Hampden-Sydney College is one of five institutions of higher education recently selected to participate in "On These Grounds," a digital humanities initiative funded by the Mellon Foundation focused on revealing the lives of enslaved people at colleges and universities.
Hampden-Sydney College is one of five institutions of higher education recently selected to participate in On These Grounds, a digital humanities initiative made up of a core team of experienced digital history experts, archivists, and historians of slavery from Michigan State University, Georgetown University, and the University of Virginia, focused on revealing the lives of enslaved people at colleges and universities. Funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, On These Grounds will allow participating schools to build on the groundbreaking work that has already been done at these and other institutions to better understand the many roles enslaved persons played in the history of institutions of higher education.
“It is really a privilege to be selected to join a community of scholars committed to this important research, and to have support from the big names in this area of study,” said Elliott Professor of History Caroline Emmons, who also directs the College’s Center for Public History. “The resources and knowledge of these researchers will be enormously helpful for those of us undertaking this work on campus, and this public history work will not only teach and inform our students, but also let them be participants in the production of historical knowledge.” Team members include Dr. Emmons, Sarah Almond (College Archivist and Digital Projects Librarian), Shaunna Hunter (Director of Bortz Library), and Mary Prevo (Senior Lecturer in Art History).
The five institutions selected as testing partners in the On These Grounds initiative are:
Hampden-Sydney College
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
University of Georgia
Washington and Lee University
We must explore and more fully understand and acknowledge those individuals whose contributions to the College have gone unrecognized or unexplored. A more complete and thorough awareness and understanding of our past will not only enrich our knowledge of our College’s history, but it will also inform members of our College community and strengthen our educational experience.
President Larry Stimpert
Through its participation, Hampden-Sydney’s historians, scholars, and student researchers will have access to funds and resources that will support ongoing research efforts to better understand and document the lives of enslaved people on Hampden-Sydney’s campus. Hampden-Sydney will also be contributing to the development of a common model for the many colleges and universities studying slavery to use in documenting and sharing archival materials related to enslaved people at their institutions.
“We are proud of Hampden-Sydney’s distinctive mission and the important role it has played throughout its history in forming good men and good citizens and preparing leaders for every field or endeavor. We must also explore and more fully understand and acknowledge those individuals whose contributions to the College have gone unrecognized or unexplored,” said President Larry Stimpert. “A more complete and thorough awareness and understanding of our past will not only enrich our knowledge of our College’s history, but it will also inform members of our College community and strengthen our educational experience.”
In addition to its selection as a testing partner in the On These Grounds initiative, Hampden-Sydney was an early member of Universities Studying Slavery, a consortium that now includes more than 80 colleges and universities that was established and continues to be led by the University of Virginia.
