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Banneker-Douglass Museum #TakeovertheNetwork

To honor International Underground Railroad Month in 2022, the Network to Freedom Program hosted a social media takeover. Each day, a different Network to Freedom member signed on to #TakeoverTheNetwork and highlight what makes their Underground Railroad story special.

On September 6, the Banneker-Douglass Museum took over the Network to Freedom's social media accounts. The Banneker-Douglass Museum is listed as a program in the Network to Freedom.

Feed Post: Introducing the Banneker-Douglass Museum

Hello!! We are the Banneker-Douglass Museum, and we are so excited to #TakeoverTheNetwork!

The Banneker-Douglass Museum is the State of Maryland’s official museum of African American heritage and culture. It is operated by the Maryland Commission on African American History and Culture. It serves to document, interpret, and promote African American history and culture through exhibitions, programs, and projects in order to improve the understanding and appreciation of America’s rich cultural diversity for all.

Named for Benjamin Banneker and Frederick Douglass, the museum is housed within the former Mount Moriah African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church in the heart of historic Annapolis. The Victorian-Gothic structure was included in the Annapolis Historic District in 1971 and placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973. Thanks to a community-led effort to transform the former Mt. Moriah AME Church building into a museum, the museum opened on February 24, 1984. An addition was added in 2005.

The museum’s permanent exhibit is “Deep Roots, Rising Waters: A Celebration of African Americans in Maryland”. Also, the museum is named a top attraction to visit in Annapolis as stated by U.S. News and World Report and TripAdvisor.

The Banneker-Douglass Museum became a part of the Network to Freedom in 2006.

You can learn more at http://bdmuseum.maryland.gov !

Two, two story brick buildings appear to be connected by a glass hallway. The building on the left, inscribed "Banneker Douglass Museum," is mostly rectangular and has four glass windows. The building on the right appears to be a church.
Photograph of brick building inside a more modern building. Stairs transcend underneath a banner with text that reads "Deep Roots, Rising Waters."

Banneker-Douglass Museum

Photograph of three plaques fixed to a brick wall. From left to right, the plaques depict Benjamin Banneker, Frederick Douglass, and Harriet Tubman

Banneker-Douglass Museum

Photograph of another museum panel labelled "The Moses of Her People."  In the foreground is a life size cut out of the five-foot tall Harriet Tubman.

Banneker-Douglass Museum

Feed Post: From 1619 to Today Part III

On June 11, 2022, youth and community members came together for the culminating event, "From 1619 to Today Part III" to create a mural of Harriet Tubman in celebration of Tubman's year-long 200th Birthday Celebration while incorporating themes from The 1619 Project by Nicole Hannah-Jones.

In this three part series, we explored the influence of race on the Annapolis community from 1619 to today through public readings, youth presentations, group discussions, and this community mural/book giveaway event.

Lead muralists were Chanel Compton, artist and Executive Director of the Banneker-Douglass Museum, and Gina Marie Lewis, Professor of Art at Bowie State University.

All around Harriet Tubman, Adinkra symbols were painted to symbolize "Freedom in Emancipation", "Trust in God", "Abundance", and other key themes.

Event partners were Baltimore Read Aloud, Lambda Delta Sigma Chapter of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc., and the Bowie State University Department of Fine and Performing Arts. The event sponsor was Rotary Club of Annapolis.

Check out the time lapse video showing the creation of the mural from beginning to end on our YouTube page here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KYubEfo1xYQ

Collage of four photos showing the painting of a colorful mural on a Black wall. Text reads "From 1619 to Today Part III, 1619 Project, Mural Art, Harriet Tubman Centennial."

Banneker-Douglass House

Feed Post: Araminta with Rifle and Vévé

Come stand in awe of the monumental sculpture, Araminta with Rifle and Vévé (2017) now on display at the Banneker-Douglass Museum!

Standing at 10 feet tall, this sculpture of Harriet Tubman created by MacArthur Fellow Joyce J. Scott is made of painted milled foam with found objects, blown glass, and mixed media appliqués. She holds in her hands a beaded rifle and beaded staff, called a vévé.

The sculpture is a part of the upcoming exhibition, The Radical Voice of Blackness Speaks of Resistance and Joy opening on November 10, 2022. More Joyce J. Scott pieces will be on display in this exhibition featuring the multidisciplinary works of 15 cross-generational Maryland-based Black artists. The exhibit explores America’s fraught history of systemic racism while celebrating the resiliency of a people who have persevered despite social and political devices to suppress them. You don’t want to miss this!

Stay tuned at http://bdmuseum.maryland.gov

Close up photograph of bronze colored statue of Harriet Tubman facing and standing left.

©Goya Contemporary Gallery & the Artist, photo Ken Eck

Close up photograph of bronze colored statue of Harriet Tubman facing and standing left.

©Goya Contemporary Gallery & the Artist, photo Ken Eck

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Timelapse of a mural created through a partnership with the Banneker-Douglass Museum. The Banneker-Douglass Museum shared this as part of #TakeoverTheNetwork - a social media takeover by the Network to Freedom Program.

See more from #TakeoverTheNetwork 2022

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Duration:
5.033 seconds

The Banneker-Douglass Museum shared this story as part of #TakeoverTheNetwork - a social media takeover by the Network to Freedom Program.

See more from #TakeoverTheNetwork 2022

Visit our keyboard shortcuts docs for details
Duration:
8.9 seconds

©Goya Contemporary Gallery & the Artist, photo Ken Eck. This story was shared by Banneker-Douglass Museum as part of #TakeoverTheNetwork - a social media takeover by the Network to Freedom

Part of a series of articles titled #TakeoverTheNetwork.

Last updated: September 6, 2022