Confronting Slavery: Discovering Family History in Hudson Valley

Join the Albany Institute of Art and History on Sunday, October 18, 2020 at 2 PM for a live online program! They will be hosting a Zoom program with guest speakers Debra Bruno and Eleanor Mire.

Many Americans associate slavery with the South. But an increasing number of families with northern roots are discovering that enslavement is part of their family’s history as well — either as enslaved people or as enslavers. In this program Eleanor Mire and Debra Bruno, will share insights from their family histories and the genealogical research they’ve conducted which led them to discover they are descended from the same family in New York’s Hudson Valley.

Eleanor Mire is a Black woman who traced her lineage to Mary Vanderzee, who was born in 1801 to the enslaved Egberts family of Coxsackie, New York. Debra Bruno, who had been researching the very same family discovered she is descended from the enslavers. Both women are interested in genealogy, and that’s how they found out about their connection between their families

This program is FREE with a suggested donation of $10. Click HERE to RSVP today. The presentation will be offered live via Zoom with a Q&A session. All participants will receive the Zoom link one hour before the lecture to the email used during registration.