Our work began with attempting to undo an act of historical erasure. By recruiting students from multiple schools to work as research assistants, we led a class to uncover and preserve lost or forgotten copies of the The Wilmington Daily Record, the African-American newspaper destroyed at the onset of the 1898 Wilmington Massacre. Our students located multiple copies, transcribed, and digitized them. The voices that the mob sought to silence are readable today by anyone with an internet connection.

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We also produce arts and cultural events, including original musical productions "When the Battle’s Over" and "Lost Love Song," with Rhiannon Giddens, Regina Carter, Clyde Edgerton, Christa Faison, the Williston Alumni Choir, and others.

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The work is multi-faceted and ongoing. Please consider making a donation.

Read about our Projects in the News via the links below:

The Daily Record Recovery Project

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"Middle Schoolers Help Transcribe, Digitize Rare Historical Newspapers," Library Journal, September 23, 2017.

"Students help preserve copies of the Wilmington Record, burned by whites in 1898," The Star News, July 21, 2017.
 

"Students help bring new light to the Wilmington riots of 1898," DigitalNC.org, August 7, 2017.

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"Newly Accessible Issues of Alex Manly's The Daily Record," WHQR, November 8, 2018.

"CoastLine: The 120th Anniversary of Wilmington's 1898 Coup," WHQR, November 7, 2018.

"The Third Person Project: In Search of Wilmington's Buried Past," O Henry, October, 2019.

"The Daily Record Project: "Remnants" of a Pivotal Paper in North Carolina's History," DigitalNC.org, August, 2019.

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    Joshua Halsey Grave Marker Project

"Searching for the Descendants of Racial Terrorism" The New Yorker, October 11, 2021.

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"123 years later, a North Carolina Black man killed in a massacre receives a funeral," CNN, November 8, 2021.

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"A Black Man Killed by a White Mob in 1898 Finally Receives a Funeral," The New York Times, November 10, 2021.

"N. C. Black Man Killed in Race Massacre Receives A Funeral 123 Years Later," BET, November 8, 2021.

"Funeral Held for Black Man Murdered 123 Years Ago," NEW YORK POST, November 8, 2021.

"A North Carolina city begins to reckon with the massacre in its white supremacist past," NPR, November 10, 2021.

"Rev. William Barber: 123 Years After Wilmington Massacre by White Supremacists, Voting Rights Fight Continues," Democracy Now, November 15, 2021.

"A Deaf Black Man Was Murdered in 1898––He Just Received a Proper Funeral," AllThatsInteresting.com, November 12, 2021.

"Locating graves from 1898 Wilmington Massacre," Spectrum News, November 5, 2021.

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"Bloodied Soil, Holy Ground: Descendants of 1898 Wilmington Coup Victims Gather to Mourn and Remember," WHQR, November 8, 2021.

"Great grandchildren of 1898 victim react to discovery of Joshua Halsey’s gravesite" WECT, October 13, 2021.

"Grave of 1898 victim discovered, funeral planned 123 years later," WECT, October 12, 2021.

"NY Times Magazine writer teaches youth about Wilmington's racial background," WECT, February 22, 2019.

"'Listen to the blood': Funeral Commemorates Victim of Wilmington Massacre 123 years later," The Star News, November 6, 2021.

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        Musical Programs

"Lumina Festival's "Lost Love Song" unearth's forgotten tune with Wilmington ties," The Star News, July 12, 2019.

"Rhiannon Giddens, Tar Heel of the Year finalist, uses music to enlighten and preserve past," News & Observer, December 26, 2018.

"Cucalorus Festival illuminates shadows of history," The Star News, November 15, 2018.

"Rhiannon Giddens unearths "Songs of 1898" at Cucalorus Festival," The Star News, November 2, 2018.