Sparking Freedom (SOLD OUT*)

The Fredericksburg Area Museum (FAM), in partnership with Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania County Battlefields National Military Park and Discover Stafford, is pleased to announce a new trolley tour Sparking Freedom: Enslaved Resistance in Fredericksburg and Stafford, Virginia. Led by Dr. Gaila Sims, Curator of African American History and Special Projects.

Sparking Freedom incorporates stops at multiple National Park Service sites, as well as several other local historic locations and the Fredericksburg Area Museum. Combining historical documentation and archival research, this program features accounts of enslaved resistance including an uprising of enslaved men at Chatham plantation in winter 1805, the story of Anthony Burns, an enslaved man who escaped to Boston in 1853 but was later apprehended under the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850, and enslaved individuals like Bethany Veney who resisted sales and auctions.

This program is free and open to the public. Participants will board the trolley at the Fredericksburg Battlefield Visitor Center (1013 Lafayette Blvd). Due to limited spots, participants must RSVP. Visit Sparking Freedom: Enslaved Resistance in Fredericksburg and Stafford Tickets, Multiple Dates | Eventbrite to reserve your spots.

Sparking Freedom: Enslaved Resistance in Fredericksburg and Stafford, Virginia is supported by the National Park Foundation’s ParkVentures Grant.