A Festival of Black History and Culture

A Festival of
Black History
and Culture
2016
roswellroots.com
January 30 through February 29
Come Join Us
as we celebrate Roswell’s African American history and
culture throughout the month of February with a series of unique and fun events for
everyone. Roswell’s Roots Festival is one of the largest and most comprehensive
celebrations in the state of Georgia. Share in our rich history and contemporary
culture and discover something exciting about Roswell you didn’t know before!
Barrington Hall
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A Festival of Black History and Culture
2016 Sponsors and Partners
Many thanks to the 2016 sponsors and partners that make Roswell Roots possible:
• East Roswell Library
• Groveway Community Group
• Kings & Queens Bridge Club
• Pastis Restaurant & Bar
• Pleasant Hill Missionary Baptist Church
• Roswell Historic Cottage
• Roswell Historical Society
• Roswell Library
• The Southern Trilogy of Homes
• Visit Roswell CVB
• Zion Missionary Baptist Church
African American Hometown Heroes
Each year at the Unity Concert the Roswell Roots Steering Committee
recognizes one African American as our Hometown Hero. Citizens are
asked to nominate someone that is a personal hero or mentor in the
African American community. The nominee should have significantly
contributed to the Roswell community in some meaningful way
(not necessarily a Roswell resident) or are a Roswell resident who
has made a significant impact on people’s lives wherever they live.
An individual may only receive the award one time during their life.
Nominations may be made online at roswellgov.com/hometownheroes
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Atlanta St.
Mimosa Blvd.
6 Roswell Branch Library
7 Roswell Adult Recreation Center
8 Roswell Cultural Arts Center
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15 Pleasant Hill MBC
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Fowler Ave.
Grove Way
Inset: East Roswell
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Oxbo Rd.
Scott
Marietta Hwy.
Roswell Mill
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R d.
10 Holcomb Bri
dge
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Bulloch Ave.
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F ou t s
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Barrington Dr.
14 Pastis Restaurant & Bar
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10 East Roswell Branch Library
13 East Roswell Park Recreation Center
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Oak St.
9 Roswell Historic Cottage
12 Roswell Visitors Center
Myrtle St.
Hill St.
5 Zion Missionary Baptist Church
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4 Roswell Visual Arts Center
Zion Cir.
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M a gnolia St
Forrest St.
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3 Roswell City Hall
Grimes B
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2 Smith Plantation
11 Barrington Hall
Norcross St.
idg
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1 Bulloch Hall
Inset: North Roswell
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Crabapple Rd.
Green St.
Canton St.
Area Map
Calendar of Events
Activities Legend
Sunday
January and
February 2016
24 January
Monday
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Tuesday
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Wednesday
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Thursday
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Friday
29
Saturday
30
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1 February
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Film
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Food
Music
Speaker
Theater
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15
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Exhibition
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Crafts
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Art
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Month-Long Exhibits
Jan 30 - Feb 21
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Feb 1 - Feb 29
Kuibuka
Slave Life in the Piedmont
BULLOCH HALL • 180 Bulloch Avenue
Tickets: Adults $8 • Seniors $7
Children $6 (6-16 yr.) • Free under six
Information: www.bullochhall.org
BULLOCH HALL • 180 Bulloch Avenue
Tickets: Adults $8 • Seniors $7
Children $6 (6-16 yr.) • Free under six
Information: www.bullochhall.org
Dawn Williams Boyd’s exhibit of cloth paintings
reflects her interests in American history, women’s
identity, and sexuality, religion and politics. Through
cutting, patching, surface enhancement and quilting,
bits and pieces of fabric are transformed into modern
visual storytelling. Most pieces take over 500 hours
to complete. The exhibit can be seen during regular
scheduled tours from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m. Monday
through Saturdays and Sundays from 1 p.m. until 3 p.m.
There will be an Opening Reception and Artist Talk on
Saturday, January 30 from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.
Bulloch Hall’s permanent exhibit “Slave
Life in the Piedmont” is located in the
reconstructed Service Yard. There are
two slave quarters, a carriage house and
a 4 hole privy. These structures were
remembered by residents Virginia and
Tony Wing who were born in Bulloch Hall
in the early 1900s. The exhibit contains artifacts that were excavated at
the site. The cabin depicts a period room as the Bulloch slaves might
have had in 1840. Inside Bulloch Hall rooms will be set showing the
various chores of the family’s slaves.
