Black Lives in the Founding Era News: Week 1

The Gilder Lehrman Institute is excited to announce the new “Black Lives in the Founding Era” initiative. This project restores to view the lives and works of a wide array of African Americans in the period 1760 to 1800, and draws on our archive of historical documents and our network of scholars and master teachers.

Over the next six months, the Institute will produce digital and print materials to serve teachers and students, including but not limited to

• A History School course this spring. Geared toward students in grades 3–8, each class looks at a different historical figure—some famous and some little known—and their life, legacy, and accomplishments.
• Two Teacher Seminars this summer: Lives of the Enslaved with Professor Daina Ramey Berry and Black Lives in the Founding Era with Professor James Basker. Teacher Seminars are open to K–12 teachers in our Affiliate School Program.
• An ongoing transcription opportunity for students through our Digital Volunteers program, with documents taken from more than 200 books, magazines, and newspapers in the Gilder Lehrman Collection
• A new booklet, Slavery and Abolition in the Founding Era: Black and White Voices, which brings together long-forgotten writings from this period and is free to K–12 teachers in our Affiliate School Program
• Sessions of our popular public programs Inside the Vault and Book Breaks devoted specifically to the topic of Black Lives in the Founding Era
• A weekly News post highlighting specific resources relating to Black Lives in the Founding Era

We invite you to explore the full scope of our resources here, and check back often throughout the year for new programs and offerings.

Next Wednesday we will highlight Black Patriots of the American Revolution in this News section.