Welcome to the African-American Heritage Trail of Martha’s Vineyard
We are the builders of the African-American Heritage trail on Martha’s Vineyard. Read more.
The Story Ralf and Luella Coleman
Site #25 on the African American Heritage Trail on Martha’s Vineyard, this documentary provides a brief history of how Ralf Coleman became The Dean of Boston’s Black Theater and Luella’s vision of setting up residency on the island.
Embracing the American dream
February 7, 2024
Ambler Wormley will be honored with a plaque on the African American Heritage Trail.
Every community has its stories tucked away and almost forgotten, but as long as someone remembers, the story is not lost. There are many people whose lives of everyday heroism and refusal to give up hope are lived quietly and without fanfare.
Dr. Keith Motley Joins Board of Directors
The African American Heritage Trail of Martha’s Vineyard is delighted to welcome Dr. Keith Motley to our board of directors. It is an honor to have him join us in our ongoing mission to document and share the African-American history of Martha’s Vineyard.
What’s in a name?
October 25, 2023
The Charter School collaborates with the African American Heritage Trail on research projects.
The African American Heritage Trail and the Martha’s Vineyard Public Charter School began an exciting collaboration in 2020, when Deirdre Brown’s history classes worked with the trail to clean and restore the Old Marine Cemetery in Oak Bluffs. Brown’s landscaping expertise was very valuable as years of undergrowth were cut back to reveal a clear path to the site at the cemetery honoring the life of Rebecca Martin, whose mother, Nancy Michael, was born into enslavement on Martha’s Vineyard, and whose son, William A. Martin, became the Island’s only African American whaling captain.
What the African American Heritage Trail Means to Jarrett Campbell
July 26, 2023
Twenty-five years ago, the notion of creating an African American Heritage Trail on the Vineyard was inspired by the questions of a group of my students, who asked, “Where were all the Black people then?”
The journey since that time has been to uncover and celebrate that history, and students have been involved with each stage of the reclamation project. One young man who grew up immersed in the work, Jarrett Campbell, 42, recently reflected on the importance of the trail to him, and the impact it has had on his life.
Read the full story on the MV Times
Graves Machine & Tool Company is the first stop on the new Black Business Trail.
July 27, 2023
The African American Heritage Trail of Martha’s Vineyard (AAHTMV) unveiled a new site along its trail on Wednesday, honoring an old business in Oak Bluffs.
The site is the first of AAHTMV’s Black Business Trail, which will include both historical and contemporary examples of Black enterprise in Oak Bluffs and Vineyard Haven.
The African American Heritage Trail plans to continue building this section of the Trail throughout the year.
The 37th site recognizes Robert and Shirley Graves’ business, Graves Machine & Tool Company. After raising eight children in Springfield, Robert and Shirley Graves took their business to Uncas Avenue in Oak Bluffs, which is now the Barn Bowl & Bistro.
Read the full story on the MV Times
2023 is Our 25th Anniversary
A very happy New Year to all our supporters and community of friends from all of us at AAHTMV. We worked very hard in 2022. We emerged from the lock down with strength and our commitment to continue to build this vitally important Trail, to continue our education program and to share the amazing stories of African American people on Martha’s Vineyard. Our thanks to all the people who toured with us during 2022 and brought their stories and their passion for the history. During 2022, we dedicated three new sites during 2022 and our total now stands at 36 with many more to come.
Dunmere by the Sea, an inn featured in the Green Book was added to he Trail, and two sites at the Martha’s Vineyard Camp Meeting Association both of which told tragic stories of racism and exclusion and finally recognition.
A dream came true for us when we installed a sculpture of Nancy Michael, the once enslaved woman who dominated the waterfront in Edgartown. It took many years to achieve that goal, and we were proud to unveil the sculpture at Memorial Wharf, Edgartown on Juneteenth, 2022.
Our plans for 2023 our 25th anniversary
We have ambitious plans for 2023 that include building a Black Business Trail in the towns of Oak Bluffs and Vineyard Haven. This trail will include historical examples of Black enterprise and initiative and contemporary Black owned businesses in both towns. We will develop this Trail so that we can offer it to our community as a walking and driving and even shopping opportunity. Plaques and markers will be placed on the buildings involved and a full description of the Trail will be included on our website (mvafricanamericanheritagetrail.org)
It is planned to designate the former home of the Reverend Jackson on Central Avenue in the Martha’s Vineyard Campground as a site on the Trail.
We are working on a large project with the Martha’s Vineyard Charter School to further develop our site in West Tisbury and to educate a new generation about the heroic story of those who traveled to North Carolina to register voters during the Civil Rights Struggle, and who built relationships between the African American community of Williamston, North Carolina and Martha’s Vineyard.
We will be offering a series of workshops on financial literacy given by our Tour Leader, Chris Edgerly who feels inspired by the struggles and successes of working class African Americans to build successful communities on Martha’s Vineyard and hopes to offer participants the financial advice that will help them to replicate the success of former generations.