A Festival of Black History and Culture
Feb 1 - Feb 29
Slave Cabin Interpretive Exhibit
SMITH PLANTATION • 935 Alpharetta Street
Tickets: Free
Information: www.archibaldsmithplantation.org
After stabilization efforts in 2015, visitors
have been able to enter the slave cabin for
the first time. According to research, this
modest but interesting structure is believed
to be the oldest on the Smith Plantation
Home complex. An updated exhibit will
look at the various aspects of a slave’s
life – including work, food, and everyday
tasks. Various period artifacts from the
Smith Plantation collection will be used in
the exhibit.
Feb 1 - Spring
Evolution of Agricultural Labor from the
17th Century to Post-War Reconstruction
and into the 20th Century.
SMITH PLANTATION • 935 Alpharetta Street
Tickets: Free
Information: www.archibaldsmithplantation.org
This exhibit looks at
how Southern farmers –
from Native Americans
to plantation owners
to sharecroppers –
changed the agricultural
landscape of the South
from the 17th through the
20th centuries.
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Feb 1 - Feb 29
Feb 5 - Feb 29
Month-Long Exhibits continued
Unsung Heroes: The Legacy of Black Heritage
in Roswell, Georgia
CITY HALL ROTUNDA • 38 Hill Street
Tickets: Free
Information: 770-641-3705
This photographic exhibit,
co-sponsored by the
City of Roswell and the
Roswell Historical Society,
returns to the Rotunda.
It highlights the history
of African Americans in
the Roswell area and its
influence and impact on
our community since 1839.
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Perspectives in Black Art Exhibit
ROSWELL VISUAL ARTS CENTER
10495 Woodstock Road
Tickets: Free
Information: 770-694-6122
Sharon Crumley, a resident of Roswell, is a
self-taught artist who creates mixed media
art. Crumley’s work is intricate, colorful and
textural, using a combination of textiles,
paper, paint and found elements to create
multi-dimensional art. Her art expresses
a variety of subjects from modern
abstractions and ethnic adaptations to
feminine themes. Art works
by Sherri Richards and Ron
Sullivan will also be
displayed. There will be an
opening reception on Friday,
February 5, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.
at the Visual Arts Center.
Schedule of Events
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Saturday • Jan 30 • 3-5pm • FREE
Kuibuka – Artist Talk & Reception
BULLOCH HALL • 180 Bulloch Avenue
Tickets: Free with reservation
Information: www.bullochhall.org
Dawn Williams Boyd’s exhibit of cloth paintings reflects
her interests in American history, women’s identity,
and sexuality, religion and politics. Through cutting,
patching, surface enhancement and quilting, bits and
pieces of fabric are transformed into modern visual
storytelling. Most pieces take over 500 hours
to complete.
Bulloch Hall
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Sunday • Jan 31 • 4pm • FREE
Schedule of Events continued
Unity Concert featuring The Shades of Pink Breast Cancer Survivors Choir
ZION MISSIONARY BAPTIST CHURCH • 888 Zion Circle
Tickets: Free
Information: 770-641-3705
Join us for one of the most exciting events of the festival!
Come hear the magnificent voices of choirs from several
area churches, including Zion Missionary Baptist Church and
Pleasant Hill Missionary Baptist Church as they perform their
favorite selections. Also, you won’t want to miss our featured
guests, The Shades of Pink Breast Cancer Survivors Choir.
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Monday • Feb 1 • 6:30pm • FREE
Family Story Time with Josie Bailey
ROSWELL BRANCH LIBRARY
a part of the Atlanta-Fulton Public Library System
115 Norcross Street
Tickets: Free
Information: 770-640-3075
A well-known storyteller and wellness coach, Josie
has been delighting audiences across the
Bailey ha
Southeast for two decades. Her original tales about
Southeas
reall histo
historic figures and slave times and her unique
re
retelling
ret
g of Uncle Remus favorites brings to life the
experiences
of our ancestors. Josie’s engaging and
ex
rien
interactive
in
teractiv approach makes the audience an active
each story, while creating new insights and inspiring the imagination.
part of ea
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Friday • Feb 5 • 5-7pm • FREE
Opening Reception for Sharon Crumley’s
Perspectives in Black Art
ROSWELL VISUAL ARTS CENTER • 10495 Woodstock Road
Tickets: Free
Information: 770-594-6122
Join us for an opening reception for the
Sharon Crumley exhibit on display at the
Visual Arts Center throughout the month.
Sharon Crumley, a resident of Roswell, is a
self-taught artist who creates mixed media
art. Crumley’s work is intricate, colorful and
textural using a combination of textiles,
paper, paint and found elements to create
multi-dimensional art. Her art expresses
a variety of subjects from modern
abstractions and ethnic adaptations to feminine themes.
Art works by Sherri Richards and Ron Sullivan will also
be displayed.
