PROGRAMMING
Thursday, April 21 @ 6:00 pm
Love Framed in Black and White: A Powerful Study in Love, Race and Courage
Paula C. Wright, a descendent of the Edgefield, South Carolina Ramey family inherited at the time of her grandmother’s death a genealogical treasure, a box filled with over 500 photographs documenting eight generations of her family. Since childhood, Ms. Wright has been interested in her incredible family story, but with the gift of the photographs she knew that the story needed to be told to the wider world. Please join us in the auditorium of Augusta Public Library on the evening of Thursday, April 21 as Ms. Wright unravels the story of the courageous marriage in 1872 of her white, third great-grandfather Judge William Ramey to former Edgefield slave, Kittie Simpkins; and the generations which followed, including those who made their homes in Augusta, Georgia. This event is free and open to the public. Please call 706-826-1511 for details.
Tuesday, April 26 @ 10:30 am
Preserving Your Family Heirlooms
In celebration of American Library Association’s Preservation Week, April 24-April 30, the Georgia Heritage Room welcomes Lauren Virgo, Registrar for the Augusta Museum of History. Ms. Virgo will teach us tricks of the trade for protecting our family treasures from the deleterious effects of light, dust, insects, and aging. Items discussed will be documents such as letters and diaries; photographs and scrapbooks; and textiles, such as quilts and vintage clothes. By learning simple preservation techniques our family heirlooms can be saved for generations to come. Please call the Georgia Heritage Room for details, 706-826-1511.
EXHIBIT
Love Framed in Black & White: A Powerful Study in Love, Race and Courage
“I can recall as a child being drawn to my great-grandmother’s photo albums. Something about the older photos would captivate me… not realizing they would speak out to me over 40 years later, their story wanting to be told.” –Paula C. Wright.
Please visit the Georgia Heritage Room on the third floor of the Augusta Public Library during the months of April and May to view this powerful exhibit of photographs, documents, and artifacts following eight generations of Paula C. Wright’s family from the marriage of her white third great-grandfather, Judge William Ramey, to former Edgefield slave, Kittie Simpkins, to the later generations of ancestors who made Augusta, Georgia their home.
“The more I tell the story, the more I realize how much of a social impact it can have in today’s society; how their legacy of love and courage really is an example of how we should live our lives…today.” –Paula C. Wright