Curator Talk: Currents of Emancipation

Learn the role Black American sailors played during the Civil War

Saturday, February 10 · 1 – 2pm EST

Southwest Library 900 Wesley Place Southwest Washington, DC 20024

Image: Title image courtesy the National Archives. Below image courtesy of the Naval History and Heritage Command, NH 55510.

During the American Civil War, emancipation was a long and complicated process that varied across time and space. Stories about Black people’s experiences with the U.S. Navy and how the process of emancipation unfolded on water receive less attention than narratives about emancipation on land and the U.S. Army. Join curator Dr. Eddie Valentin Jr. as he talks about the role Black Americans played in the navy during the Civil War—particularly how their courage, expertise, and commitment paved the way for the United States to begin addressing long-standing questions about race, slavery, citizenship, and civil rights. His presentation is titled Currents of Emancipation: Black Americans, the U.S. Navy, and the Civil War