Elizabeth Matelski, PhD and Abby Battis, ALM
Lost Voices and Hidden Truths
The history of slavery is often associated with the American South, but enslaved people lived, labored, and resisted throughout New England. Yet, their stories have often been overlooked or erased. How do we research the lives of those for whom the historical record is silent? This presentation will explore the challenges of uncovering these hidden histories, drawing on examples of enslaved individuals whose stories are being rediscovered. Join Matelski and Battis to examine how historians navigate gaps in the archives, reinterpret existing sources, and employ creative approaches to recover and amplify the voices of the enslaved.
Elizabeth Matelski, PhD, is Associate Professor of History at Endicott College in Beverly, Massachusetts where she teaches classes on race, gender, and sexuality in American history. Matelski received her AB from Ripon College and her PhD from Loyola University Chicago. Her teaching interests include incorporating digital technologies into the history classroom. In addition to teaching American history, she also created Endicott’s Public History concentration. Matelski is a past director of two NEH summer institutes about the Salem Witch Trials. Her current research is centered on Robin Mingo, a formerly enslaved Black man who lived in Beverly in the 1700s.
Abby Battis, ALM, is the Director at Historic Beverly. She has more than a decade of experience in the museum field in curatorial practice and collections management. Ms. Battis holds a Master of Liberal Arts (ALM) in Museum Studies from the Harvard Extension School where she has been an adjunct instructor for 9 years teaching classes on the future of historic house museums and museum exhibition design fundamentals. Ms. Battis recently received a letter of commendation for her distinguished teaching performance in the Harvard Extension School. Battis is also an adjunct faculty member at Endicott College, where she is a professor of Art History and Arts Administration, and holds an adjunct faculty position at Montserrat College of Art where she is a professor in the Art History Department. Ms. Battis has served as a consultant for various museums, including being an integral part of the strategic planning project for the Wenham Museum, and an exhibition consultant for the Southold Historical Society on Long Island and the Issaquah History Museum in Issaquah, Washington. She recently finished a project as museum historian for the Bakers Island Light project for Essex National Heritage. Battis has been named one of the Top 10 Women Leaders in the Region by North of Boston Business Magazine, and has received numerous awards including the Pioneer in Partnership Award from Essex National Heritage and the National Park Service, the Gold Star Award from the Massachusetts Cultural Council and was awarded an Arts and Culture Citation by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts House of Representatives.
