Lucy Prince Presentation – Avis Hayden, in conjunction with the Bennington Historical Society, will be presenting the story of Lucy Prince and her Family at the Bennington Museum, on June 25th, 2023 beginning at 2:00PM. For more information please visit: https://benningtonmuseum.org/event/lucy-prince-of-sunderland-and-her-family-the-story-of-an-early-black-vermonter/
History – On July 29th, 1761 Benning Wentworth chartered the Town of Sunderland, Vermont on behalf of King George the third. Within that charter, land was granted to a number of original proprietors. Among those original land owners of Sunderland was Abijah Prince, a free black man. He also owned property in Guilford VT. Abijah purchased the freedom of Lucy Terry. Lucy had been stolen from her home in Africa as a child and sold into slavery. They married in 1756 and went on to have six children, Tatnai, Cesar, Drucilla, Durexa, Abijah Jr. and Festus. Over the years Lucy found acclaim for poetry and her speaking ability. She used this ability to defend her property and family, arguing before the trustees of Williams College and even the Vermont Supreme court. Her poem Bars Fight is her only surviving work and is widely regarded as the earliest existing poem by an African American woman.
Pictured are John Camellio, Jeff Dexter, Jon French & Rose Keough
Lucy Terry Prince Day –On Sunday, July 11th, 2021 a group of more than 30 area residents gathered outside Sunderland’s Town Hall to commemorate the Bicentennial of Lucy Terry Prince’s death in the town of Sunderland at the age of 97 on July 11, 1821.
Area residents braved rainy skies to hear Select board Chair, Jon French, read the Town’s Proclamation designating July 11, 2021 as Lucy Prince Day; Bill Budde, Curator of The Russell Collection at the Canfield Library in Arlington, give the audience a biographical synopsis of Lucy and the Prince family; Manchester poet, Kiev Green, recite Lucy’s poem Bars Fight; State Representative Kathleen James read the State’s recent Resolution honoring the memory of Lucy Prince; State Representative Seth Bongartz reflect on the meaning of the gathering; and Rev. Claire North, Founder of the Community Ministry in the Mountains, give a moving reading of Lucy’s lengthy obituary as well as a discourse given by Rev. Lemuel Haynes upon Lucy’s passing. The ceremony ended with the planting of a Magnolia tree which symbolizes endurance, stability and perseverance…traits Lucy Prince exemplified her entire life.
The event was a very fitting tribute highlighting the great diversity of Vermont, as well as sharing and preserving the accomplishments and legacy of a great fellow Vermonter who overcame extreme obstacles to be an inspiration for all Americans.
Television – View GNAT TV coverage of Lucy Prince Day in Sunderland at: https://gnat-tv.org/the-news-project-lucy-prince-remembered/
GNAT TV News Project piece – Lucy Prince and her history in Sunderland. The link to view the video is: https://gnat-tv.org/the-news-project-then-now-lot-20-and-lucy-prince/
Poetry in our Schools – Sunderland Elementary students have been learning about Lucy and her importance in the history of the Town of Sunderland. They have memorialized Lucy in poetry. With thanks to their teacher, Kristen Benamati, samples of their writings are shared below. The complete works are available at the bottom.
5th Grade:
Evelyne M.
Lucy Prince
Lucy Prince was inspiring,
Unbeknownst to most,
Was an African American slave,
Who could read and write,
She made it through hardships and terrors,
And came out an unstoppable woman.
Byron C.
Poetry is what she did,she was a
Rare african american poet,she
Illustrated her own poems,she
Narrated her poems,she was
Compassionate and a
Enslaved African American woman
Sophia P.
But the 25th of August, the year 1746
And the great and dreadful
Raid on Deerfield’s
Story was
Fully brutal though
Ingeniously told.
Great and grave, the poem told
Had made
The poet so significant to our home