Sojourner Truth’s Massachusetts

Who was Sojourner Truth?

Sojourner Truth was a nationally known advocate for justice and equality between races and sexes during the 19th century. She is honored in American history for her compelling autobiography, for innumerable speeches against slavery and for women’s rights, for her work on behalf of freedmen after the Civil War, and for her ability to keep audiences enthralled through songs and eloquent speeches.

Sojourner Truth was born an enslaved person near Kingston, New York in approximately 1797. Her given name was Isabella Baumfree. She labored for four masters and in 1826 took her freedom from John Dumont, her last owner. She soon moved to New York City, where she worked as a household helper, and then joined a millennial spiritual community, The Kingdom. When the group disbanded in scandal in 1835, she went to court and proved libel, thus preserving her reputation. She continued to work in New York City until 1843, when she felt a call from God to become a preacher. When she left New York City, she changed her name to Sojourner Truth and eventually made her way to Florence, Massachusetts.

Sojourner Truth’s Massachusetts

In 1992, a group of Pioneer Valley citizens came together following the beating of Rodney King in Los Angeles to talk about how this community could further ideas of racial equality and justice for all citizens. They decided on two goals: to create a symbol of the community’s desire to help eliminate racism and challenge oppression in our society, and to honor Sojourner Truth as that symbol because she lived in Florence, MA, in the 19th century and her life work was to end racism and promote equality in our country. With the idea of creating a memorial statue to honor Sojourner Truth and her work, the Sojourner Truth Memorial Statue Committee was formed. From 1993–2000, the Statue Committee led a community-wide effort to increase awareness of the legacy of Sojourner Truth, culminating with the unveiling of the Sojourner Truth statue on Sunday, October 6, 2002.

Now the Sojourner Truth Memorial Committee, group works to promote an understanding of Sojourner Truth’s significance in American history, through a variety of ways:

• • We partner with area schools to bring Sojourner Truth’s inspirational life story into the classroom.
  • We celebrate Sojourner Truth’s legacy at our annual celebration for the community, held on the Sunday of Memorial Day Weekend.
  • We grant scholarships to local high school students active in social justice efforts.
  • We host an online walking tour of the African American Heritage Trail and promote awareness of the history of abolition and activism in Florence, Massachusetts, during the mid-1800s, during community tours, in collaboration with the David Ruggles Center.