About Us Stories

The Amherstburg Freedom

Museum is a curated archive

that preserves and shares

Amherstburg’s stories of the

Underground Railroad, and

the compassion and

solidarity it took to make this

network possible.

277 King Street,

Amherstburg, ON N9V 2C7

Phone: 519-736-5433

Email:

curator@amherstburgfreedom.org

www.amherstburgfreedom.org

January 2019

2018: A Year

in Review

Highlights

from

Christmas at

the Museum

Feature

Artist: James

R. Baylis

The Talking Drum

The Talking Drum is published monthly by

the Amherstburg Freedom Museum. Contributions, story ideas, suggestions and feedback are always welcome. Please contact Mary-Katherine Whelan at

curator@amherstburgfreedom.org

277 King Street, Amherstburg, ON N9V 2C7

519-736-5433 or 800-713-6336 toll free

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Philip H. Alexander,

Director

J. Trisha Bray, Director

Tom Hurst, Director

Dr. Barbara Hughes Smith,

Director

Gary Jean, Treasurer

Monty Logan, President

Dr. Brenda McCurdy,

Director

Barbara Porter, Director

David Van Dyke,

Vice-President

STAFF

Lorene Bridgen, Assistant Curator

Mary-Katherine Whelan, Curator/Manager of

Collections and Research

PART-TIME

Teiana Harris

Darryn Walls

It’s hard to believe 2018 has drawn to a close; and what a year it was! We’d like to thank you, our subscribers and supporters, for your generous support of the Amherstburg Freedom Museum, and the programming that we offered in 2018. Through the success of our annual signature events including Ribs & Ragtime,

Christmas at the Museum, Emancipation Celebrations and the Walter Perry

Emancipation Golf Classic we provided rich experiences of Black culture and

history to both residents and visitors alike!

This past year we have had visitors from as far away as Iceland, China, British

Columbia, all over the United States and even from New Zealand! We are

grateful for these visitors and their enthusiasm to learn about the significance of

Amherstburg as a settlement for Black refugees at the end of the Underground

Railroad, and the contributions that the descendants of formerly enslaved

people made in this region.

We were also pleased to be able to welcome back former staff Darryn Walls who

came on as a part-time staff member, and summer student Sarah Szpak. We

also welcomed new faces to our summer staff this year, Hallee Keijik and Skylar

Schmidt. We’d like to express our sincere thanks to them for all their hard work!

In addition to our summer staff, we also welcomed our newest board member,

Brenda McCurdy.

The support that we receive from you, our subscribers and supporters has

helped enable the museum to remain open to area residents and visitors to

Amherstburg year-round, to provide educational outreach to Essex County

Schools and community organizations, and in turn allowed the museum to

continue hosting our annual events.

Thank you for choosing to subscribe to the museum, for making a donation,

for taking a tour, for supporting our events, and for bringing your friends and

family along too!

We look forward to seeing you in 2019!

Sincerely,

Mary-Katherine Whelan

Curator/Administrator

Amherstburg Freedom Museum

A Message from the Curator

AFM Feature Artist: James R. Baylis

Over the Christmas break, the Amherstburg Freedom Museum was lucky enough to have a visit from actor, James R. Baylis. You may have seen James on shows such as the X-Files, Supernatural and Smallville. James says that he started acting from the moment he could talk: he was always telling stories. His first audition would come with the school play, Oliver Twist. Sadly, James was not given the role of Oliver and the reason was not because of his ability to act, but because of his skin colour. His teacher told him “Oliver is not Black.” When asked if this moment deterred him from acting, James said that this comment “set him back, but that it did not crush him” because he had encouragement from his grandmother and because he received an even bigger role in the Nativity Story a few months later. He said “Humility is our greatest teacher.” He learned from that moment, but it took some time before he was discovered. It was while James was distributing items to the homeless, that the creator of DaVinci’s City Hall, Chris Haddock, approached James. Haddock then asked him to appear on the show, performing on

screen the very act that got him discovered: giving to the needy. James performs on film/tv, but also on stage and voice acting. He said that each role has its positives. With film/tv acting it is just you and the camera: “it’s subtle and you keep it small.” In stage productions, there is a rush from the audience’s immediate reaction. He says, “First the audience receive your presence, then your eyes and then your voice. Their reaction encourages you.” With voice acting, he says it is very hard work because you become the character and move like them, despite the audience not actually seeing you perform.

James was born and raised in Harrow and is the 10th of 14 children to Clara and Elmer Baylis. Elmer worked not only on the farm, but also at Ford Motor Company so that he could provide for his family. Interestingly, Elmer was also a pitcher and second baseman for the Canadian Negro Baseball Leagues. James said that his father did not say much about his time playing baseball, mainly because he did not want to encourage his children to take on a sport that would ultimately reject them based on the colour of their skin. For that reason, in addition to financial factors, James’ father focused more on carpentry and his work at Ford. James’ mother Clara was also very talented, but as a musician. According to James, his mother was a natural who learned how to play the piano by ear, after hearing her sister Vera. James says that his mother’s “spirit flowed on the keys” when she played and that she passed on an understand of music and how we heal ourselves through song. James added that listening to his mother’s music has helped him get through tough times. He adds that he’s heard stories of his mother interacting with Motown producers, but rather than taking on a music career, she put her family first. James believes that even though his mother never lived out her dream as a musician, that he has contributed to fulfilling his mother’s dream for her, just through a different medium: acting. James says that he pours himself into each character he plays because of his mother: she is his inspiration.