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Saturday • Feb 6 • 12:30-3:30pm • $5
Schedule of Events continued
Bid Whist Party
ROSWELL ADULT
RECREATION CENTER
830 Grimes Bridge Road
Tickets: $5.00
Information: 314-520-4775
The Kings & Queens Chapter of the
American Bridge Association (ABA)
is proud to be sponsoring the second
Roswell Roots Bid Whist Card Party. The game of whist, a precursor to both
bid whist and bridge, has been around at least since the 1700s, when it was a
favorite in London gambling houses. During the Civil War, African Americans
were introduced to the game and were said to have put the “bid” in bid whist.
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Saturday • Feb 6 • 8pm • $40
LIVE! in Roswell presents
The Blind Boys of Alabama
ROSWELL CULTURAL ARTS CENTER • 950 Forrest Street
Tickets: $40.00 general admission
Tickets & Information: 770-594-6232 or www.roswellcac.com
Presented by the Roswell Presents
LIVE! in Roswell series, The Blind
Boys are recognized worldwide
as living legends of gospel music.
Celebrated by The National
Endowment for the Arts and the
National Academy of Recording
Arts and Sciences (NARAS) with
Lifetime Achievement Awards,
inducted into the Gospel Music Hall
of Fame, and winners of five GRAMMY Awards, they have attained
the highest levels of achievement. The Blind Boys are known
for crossing multiple musical boundaries with their remarkable
interpretations of everything from traditional gospel favorites to
contemporary spiritual material.
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Sunday • Feb 7 • 2pm • $5, $10, $15
Groveway Community Group Presents
“Glimpses of Groveway: The Bailey Johnson
State Championship Story.”
ROSWELL CULTURAL ARTS CENTER • 950 Forrest Street
Tickets: $5.00 children 12 & under • $10.00 advance • $15.00 at door
Tickets & Information: 770-993-4245 or www.grovewaycommunitygroup.org
Groveway Community Group, Inc. returns
to the main stage with its annual Black
History Production entitled “Glimpses
of Groveway: The Bailey Johnson State
Championship Story.” This new stage play
is based upon the all-black basketball
team that brought home the 1964-1965
Georgia State Championship trophy to North Fulton’s only
segregated public school for black students at the time.
Written and produced by Tequila Wilkes of Roswell’s Platinum
School of Performing Arts, the production features local
talent including stage performers, singers and dancers to
bring the story to life. A vendor show will take place prior to
the performance.
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Tuesday • Feb 9 • 4-7pm • FREE
“Goin’ to Chicago” Film Viewing and Reception
with the Director
ROSWELL CULTURAL ARTS CENTER
950 Forrest Street
Tickets: Free
Information: 770-594-6232
“Goin’ to Chicago” chronicles the mass
migration of African Americans from the
rural South to the industrial North and
West from 1940 to 1970, the second wave of
the largest internal migration in American
history. The 50-minute documentary, filmed
in the 1990s, includes personal interviews,
archival footage, and clips of dynamic
environments like a South Side Chicago blues club. Producer/director George King
will lead a brief discussion after the film, and the Roswell Historical Society will host
a reception.
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Schedule of Events continued
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Thursday • Feb 11 • 7pm • FREE
Saturday • Feb 13 • 3-6pm • FREE
“Slammin’ in the Suburbs”
Roswell Poetry Slam
“True to Their Native Land” Documentary Film
Premiere with the Producer
ROSWELL HISTORIC COTTAGE • 972 Alpharetta Street at Norcross Street
Tickets: Free
Participant Sign-Up: 6-7pm
Slam Competition: 7pm
Information: 770-641-3705
ROSWELL ADULT RECREATION CENTER • 830 Grimes Bridge Road
Tickets: Free
Information: 770-641-3950
For an evening of exciting and inspiring entertainment unlike anything you’ve
ever experienced, join us for “Slammin’ in the Suburbs.” This is Roswell’s
12th annual poetry slam during which poets perform their work and are
judged by members of the audience on content and performance. Includes an
invitational round of competition amongst some of the region’s best spoken
word artists! Also bigger and better prizes! A $1,000 cash 1st place prize will
be awarded. Hosted once again by
award -winning spoken word artist,
Ayodele Heath. For details on the
rules and how to participate, visit
roswellroots.com/poetryslam.
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The 90-minute documentary
includes filmed interviews with
African American veterans
of World War II from Georgia
and Alabama. Fifty years later,
former state senators, college
presidents, and ordinary citizens
tell their story: what it was like
to serve in the military, not as a
flying ace, but a regular draftee and foot solider. The number of veterans of
this war dwindles each day and it’s important to get their stories before their
voices go silent. Produced by Weldon Bishop.
