Historic Odessa Foundation hosting Juneteenth event
ODESSA — In honor of Juneteenth, the Historic Odessa Foundation will host a free public tour of the nonprofit historic center’s National Park Service Network to Freedom exhibit and tour: “Freedom Seekers: The Odessa Story.”
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Historic Odessa Foundation hosting Juneteenth event
Historic Odessa Foundation hosting Juneteenth event
Daily State News
ODESSA — In honor of Juneteenth, the Historic Odessa Foundation will host a free public tour of the nonprofit center’s National Park Service Network to Freedom exhibit and tour entitled “Freedom Seekers: The Odessa Story.”
It commemorates the journey to freedom and the spirit of resilience and liberation, a news release said.
The event runs from noon to 2 p.m. and tours will leave from the visitors center at 201 Main St. Reservations are available for noon, 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. tours and can be made until Tuesday.
To register call 302-378-4119 or email Jennifer.Cabell@historicodessa.org.
Highlights of the tour include:
• Tour the National Historic Landmark Corbit-Sharp House, a stop along the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Byway. In 2009, the Corbit-Sharp House, which this year celebrates its 250th anniversary, was accepted into the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom by the National Park Service.
• Access the permanent exhibit “Freedom Seekers: The Odessa Story”
• Have a portrait silhouette cut in the method typical at the turn of the 18th and 19th centuries and discover how the camera obscura was used to create profile likenesses for posterity. Silhouettes have been made in all forms of art across all cultures, times and places.
Juneteenth, also known as Emancipation Day, marks the anniversary of the announcement of the abolition of slavery in Texas on June 19, 1865, and is a significant day in American history. This tour is an opportunity to honor this milestone by learning more about the struggle for freedom and the triumphs achieved through unity and determination.
Odessa was a key player in the Underground Railroad both geographically on the border of freedom and in terms of its population of abolitionists.
Built in 1774 and one of Delaware’s most historic homes and important examples of Georgian architecture, the Corbit-Sharp House is one of nine sites, two programs and two facilities in Delaware on the National Park Service’s Network to Freedom.
Freedom Seekers is part of the Historic Odessa Foundation’s mission to encourage the use of its historic buildings by the general public, students and scholars.
For information on the Historic Odessa Foundation’s Freedom Seekers: The Odessa Story Tour, special exhibits, and Living History Education Program, visit historicodessa.org, or call 302-378-4119.
