Black Women’s Legacies in the American Revolution

Dr. Russell will discuss the legacies of Black women during the American Revolution and beyond. She is the author of Black Women Legacies: Public History Sites Seen and Unseen (University of Illinois Press, 2024). She recently began serving as executive director of the Boston Women’s Heritage Trail and is anon-resident W.E.B. Du Bois Research Institute Fellow at Harvard University’s Hutchins Center for African & African American Research.

In addition, Dr. Russell is founder of Black Women Legacies, a nonprofit organization that supports digitally mapping historic and contemporary memorials of Black women across the globe. She completed her undergraduate studies at the College of Charleston and earned her Ph.D. in history at the University of South Carolina. Prior to her academic career, she worked as a teacher and a Capitol Hill staffer.

This program is sponsored by the Clinton County America250 Committee under the leadership of the Clinton County Historical Association with funding from a 2025 Special Programs Grant from the Champlain Valley National Heritage Partnership.  The America250 committee is dedicated to commemorating the America 250th anniversary through speaker series, exhibits, and more. Upcoming events will include a Battle of Valcour re-enactment in October 2026.

This event is free and open to the public. Dr. Russell’s book is available at your local library through Clinton Essex Franklin Library Systems at cefls.org. For more information, contact Connie Mandeville, 518-570-9589.

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