Honoring the Lives of Enslaved Persons

Between 1670 and 1820 more than 200 enslaved African Americans and indigenous people labored in the historic town of Lyme.

Today, Witness Stones honor the humanity and the contributions of vital members of our community. The bronze plaques that mark sites of enslavement on Lyme Street restore forgotten history and serve as memorials to those once held here in bondage.

Tracing Lyme's Runaway Slaves

In a History Blog article posted on the Florence Griswold Museum's website, Old Lyme Witness Stones chair Carolyn Wakeman reveals new...

Kyera Singleton speaks at Florence Griswold Museum's 2022 Samuel Thorne Memorial Lecture

Kyera Singleton, the Executive Director of the Royall House and Slave Quarters in Medford, Massachusetts, examined how and why former...

Marilyn Nelson Receives Wallace Stevens Award from the Academy of American Poets

Marilyn Nelson has received the Wallace Stevens Award, a lifetime achievement honor given annually by the Academy of American Poets to...

Witness Stones Old Lyme Celebrates Second Installation

On Friday, June 4, 2022, the community gathered on the lawn of the Old Lyme Library to celebrate the second installation of Witness...

Antoinette Brim-Bell is Connecticut's New Poet Laureate

Antoinette Brim-Bell has been named Connecticut's State Poet Laureate. Brim-Bell is one of the four poets who partnered with the Old Lyme...

Juneteenth Jazz & Poetry Celebration at the Florence Griswold Museum on June 18.

Featuring Nat Reeves Jazz Quartet & Poets Marilyn Nelson, Kate Rushin, Rhonda Ward, Antoinette Brim-Bell Saturday, June 18, 2022, 2 pm,...

Old Lyme Witness Stones Celebrates Installation of Sixteen New Plaques Honoring Those Once Enslaved

In much of New England, slavery has been forgotten, ignored, or assumed to be a practice confined to the South. Old Lyme now has thirty...

June 2022 Events

To celebrate the town’s newly installed Witness Stones, the Old Lyme Witness Stones Partnership will hold a series of events in June. All...

PARJE Sister Mural Created at Lyme-Old Lyme Middle School

A new Welcome mural was unveiled at the Lyme-Old Lyme Middle School. Jasmine Oyola-Blumenthal, who is an alumna of Lyme Academy College...

Witness Stones Old Lyme Featured on Podcast with Isabelle Barber

Witness Stones Old Lyme was featured in the third in a series of podcasts that highlight the work of organizations forwarding equity in...

Old Lyme Witness Stones Poets at Old Lyme First Congregational Church

On February 20, 2022, Antoinette Brim-Bell, Marilyn Nelson, Kate Rushin & Rhonda Ward, the poets that gave voice to some of the enslaved...

Poems by Witness Stones Poets featured in November 2021 Poetry Magazine

The cycle of poems written by Witness Stones Old Lyme poets Antoinette Brim-Bell, Marilyn Nelson, Kate Rushin, and Rhonda Ward, is...

Lyme Old Lyme Middle School Student Poetry for Witness Stones Old Lyme

Seventh-grade students at Lyme Old Lyme Middle School responded to their research on enslaved residents of Lyme through poetry. Using...

Witness Stones Old Lyme Installation Ceremony - In the News

Witness Stones Old Lyme held an installation ceremony on Friday, June 4, celebrating the lives of fourteen individuals once enslaved on...

Installation Ceremony | Friday, June 4th, 10am, at the Library

On Friday, June 4 at 10am, the Old Lyme Witness Stones Partnership will hold a ceremony to honor Cato, Lewis Lewia, Humphrey, Caeser,...

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