Prince Rivers Accepts the Colors

Photo courtesy of The Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division

Washington Course - Charleston

Photo available from The Charleston Preservation Society.

Slave Row - Port Royal Island

Photo courtesy of The Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division

Pension Card File of Shedrick Manago

Photo Courtesy of The National Archives and Records Administration, Washington,D.C.

The Greaves Map of Mitchelville

Photo courtesy of The Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division

Saturday, November 9, 2013

Happy Birthday, Barefoot!!


A RING SHOUT FOR BAREFOOT...

The Gullah Tradition of Ring Shout:  "African Americans felt most free to sing spirituals accompanied by the ring shout dances when they were away from the gaze of masters and overseers, who often forbade the gatherings. When the slave quarters was far enough away from the residence of the owners, Black people might gather there in one of the cabins, moving to the side the meager furnishings so that a danced circle could form in the center of the room....But just as often, people gathered in woods bordering the plantations where they lived or in simply constructed “praise houses” or “hush harbors” or sometimes out in the open air, around a fire. There they would raise up the song and move in an easy, slightly weighted step in a counterclockwise ring, starting with a slow tempo and gradually building to a cadence that featured the syncopation of handclaps, feet stomping and percussive sticks to keep and vary the rhythm. And in the repetition of the sung lines and the movement of the circling bodies, the spirit was called and answered."  For the full text and more information about the religious tradition of ring shout visit Sweet Chariot: The Story of the Spirituals.


Gullah and Geechee Ring Shout
Geechee and Gullah Ring Shouters give praise at Barefoot Farms

Today, the Sea Islands not only celebrated the legacy of Penn Center but it also celebrated the life of one of the island's local celebrities, Jackie "Barefoot" Frazier.  In a farmstand filled with family, friends, visitors, customers and guests Jackie celebrated in true Gullah-Style. In attendance: The Gullah Cultural Alliance of Beaufort, The Carolina Cowboys, Chief Se'khu Hadjo Gentle of Yamassee Indian Tribe / Nation and The Gullah Grub Restaurant.


Photo courtesy of The Yamassee Indian Tribe/Nation.