Judith C. Granger
Maine Women and the Great Gathering of 10,000 in 1854
As early as the 1830s, rural Maine women committed themselves to the cause of abolition, a risky and radical stance. For some, kith and kin to a Black family, it was personal; for others, it was a moral responsibility. They were living in rugged locations, with still demanding work to establish their families, yet they committed themselves to this radical cause of freedom for Black enslaved. This presentation focuses on the Great Gathering of 10,000 in 1854, also identifying what informed them, and the many substantive local and national actions they accomplished to make a difference. Granger believes their work, particularly this huge gathering of 10,000, speaks to the power of rural women to do far more than take care of home and hearth. They organized, communicated with each other over time and across great distances, shared their economic worth with others for the cause, and understood that to be engaged meant being politically informed and active. It speaks of their compassion and their savvy chops all in support of their moral opposition to slavery.
Judith C. Granger, MEd, is a genealogist, a citizen historian, and a storyteller. My PhD work led me to the power of story. I am intrigued by voice, by what is lost, unheard and invisible, and I continue to lift up the names of people lost to time. Since retiring, I have focused my research on the lives of two Black self-emancipating families who joined their kith and kin to settle wilderness Maine. I present their evolving stories at genealogical and historical societies from Bar Harbor to Boston, and Kittery to Concord. Discovering their lives in community has led me to new findings, including the actions of hundreds of rural white women involved in the anti-slavery society movement. I have come to a deeper understanding and appreciation of their struggles, their accomplishments, and the importance and power of belonging. The telling of true stories, set in the context of time and place, gives us history, and, in this case, a sense of the possibilities of what we are capable of today.
