Dutchess County Historical Society Fundraising Auction Ending 11/15

#50 – Rich Conversation About Important Local and National Black History at Poughkeepsie's College Hill

As New York State acknowledges the 200th anniversary of the abolition of slavery on July 4, 1827, DCHS Executive Director Bill Jeffway offers a one-hour presentation (either as a walk at College Hill in good weather, an in-person presentation in Poughkeepsie, or via Zoom to a group anywhere—your choice). Available any time during calendar year 2027. Frederick Douglass spoke to four thousand people at College Hill on Emancipation Day (recognizing the end of slavery in the West Indies) in August of 1858. On the brink of the Civil War, he repeated Lincoln's recent caution that a house divided would not stand. The war was a transitional moment for the local Black community, beautifully expressed through the three generations of the Bolin family. Abram and Alice Bolin raised their children at a house on North Clinton Street near College Hill to be well educated. Their son Gaius Bolin became the first Black graduate of Williams College and the first Black attorney in the county. Gaius Bolin's daughter, Jane Bolin, who was born at a house at the foot of College Hill, became the first Black female judge in the United States. You'll better understand why the City of Poughkeepsie recently renamed two streets on College Hill: Frederick Douglass Way and Bolin Oval. Underpinning these inspiring stories is the great story of College Hill itself, which in the 19th century was a celebrated and prominent feature of the City of Schools that evolved into the Queen City of the Hudson.

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