As 2023, is our 25th anniversary we will be holding a series of events to honor the path we have made and to celebrate the people whose lives we celebrate in our work.
2022 African American Heritage Trail Update!
2022 has been a very busy year for the Trail organization: we have dedicated three new sites, educating schools and colleges who have visited the Trail and taken part in several symposiums to promote community education.
During the Juneteenth celebrations we unveiled a sculpture of the wise woman Nancy Michael at the Memorial Wharf in Edgartown. It had long been our ambition to place the sculpture there as a permanent memorial to the life of this remarkable woman who though born into enslavement rose to a position of influence in the town of Edgartown. Dunmere by the Sea, an inn featured in the Green Book, was also added to the Trail as site #34.
On June 24th, the Martha’s Vineyard Camp Meeting Association (the Campground) was added to the Trail as site #35 in honor of thirty families of color who were removed from the Campground in the period 1910-1920 as part of a policy of racial segregation and white supremacy. The plaques placed at the Campground tell the story, and list the names of the families who were removed.
The work goes on and the Trail is actively engaged within the community in gathering histories and disseminating the stories.
Heritage Trail Honors Esther
> Kaur, Dina (30 June 2021) Do you know Esther’s story? Underground Railroad’s Martha’s Vineyard ties celebrated Cape Cod Times
> Hufstader, Louisa (28 July 2021) New Island Landmark Honors Esther, Who Refused to Be Enslaved. Martha’s Vineyard Gazette.
> Seonwoo, Eunki (28 July 2021) Esther’s story will teach future generations. Martha’s Vineyard Times.
Heritage Trail Receives Grant from the National Trust for Historic Preservation
The African American Heritage Trail of Martha’s Vineyard is a proud recipient of one of 40 grants just awarded by the National Trust for Historic Preservation and funded by its African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund.
Watch Trail Co-founder Dr. Elaine Weintraub’s Recent Interview on the Strong Inspirations Channel!
Nameless Trail is Dedicated on May 20th
Site #32 of the AAHTMV was dedicated on Thursday, May 20th at the MV Charter School. It is the only monument on the Vineyard dedicated to enslaved people and created by children.
New Children’s Book
A Good Name is More Precious than Gold and Silver: Stories of Enslaved People of Martha’s Vineyard is now available in three parts. It’s a new series of books honoring those who lost their liberty and their names through the crime of enslavement in the context of Martha’s Vineyard.
Aquinnah site added to National Network of Freedom
The National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom accepted the Martha’s Vineyard African American Heritage Trail site “Randall Burton”, also known as “Edgar Jones,” as the second Vineyard site to join the program. Read more on the MV Times.
Women Making History
A collaborative event by the NAACP of Martha’s Vineyard and the MV African American Heritage Trail.
The recording of the event is available here.
Founders of the African American Heritage Trail of Martha’s Vineyard
Carrie Camillo Tankard and Elaine Cawley Weintraub met in 1989 and recognized that they had a common mission. Both women were determined to introduce the history of people of color into the Vineyard schools.
Elaine Cawley Weintraub
As a teacher, Elaine, who is of Irish heritage, realized that the students did not have access to the African American history of the Vineyard and found that history was not available anywhere, and so began her research. That research uncovered a rich, undocumented history. She will never forget the years spent researching old archives, burial records, birth records, wills and the joy of finding the career of William A. Martin, and the obituary of his remarkable grandmother, Nancy Michael. William A. Martin’s great grandmother was Rebecca Amos, the woman from Africa enslaved on the Vineyard.
Ms. Carrie, who is of African American and Latina heritage, had spent many years in her role as vice president of the NAACP of Martha’s Vineyard visiting the Island schools, presenting them with teaching materials, and strongly advocating for an inclusive history. For several years, she presented exhibits showcasing African American history in all of the Vineyard libraries.
Carrie Camillo Tankard
In 1989, they began their plan to combine their areas of expertise and the notion of building a physical Trail celebrating the stories of African American people on the Island was born. Their vision was to place bronze markers on the selected sites that told the story. They envisioned creating a Trail of four sites, and in 1998 dedicated the Shearer Cottage, the Vineyard’s oldest African American owned inn. Over the years, an active cultural heritage program was created and this helped to finance the further building of the Trail. In 2019, they dedicated site number 30, the Dukes County Courthouse where the career of Judge Herbert E. Tucker was celebrated.
They will continue to build the Trail, and dedicate many more sites.
The African American Heritage Trail continues to offer the cultural heritage tourism program and educational programs for schools and colleges, employment opportunities within the Vineyard community, and provides mentorships, scholarships for graduating seniors from the Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School and advocacy services for students experiencing difficulty within the school system. The Cultural Heritage tour program each summer generates the income to provide all of these services, and to continue to build the Trail. The tours offered are authentically researched and our tour leaders are educated to provide a unique experience for our visitors.
Those who build the Trail can tell its story!