THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, September 11, 1994 TAG: 9409090286
SECTION: PORTSMOUTH CURRENTS PAGE: 08 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Cover Story
SOURCE: BY JANIE BRYANT, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Long : 115 lines
NEXT WEEKEND the city will sponsor its fourth Umoja Festival, a celebration of African-American culture and the unity of people - from family harmony to world peace.
Unity of community is also a part of that Kiswahili word, Umoja.
So one of the new features of this festival is especially appropriate - the African American Heritage Trolley Tour through Olde Towne.
While the weekend festival is filled with the sights, smells and sounds of another continent, the trolley tour will highlight the stories of African-American citizens in Portsmouth's history.
In doing so, it serves as a reminder that whatever the struggles or challenges to racial harmony, our history - black and white - is inextricably woven and shared.
The idea to provide that balanced look at the city's past during Umoja was conceived by Voncile Gilbreath of the city's Convention and Visitors Center.
Gilbreath says some of the inspiration was her own curiosity as a relative newcomer to the area.
``Locals don't always appreciate what's in their backyard,'' she said.
Added to that was her department's commitment to showcasing Portsmouth's downtown history.
So she took her idea of weaving more of the African-American influence into the trolley tour to local historian William Brown, who provided the research.
``I was thrilled as soon as she called me,'' said Brown. ``This really gives a balanced view of history.
``I don't like any history to be forgotten or neglected. This gives us a wonderful opportunity to bring a lot of history to the attention of Portsmouth citizens.''
Gilbreath said she and Brown decided the short-term goal was to do something in time for the Umoja Festival.
``Our long-term goal is to incorporate this history into the present Olde Towne trolley script,'' she said. ``It's long been said that it needs to be updated so that it would be well-rounded.''
Brown says there is plenty of room to develop something that takes people outside of Olde Towne to other sites in the future, but for next weekend they have put together an extensive presentation centered around the historic district.
The tour will leave from Portside at noon, 2 and 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 18.
Tour-goers will see the area that used to be Lincolnsville, the first African-American settlement for free blacks in Portsmouth.
They will get off the trolley and get a brief look inside Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church. Built more than 200 years ago, it is the oldest black church in Portsmouth and still has original stained glass windows and woodwork carved by slaves.
The trolley will also stop at other sites where costumed actors will board to give first-person accounts of their feats during the Civil War and even the American Revolution.
``I think if I had a favorite story it would be William Flora,'' said Brown. ``He had a major impact on the history of the area.''
Flora, a blacksmith with a livery stable on Middle Street, displayed great courage during the Battle of Great Bridge, Brown said. The battle was a turning point in the area's struggle for independence.
``He became something of a local hero,'' Brown said.
Tour-goers will also stop at a house on Court Street once occupied by Union Gen. Benjamin Franklin Butler.
Brown said Butler freed slaves by using a military law that allowed him to confiscate as contraband any property that could be of use to the enemy. He confiscated slaves as contraband, then freed them.
At the end of the tour, guides will give out brochures on other Portsmouth notables and sites they may want to visit.
And festival participants can get a dose of history at the Visitor's Center where the film, ``Lower Tidewater in Black and White,'' will play throughout the day. The film documents 200 years of race relations in the area.
But don't get so wrapped up in history next weekend that you miss out on the contemporary fun.
Besides trips into the past, the festival will offer a variety of interesting exhibits and entertainers performing everything from reggae and hip-hop to jazz and gospel. National headliners include jazz violinist Miles Jaye on Friday night and Blue Magic on Saturday night.
The festival will also feature a Philadelphia-based couple - Queen Aishatu and Jeremiah Nabawi - who bring poetry and song to the art of story-telling.
Vendors from all over the country will bring exotic foods like curried chicken and oxtail, clothing and jewelry from Nigeria and Afrocentric books.
There will also be exhibits offered by area businesses and agencies.
``There are going to be 26 exhibits this year,'' said Sharon Hoggard of the city's public relations department. ``That's the most we've had.''
The festival's community forum from 4 to 6 p.m. Saturday will deal with ``Making Relationships Work.'' It will be held in the Signet Bank parking lot and will feature panelists from Old Dominion and Norfolk State universities.
For more information on the festival, call Hoggard at 393-8432. ILLUSTRATION: [Cover]
UMOJA FESTIVAL
A celebration of African-American culture
File photo
Pam Graves sits behind a black porcelain Konga Man she was selling
last year at the Umoja Festival.
File photos
Ted Kulongoski attended the festival last year. He worked in West
Africa for two and a half years. He was playing a Griot, which in
African means talking drum.
Devonte Gatling sported a colorful headpiece known as a Kofi.
This carved wooden ship with natives aboard is called a Sunou Gual.
SCHEDULE
[For a copy of the schedule, see microfilm for this date.]
by CNB