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During the preparations for construction
of a new Central Expressway by the Texas Department of Transportation
(TxDOT) and a Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) subway tunnel
in 1986, it became clear that the historic black Freedman's
Cemetery would be "impacted". The resolution of
TxDOT and the outraged community members was that TxDOT would
finance the extensive excavation and the creation of a traveling
exhibit which would educate people about the important history
of Freedman's Cemetery. GeoMarine was contracted by TxDOT
to do the excavation, and they in turn commissioned Documentary
Arts, Inc. to design and oversee the creation of the exhibit.
The Show is currently up at the African
American Museum in Dallas, TX.
Tues-Fri, noon to 5 pm
Sat, 10 am to 5 pm
Sun, 1 to 5 pm
Closed on Mondays
Freedman’s Cemetery (circa 1869-1925)
represents the remnants of a once thriving North Dallas community,
which from the end of the Civil War to 1970s was the largest
African American enclave in Dallas. Freedman's Cemetery: Facing
the Rising Sun, is inspired by found objects, worn photographs,
archival documents, broken headstones, shells, shards of earthenware,
decorative pottery, china plates and glass. It is a body of
work that defines the fragmentary history of a once prominent
African American community, known first as Freedmantown and
later as North Dallas. The exhibit brings together public
and private collections and is presented in different thematic
areas: Slavery, Emancipation, Reconstruction, Early Families,
Education, Medicine, Religion, Business, and Community Pride.
Interactive video kiosks present a menu of options and enable
the viewer to gain an understanding of the life experiences
of different individuals, who grew up in Freedmantown and
old North Dallas. These are supplemented by vintage photography,
newspapers, snap shots, 8mm-film footage, archival documents,
business directories, maps, and other ephemera that help to
elucidate the broader context of community life. Several groups
forged together in 1989 to protect Freedman's Cemetery from
further damage through the scientific excavation of the graves
within the right-of-way of the proposed North Central Expressway
improvements and the re-interment of the remains and associated
effects in an adjacent plot the of the largest in the country.
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