James is currently doing voice work with National Geographic Wild’s production of Dead Before Dawn, in addition to acting on the tv show, Legends of Tomorrow, and performing voice work on a video game for Marvel Comics. James also hopes to head up to New York to audition for theatre productions of Othello and Driving Miss Daisy. James is grateful to have had the opportunity to share his story because, as his grandmother would say, “You don’t know where you’re going until you know where you’ve been.”

This year’s calendar started off with a bang with the Artists of Colour’s exhibit, Journeys. Opening night had a fantastic turnout and guests enjoyed a presentation by the artists, followed by the viewing of their pieces. A big thank you to the Artists of Colour, Helen Brown, Lois Smith Larkin, Lana Enyale Talbot, Connie Lee-Turner, Susan Johnson-Washington, Dennis K. Smith, and Vallerie Johnson-Williams, in addition to Jim Walls and Karzell Dew for their performances, and to Milo Johnson for acting as the evening's Conductor and for selling copies of his new book, New Canaan: Freedom-Land (available for purchase at the Amherstburg Freedom Museum gift shop).

2018: A Pictorial Year in Review

This year’s Ribs and Ragtime was such a great event. We had the perfect weather, amazing entertainment and delicious food. It was the perfect night to bring friends and family together. Look at all of those smiling faces!

2018: A Pictorial Year in Review

2018: A Pictorial Year in Review

The Emancipation Dinner and Dance and The Walter Perry Emancipation Golf Classic were additional highlights to the year. A special thank you to Cheryl Hardcastle, Percy Hatfield, Tom Bain, and John Elliott, and the staff of Arbor Memorial, Windsor Police, and the University of Windsor who attended the Emancipation Dinner and Dance. Additional thanks to Amherstburg Mayor, Aldo DiCarlo and Councilor Leo Meloche for participating in the Golf Classic too.

Highlights from Christmas at the Museum

The Nazrey A.M.E. Church was packed on December 12th for our annual Christmas at the Museum. Guests took in the beauty of the church while enjoying a fantastic performance by Brynda & Co., who welcomed in the holiday season with Christmas classics like "Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire" and "Santa Claus is Coming to Town." Brynda (Brenda McCurdy) even ended the night by calling up her sister Gayle to join her for one

last song. What a performance! The evening's events also included the history of amazing trailblazers who were rec-ognized in 2018 including Kay Livingstone and Lincoln Alex-

ander, who were recog-nized on a stamp; the 170th anniversary of Elijah McCoy’s birth was celebrated; Willie O'Ree who was finally inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame; and Viola Desmond, who is now on Cana-da's $10 bill. So many trailblazers!

A big thank you to all of the guests who came out to support the muse-um. Because of you, the museum can continue to share the history of the Underground Railroad and the many significant accomplishments of African Canadians. We truly appreci-

ate all that you do. Also, thank you to our amazing sponsors, Detroit Memorial Park Association, J.H. Sutton Funeral Home, and Dollars &

Cents.

We would also like to extend thanks to Stark Painting, Marlene Crepp, Ruth Bridgen, and Mike Allen who graciously provided our dessert buffet, in addition to Bev Bridgen who provided the prizes for a small silent auction. A final thank you to everyone who brought in canned goods. Because of you we made a large donation to the Amherstburg Food and Fellowship Mission.

Black History Facts for January

January 1, 2005: Shirley Anita (St. Hill) Chisholm passes away. In 1964 Chisholm

was elected to the New York state legislature, making her the second African–

American woman to serve in Albany. A few years later,

in 1968, Shirley Chisholm became the first Black woman

to serve in the United States Congress and even ran for

President of the United States of America in 1972 under

the campaign motto "unbought and unbossed."

January 1, 1851: The African-Canadian newspaper, the

Voice of the Fugitive began publication in Sandwich,

Canada West. It was published by Mary and Henry Bibb and was circulated

throughout the province and in several US states.

January 15: Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

January 17, 1942: Boxer, Muhammad Ali’s Birthday. He was born in

Louisville, Kentucky and became the first fighter to win the world

heavyweight championship on three separate occasions. Did you know that

Ali was born with the name Cassius Clay which was a name he inherited

from his father who was named after abolitionist, Cassius M. Clay.

January 18, 1958: Willie O’Ree, from Fredericton, New Brunswick, made his

NHL debut with the Boston Bruins against the Montreal Canadiens, becoming the first Black player in the

League’s history. It was on November 12,

2018 that Willie O’Ree was officially

welcomed as an Honoured Member of the

Hockey Hall of Fame.

January 21, 1922: The Honourable Lincoln

Alexander was born in Toronto, Ontario. He

was the first Black MP and federal Cabinet

minister, and sworn in as Ontario’s Lieutenant Governor in 1985, becoming the first

Black person to hold this position in Canada.

January 31, 1919: Jackie Robinson was born in Cairo, Georgia. On

April 15, 1947, he became the first African-American player in the

20th century to play in the Major Leagues when he suited up for the

Brooklyn Dodgers. It was in that same year that he was named

Rookie of the Year.

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