W.E.B. Du Bois, and African American religion.
Tickets are free, but seating is limited. Please register in advance via Eventbrite. Parking is available on Academy Rd; please reserve spots in front of the building for the elderly and disabled. For more information send an email to NA.BHM.Events@gmail.com
An Evening of Gospel
Gospel music performed by local choirs
Merrimack Valley's Choral Majority under the direction of Eric and Robin Allison Lindahl in addition to other local choirs who will bring all to their feet as they celebrate the gospel through praise and song. Expect a high energy evening!
The Choral Majority Gospel Choir is a Merrimack Valley-based non-profit arts ministry who have shared their message of faith, love and unity with audiences across New England for over 30 years. The group includes members and music of different heritages and sings in multiple languages reflecting the rich heritage diversity of our country.
Tickets are free, but seating is limited. Please register in advance via Eventbrite . Parking is available on Academy Rd; please reserve spots in front of the building for the elderly and disabled. For more information send an email to NA.BHM.Events@gmail.com.
Black History Month
Black History Month is a time when the contributions and culture of African Americans take center stage. It is a time for us to learn and reflect about parts of our American history that have remained hidden, often because of who gets to write the history we've been taught.
“Those being honored were contributors to their communities, whether it be here in the Andovers or beyond. Theirs is a history that has been marginalized and is now being acknowledged to set the record straight. Hallelujah! “ – Michele Phillips
"Learning the stories of the African Americans in our community who are being honored by this project, will make our historical information more complete." - Susan Malloy, North Parish Racial Justice Team