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Wednesday • Feb 17 • 3:30pm • FREE
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Saturday • Feb 20 • 10:30am-3:30pm • FREE
Jazzy Story Time
Living History Event
EAST ROSWELL BRANCH LIBRARY
a part of the Atlanta-Fulton Public Library System
2301 Holcomb Bridge Road
Tickets: Free
Information: 404-613-4050
SMITH PLANTATION BARN • 935 Alpharetta Street
Tickets: Free
Information: 770-641-3978
Explore the improvisational style of jazz
through stories, songs, and crafts.
Ages 4-6.
This event will focus on how the
enslaved at Smith Plantation viewed
the changes in their lives after being
moved from coastal Georgia to the newly
established mill town of Roswell. Living
history interactions will be ongoing, with
skits at 11:30, 1:30, and 2:30. At the 2:30
skit, Adam, one of the characters, will
explain the significance of the cloth dolls
he has been making throughout the day.
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Saturday • Feb 20 • 11am-3pm • FREE
Schedule of Events continued
West African Rhythms and Flavors
BARRINGTON HALL • 535 Barrington Drive
Tickets: Free
Sallie Ann Robinson in Kitchen: 11am-3pm
DrumRise on Lawn: 11am-1:30pm
Information: 678-639-7500 or www.southerntrilogy.com
It’s a day devoted to the food and music of West Africa. Join chef and author Sallie
Ann Robinson in the kitchen of Barrington Hall as she shares stories and prepares her
famous coastal specialties. Her tales of growing up
in the Gullah culture of Daufuskie Island, SC, are a
glimpse into a vanishing way of life. On the front lawn,
captivating drum sounds will reverberate across the
yard as the founders of DrumRise demonstrate the
drumming techniques they learned from Guinean
master drummer Mamady Keita. After a brief lesson,
stay and join in the drum circle. You’ll discover that
you can learn to drum, even if you’ve never touched
a musical instrument before! It’s a day guaranteed to
stimulate your senses.
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Saturday • Feb 20 • 2pm • FREE
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Sunday • Feb 21 • 3-4:30pm • FREE
Are you smarter than The Griot?
The Untold Story of Roswell
ROSWELL BRANCH LIBRARY
a part of the Atlanta-Fulton Public Library System
115 Norcross Street
Tickets: Free
Information: 770-640-3075
ROSWELL VISITORS CENTER • 617 Atlanta Street
Tickets: Free
Information: 770-640-3253 or www.visitroswellga.com
Who knows as much as the griot, the history keeper?
Come and share! All ages are welcome to test their
knowledge of black history in this Q&A competition.
We will see who can answer more questions than a
traditional African Griot, who was tasked with keeping
the oral history of the village. Prizes will be awarded.
Join us as we step back in time
for a view of life in Roswell from
those who lived it. Listen as
Roswell residents share their
stories of growing up in Roswell’s
black community. Presented by
Visit Roswell and Groveway
Community Group.
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Saturday • Feb 27 • 1-3pm • FREE
Schedule of Events continued
Southern Sweets: 2nd Annual Pound Cake Cook-Off
EAST ROSWELL PARK RECREATION CENTER • 9000 Fouts Road
Tickets: Free
Information: 770-641-3705
Last year, some of the entries in the pound cake cook-off contest included Toffee &
Pecan Crusted Pound Cake, Sweet Potato Pound Cake and
Strawberry Swirl Cream Cheese Pound Cake. Is your mouth
watering yet? Join us for the City of Roswell’s second annual
Pound Cake Cook-Off. If you’re an amateur baker, register to
enter the contest and see how your pound cake measures
up. There will be prizes awarded for the top entries in both
the professional and amateur catagories. Attendees will
get to meet and mingle with the competing bakers, swap
recipes, sample delicious pound cake, and vote for their
favorites. Several local restaurants and bakeries will have
cake entries and will provide guest judges. For details about
how to enter the competition, visit roswellroots.com/poundcake.
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Sunday • Feb 28 • 7-10pm • FREE
The Joint is Jumpin’: A Night of Jazz at Pastis
PASTIS RESTAURANT & BAR • 928 Canton Street
Tickets: Free
Information: 770-640-3870
Please join us for an evening of Jazz at Pastis
Restaurant and Bar on Canton Street. This
is a relaxed gathering for those interested in
great live music and dancing. There is no cover
charge for entry, but be advised it can get
crowded the later you arrive!
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#RoswellRoots
Follow Roswell Historic & Cultural Affairs @CityofRoswellGA on
social media for updated information on Roswell Roots or visit
roswellroots.com
Roswell Roots is brought to you by the Cultural Services Division of the City
of Roswell Recreation, Parks, Historical and Cultural Affairs Department.
2016