February 27, 2006 - Looking for Angola Receives a Save Our History Award from the History Channel
Looking for Angola, a project aimed at discovering traces of a maroon community that thrived on Florida's west coast from 1812-1821, has been awarded a "Save Our History" grant from the The History Channel. The $10,000 award will be used to integrate the story of Angola into the middle school curriculum in Manatee County, Florida.
Dr. Kimberly Gilmore, historian and Director of Corporate Outreach for the History Channel, awarded the funds to Looking for Angola project director Vickie Oldham at a reception February 26 in Sarasota, Florida.
The reception, which was held at the beautiful Asolo Theater in Sarasota was also the occasion for the official launch of the Looking for Angola documentary film, and the project's official website at http://www.lookingforangola.com.
Looking for Angola is a multidisciplinary research project, aimed at discovering the location “Angola,” a maroon community that thrived on Florida's southwest coast from 1812-1821. It was comprised of formerly enslaved Africans and African-Americans and Red Stick Creek and Seminole Indians.
In 1821, Lower Creek Indians and bounty hunters raided the Angola Settlement. Some survivors of the raid escaped south along the Florida coast to Cape Florida, where they boarded canoes and wreckers, heading for safety and freedom in The Bahamas.
The Looking for Angola research team includes project director Vickie Oldham, historian Canter Brown, Jr. (Florida A&M University), anthropologist Rosalyn Howard (University of Central Florida) historical archaeologist Uzi Baram (New College of Florida), archaeologist Bill Burger, archaeologist Terrance Weik (University of South Carolina), and Sarasota educator/historian Louis Robinson.
The team is working to combine decades of research in the effort to uncover evidence about this little known story missing from the pages of American history. The saga of Angola highlights Florida’s continuing role as a beacon of freedom for refugees from slavery in the American South. The historical archaeology of the settlement will shed light on matters of national and international importance.
The Save Our History Grant from the History Channel will enable the research team to share the story of Angola with middle school students in southwest Florida. Project director Vickie Oldham hopes that the story of Angola will inspire young minds and encourage students to learn more about the courageous struggles of those who sought freedom from slavery.
