The Gilded Age: Newport in Color

In celebration of Black History Month, Keith Stokes, a native of Newport and vice president of 1696 Heritage Group, will discuss how, in the late 1800s, Newport, Rhode Island, became a magnet for leading African heritage families. The lecture, sponsored by the Historical Society of Old Yarmouth, will be Feb. 4 at 3 p.m. at the South Yarmouth United Methodist Church.

During the Gilded Age summers, many important African American political, business, civic and artistic leaders from major cities went to Newport to take part in uninhibited social and cultural interchange. Newport also was a center of Black civil rights expression.

1696 Heritage Group is a historical consulting firm dedicated to helping persons and institutions of color to increase their knowledge and access to the truth of their unique American heritage. The firm’s name comes from the first documented ship, the Seaflower, carrying enslaved Africans to arrive in Newport.

Tickets for the lecture are $15 for nonmembers of the Historical Society of Old Yarmouth and $10 for members. Reservations can be made at www.hsoy.org/events. Tickets may be available at the event at 318 Old Main Street in South Yarmouth.