2019 Freedmen’s Towns Stories

Dillon Symposium – 2019 – Saturday November 9th 

The Dillon Center at the University of Texas at Arlington, the African American Museum of Dallas, and building communityWORKSHOP are excited to present the 2019 Dillon Symposium. Through panel discussions and workshops, this year’s symposium will highlight ongoing efforts to preserve, celebrate, and advance freedmen’s towns across Texas. Residents, filmmakers, storytellers, historians, preservationists and more will come together to share their work and generate ideas. 

Neighborhood Advocacy

Tenth Street Freedmanstown, Dallas
Tenth Street Residential Association https://www.facebook.com/pages/category/Community/Tenth-Street-Residential-Association-181054355898645/

Elm Thicket
Elm Thicket/Northpark Neighborhood Association, https://www.elmthicketnorthpark.com/
Neighborhood Stories interview with Jonathan Maples, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1V0OMXyimw

Joppa
South Central Civic League, https://www.southcentralcivicleague.org/
https://www.facebook.com/South-Central-Civic-League-serving-JoppeeJoppa-since-1948-1416174695349529/

Bear Creek, Irving
West Irving Improvement Association, https://www.yellowbldg.com/
Jackie Townsell Bear Creek Heritage Center, https://www.irvingtexas.com/things-to-do/distinctly-irving/jackie-townsell-bear-creek-heritage-center/

Academic Projects and Books

Statewide documentation of Freedmen’s Towns
Texas Freedom Colonies Project, Dr. Andrea Roberts, Texas A&M University
http://www.thetexasfreedomcoloniesproject.com/

Claiming Open Spaces, Professor Austin Allen, University of Texas at Arlington
Feature-length documentary about city parks in Columbus, New Orleans, Detroit, Oakland, and Montgomery, and the African-Americans who frequent them.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UOjPYbnAutk

St. John’s Community, near Pilot Point, Texas
“Uncovering St. John’s,” Professor Todd Moye, University of North Texas
https://omeka.library.unt.edu/s/stjohns/page/welcome

Freedman’s Town North Dallas and Sherman, Texas
Book: 1012 Natchez, by Dr. Njoki McElroy
http://www.drnjokimcelroy.com/

Quakertown, Denton, Texas
Freedman Town 2.0, Professor Carla LynDale Carter-Bishop
https://northtexan.unt.edu/content/freedman-town

Little Egypt, Dallas
Richland College, Professors Clive Siegle and Tim Sullivan
https://rlc5.dcccd.edu/media/little-egypt-2019/

Garden of Eden, Fort Worth
Book: The Garden of Eden: The Story of a Freedmen’s Community in Texas, Drew Sanders
http://www.prs.tcu.edu/book-pages/sanders_garden_of_eden.asp

Participating Institutions

David Dillon Center for Texas Architecture, UT Arlington
https://websites.uta.edu/dilloncenter 

bcWorkshop
https://bcworkshop.org 

Soul Rep Theater
http://www.soulrep.org/welcome-2

African American Museum of Dallas
http://www.aamdallas.org

Schedule of Events

9:30 AM Doors open + Coffee

10:00 Introductions + Welcome
Dr. Kathryn Holliday, Associate Professor and Director of the David Dillon Center for Texas Architecture, University of Texas at Arlington
Dr. Harry Robinson, President and CEO, African American Museum of Dallas

10:10 Storytelling: Writing
Paula Lupkin, Associate Professor, University of North Texas
Drew Sanders, Author
Dr. Njoki McElroy, Author and Playwright
Moderated by J. Todd Moyne, Professor and Director of the UNT Oral History Program, University of North Texas

11:00 Storytelling: Performance
Excerpt from The Freedmans by Soul Rep Theatre

11:20 Storytelling: Multimedia
Austin Allen, Associate Professor of Practice, University of Texas at Arlington
Carla Carter Bishop, Senior Lecturer, University of North Texas
Dr. Tim Sullivan and Dr. Clive Siegle, Faculty, Richland College
Moderated by Dr. Andrea Roberts, Assistant Professor, Texas A&M University

12:10PM lunch 

1:10 Storytelling: Advocacy
Patricia Cox, President, Tenth Street Historic District Neighborhood Association
Shalondria Galimore, President, South Central Civic League (Joppee’s Neighborhood Association)
Leena Sanders, Arts Educator and Neighborhood Advocate
Jonathan Maples, President, Elm Thicket Neighborhood Association
Charles “Baba Kwasi” Harris, Executive Board Member, West Irving Improvement Association
Moderated by Dr. Diane Jones Allen, Associate Professor, University of Texas at Arlington

2:30pm Closing Words

3:00pm “Facing the Rising Sun” Exhibit tour with Dr. Marvin Dulaney