Witness Stones Old Lyme Celebrates Third Installation in Black Hall

On June 2, the community gathered on the lawn of the Old Lyme Library to celebrate the third installation of Witness Stones —historical plaques commemorating the lives of enslaved and indentured African Americans and Native Americans who labored in the historic town of Lyme. In 2021 & 2022, the Project installed 30 plaques on Lyme Street and McCurdy Road. To deepen this untold story, Witness Stones this year will honor George, Cornelia, Neptune, Phyllis, York, Jack Freeman, Hagar Jeffrey, and Prince Griswold Crosley in the Black Hall section of Old Lyme.

The program offered music, poetry, and words from community partners. Guest speakers included Connecticut’s Poet Laureate Antoinette Brim-Bell; author, anthropologist, and genealogist Vicki Blue Sky Welch; and community historian and genealogist John Mills, as well as the Lyme-Old Lyme High School Select Singers.

Press coverage of the installation ceremony

Old Lyme Celebrates Third Installation of Witness Stones, NBC CT

Old Lyme Unveils New Plaques In Honor of Eight Enslaved, CT Examiner

Witness Stones installation ceremony in Old Lyme, The Day

A Tangled Story: Witness Stones Project Celebrates Placement of New Plaques Honoring Enslaved, Lymeline