Historically, Frostburg was a "traveling through" town where there were local inns and taverns built for those who were traveling to grab a bite to eat or sleep through the night. In 1817 the original Tomlinson Inn was established as well as many others in the area. At this time, the taverns were employed by slaves. The taverns were also the residences of those slaves, but with slave trade, there were large extended families that still exist today.
The first piece of land in Brownsville was a 50' x 150' lot purchased by Tamer Brown on Dec 1, 1866. Brown was originally enslaved by the Tomlinson family as a laundress and could bring in more money by continuing her work at her house. Shortly after, in July of 1868, the gentlemen of the community purchased a lot behind Brown's house and built a school. The school was open for classes in October in 1868. These buildings stood where the current Simpson Hall is located.
During the tour, Bowman stopped many times at buildings all Frostburg students recognize. The next piece of land mentioned in the tour was a house that was located across from Compton Science Center where there is currently just a lawn and was owned by Elizabeth "Betsy" and William Jackson. Allen, Guild, Brady Health, and Old Main were also mentioned as land that was once part of Brownsville.
As we got to the end of the tour, Bowman mentioned the significance of Brownsville. All the people that lived in this town were pushed out in order to build Normal School No. 2. Most houses were purchased for less than $10 in 1898. Then in 1926, the state purchased the rest of Brownsville to expand the university, including a perish house and church that was purchased and sat unused until the university decided they wanted to use it.
Brownsville is a town that is commonly mentioned as a myth, but is a very important part of African American history in Western Maryland. There is plenty of evidence including the deeds to the houses and censuses, but there are still people who deny the existence of this town.
When asked how she got involved with this research, Bowman mentioned her minority students and how a professor told a student that his ancestors never lived here although the house the student lives in was passed down from generation to generation. Bowman said "Whenever a person has a history, they just feel more comfortable there and that's why I started this."
Along with others, audience member Nicole Amos, had no idea the history behind our campus and Brownsville. "It's appalling that we see Frostburg's campus the way it is and never knew that families were thrown out of their homes for this."
No comments:
Post a Comment