Today is Juneteenth, but events have been happening all week long and into the weekend to celebrate the end of slavery in the United States.
One of them is the dedication of a brand-new stop on the African American Heritage Trail of Martha's Vineyard this Friday.
CAI’s Gilda Geist spoke to Elaine Cawley Weintraub, cofounder and executive director of the Heritage Trail, to learn more about this new trail stop and how it relates to Juneteenth.
Gilda Geist This new historic site on the African American Heritage Trail of Martha's Vineyard is called the Dragonfly House. Can you introduce us to the site and tell us why it's significant?
Elaine Cawley Weintraub The Dragonfly House is significant on a lot of different levels. 150 years ago, the house was the property of John Ritchie, who was the diarist for the Mass 54th Regiment in the Civil War. He was a dedicated abolitionist, and he was the quartermaster for the Mass 54th. He would have fought with the regiment, but apparently he had chronically short eyesight. So, he wrote these diaries, which give us the only realistic, authentic picture of what life was in the Mass 54th. The activities of the regiment are not described through a condescending lens — they're described through the lens of somebody who was right there. So, that alone makes it significant. And then in the 1950s, the house was the property of the Eastman family, and was known as Eastman's by the Sea. And it was a boarding house operating for African American people to stay. It was listed in the Green Book. It was a safe place for African Americans to recreate or to stay and work. And that's a really important part of the history of Martha's Vineyard, how the African American community grew. And they were property owners and entrepreneurial, and created a community that is vibrant today. And then the third part of this, it's the property of the Henry family. And the DJ Henry [Dream] Fund provides opportunity for young people who, for economic reasons or social reasons, wouldn't otherwise have opportunities to attend summer camp, to take basketball, ballet, whatever — they [the Henrys] operate that fund and that property is still in African American ownership.
GG How did the Dragonfly House come to be a part of the Heritage Trail?
ECW The Henry family approached the trail to share the history that they had unearthed. They had worked very hard, not only to renovate the house so that it looks exactly as it would have looked at the beginning of its history. They have also researched the life of John Ritchie, and they felt that they had an authentic case to be on their heritage trail. And we met with them and talked with them, and we agreed. And so here it is, site number 41.
GG What does it mean to you to welcome the Dragonfly House to the Heritage Trail so close to Juneteenth?
ECW I see it very much fitting together. You know, the theme of Juneteenth is basically freedom. Freedom is about choices — choices made by those who impede freedom and those who desire freedom. And this, to us, seems to embody the values of freedom. The activities of the Henry family to enhance and enrich their community fits with that. John Ritchie writing his diaries, which are now in a museum as the only authentic record. All those stories that have to be told. The Eastmans operating a business, acquiring a business at the time when African Americans had very limited access to acquiring property and business. These are all parts of values of freedom.
The dedication of the Dragonfly House is at noon on Friday, the day after Juneteenth. A reception will follow. The Dragonfly House is located at 115 Seaview Ave in Oak Bluffs.
