A celebration of community, history and culture

CHESTERTOWN — Each year on a weekend in mid-August, Sumner Hall celebrates Legacy Day, a “Celebration of Community, History and Culture.” This year in partnership with the Historical Society of Kent County, it explored African American fraternal and community organizations in Kent County.

“Our theme this year was African American fraternal and community organizations,” noted Airlee Ringgold Johnson, community historian for Washington College’s Starr Center for the Study of the American Experience. “Our citizens had a chance to step out of our usual work uniforms of drudgery into our finest of clothes. We stepped into leadership roles and strategized to service our community’s needs.”

Sumner Hall, 206 S. Queen Street in Chestertown, is the home of Charles Sumner Post #25, Grand Army of the Republic. The GAR was formed by Union veterans on April 6, 1866; in 1882 GAR Post #25 was chartered by local Black veterans in Chestertown. In a fitting tribute, Sumner Hall was named for Senator Charles Sumner of Massachusetts, an advocate for emancipation and voting rights for African Americans.

This year’s Legacy Day weekend began at Sumner Hall on Friday, Aug. 16, with the opening of “Pride Without Prejudice”, an exhibit celebrating the Tri-States Elks Cotillion and the young women introduced to society as debutantes.

On Saturday, despite the threat of rain, Johnson led participants on an African American Walking Tour through the streets of historic Chestertown. Designed by Washington College students Heather Lamont (2026), Evan Cooley (2026), and Tiana Edwards (2025), the tour highlighted what was then a thriving African American community.

The walk included a Queen Street residence, purchased in 1796 by Henry Phillips, a formerly enslaved man who bought his freedom and became the wealthiest African American in Kent County. It included the Cannon Street home of Thomas Cuff, a free businessman who used his wealth to purchase the freedom of enslaved African Americans.

From Janes United Methodist, the first African American house of worship in Chestertown to Memorial Park and the monument to United States Colored Troops of Kent County, a rich and often unknown history of Chestertown was revealed.

Johnson describes this work as gratifying. “I am proud to share knowledge of Black history with our entire community. African Americans established a very rich culture despite the oppressions we endured. Too much of Black history has been hidden, lost, or ignored. As we uncover many interesting facts, we’re sharing a sense of pride for what we as downtrodden people were able to accomplish.”

At the foot of Cannon Street, participants boarded the Schooner Sultana, an exact reproduction of a Boston-built merchant ship and the smallest schooner in the British Royal Navy. After firing the ship’s cannon, the captain and crew presented the Sultana as a school ship for hands-on environmental studies and history.

It was that mission for which Sonja Hayes braved Chesapeake Bay Bridge traffic on a Saturday morning. Hayes, a librarian and history teacher at the Siena School in Silver Spring, was on board for an exploratory tour for her students with dyslexia and language-based learning disabilities. “I was at a summer institute at Salisbury University and was invited by Chesapeake Heartlands to come this weekend. I wanted to experience knowing about African American history in Maryland and to make a plan for my students’ visit,” she explained.

All day, blocked-off downtown streets hosted community organizations, vendors, food trucks for every taste, purveyors of ice cream, and community organizations. The fish fry, that staple of community events, boasted an assembly line of workers to satisfy the demands of loyal customers. Long before the step-off time of 4 p.m., parade watchers had already taken their places on the sidewalk. Nearby a sound check previewed the upcoming street party, a promise to keep the crowd on their feet and dancing in the street, and looking forward to August 2025 — the same time, same street, next year.

The Exhibit of American American Fraternal and Community Organizations is on display until Aug. 31 at the Kent County Historical Society, 301 High Street, Chestertown.

Pride Without Prejudice: The Debutantes of Kent County, is on display until Sept. 30 at Sumner Hall, 206 S. Queen Street, Chestertown.

Find The Sultana Educational Foundation at 200 S Cross Street in Chestertown.