December
Elizabeth Freeman Passes — December 28, 1829
Elizabeth “Mumbet” Freeman, whose 1781 freedom suit helped end slavery in Massachusetts, died in Stockbridge at age 85. Enslaved in the household of Colonel John Ashley, she secured her freedom through a landmark constitutional case and later served as a midwife, nurse, and respected community figure. Du Bois identified Freeman as his great-grandmother, grounding his intellectual lineage in her enduring struggle for justice.
Rev. J.H. Anderson Arrives — December 10, 1882
Rev. Anderson’s arrival marked a new phase of pastoral leadership and strengthened spiritual life within the Great Barrington community served by Clinton A.M.E. Zion.
Du Bois Elected Temporary Secretary at Age 15 — December 19, 1883
At just fifteen, Du Bois was elected Temporary Secretary of the Sewing Society when officers were needed to bridge a leadership transition. Biographer David Levering Lewis notes that this early role marked the beginning of Du Bois’s lifelong engagement in organized community life—particularly alongside women who shaped many of the civic spaces that nurtured his development.
Elm Court Parcel Sold to Retire Mortgage — December 21, 1900
Trustees approved the sale of a portion of Elm Court property for $480, enabling the retirement of the church’s mortgage with Great Barrington Savings Bank and securing financial stability for the congregation.
Church Property Conveyed for New Sanctuary — December 23, 1914
Congregants transferred church property to Warren H. Davis in exchange for constructing a new sanctuary and parsonage near Dewey School, signaling community growth and renewed investment in shared worship space.
Final Parsonage Cost Recorded — December 11, 1939
Financial records confirmed the completed cost of the parsonage at $2,794.41, reflecting decades of sustained effort to support pastoral housing and community infrastructure.
Special Meeting Addresses Racial Attitudes — December 23, 1945
Amid shifting postwar social dynamics, a special meeting confronted white attitudes toward Black residents—an early example of community-level dialogue on race and equity in Great Barrington.
Watch Night Fire Damages Parsonage — December 31, 1954
A second fire during Watch Night services caused significant damage to the basement and parsonage, challenging the congregation yet again as it rebuilt its sacred spaces.
Offering Supports Montgomery Bus Boycott — December 4, 1955
In a powerful act of solidarity with the growing Civil Rights Movement, the congregation contributed $19.59 to support those resisting segregation during the Montgomery Bus Boycott.
Edna Wilks Day Established — December 12, 1982
Edna Wilks was honored for more than forty years of service to the church, her recognition becoming an annual December tradition until her passing in 1997.
Du Bois Publishes John Brown — December 2, 1909
On the 50th anniversary of John Brown’s execution, W.E.B. Du Bois released his landmark biography John Brown. Du Bois portrayed Brown as a moral revolutionary who confronted slavery as an intolerable evil requiring decisive action—foreshadowing themes that would shape his later scholarship.
Du Bois Becomes First Black Scholar to Address the AHA — December 27–31, 1909
Du Bois made history as the first Black scholar to present at the American Historical Association’s annual meeting. His paper, Reconstruction and Its Benefits, challenged dominant racist interpretations of Reconstruction and anticipated the major arguments later developed in Black Reconstruction in America (1935).
November
Elm Street Lot Purchased — November 1, 1881
A $1,500 purchase from Mark and Phoebe Humphrey established a permanent home for faith and community in Great Barrington. The Elm Street site became a center for worship, education, and civic life—laying the foundation for today’s Du Bois Freedom Center.
Jolly Club #2 — November 6, 1948
Led by Mrs. Pinkie Brooks, Jolly Club #12 fostered fellowship, service, and joy in post-war Great Barrington—strengthening community bonds and celebrating Black woman leadership.
Jolly Club #2 — November 4, 1954
A fire damaged the church basement and kitchen ($500) in 1954, but the community rebuilt—turning loss into renewal. Faith and solidarity kept the doors open and the mission alive.
Du Bois Launches The Crisis — November 1910
In November 1910, W.E.B. Du Bois launched The Crisis, the official magazine of the NAACP, serving as its editor until 1934. Under his leadership, the magazine became one of the most influential Black publications of the 20th century, combining political commentary, investigative journalism, literature, and art. The Crisis gave voice to issues of racial injustice, promoted civil rights campaigns, and published works by writers such as Langston Hughes, Countee Cullen, and Zora Neale Hurston, making it a central platform of the Harlem Renaissance and the broader struggle for Black equality.
Shirley Graham Du Bois Born — November 11th, 1896
On November 11, 1896, Shirley Graham Du Bois was born in Indianapolis, Indiana. A gifted artist and intellectual, she studied music at Oberlin College and the Sorbonne in Paris, becoming an accomplished composer and playwright. Her opera Tom-Tom (1932) was among the first by an African American woman to be staged nationally and to feature an all-Black cast, drawing tens of thousands to its Cleveland premiere.
Over the following decades, she established herself as a novelist, biographer, and cultural worker, publishing widely read books on figures such as Phillis Wheatley, Frederick Douglass, and Paul Robeson that brought Black history to a broader public. In 1951, she married W.E.B. Du Bois, with whom she shared a deep commitment to Pan-Africanism, socialism, and global anti-colonial struggles. Together they lived in Ghana during its early independence years, working alongside Kwame Nkrumah. After W.E.B. Du Bois’s death in 1963, Shirley remained active internationally, spending her later years between Africa, China, and the United States.
Her legacy extended into academia as well: she became part of the emerging Afro- American Studies Department at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where W.E.B. Du Bois’s papers and intellectual influence became foundational to the program. She continued her global advocacy until her death in Beijing in 1977.
October
Louisa M. Burghardt’s Grave — October 9, 1849
Louisa M. Burghardt’s grave became the oldest known resting place of a Du Bois ancestor, marking the deep and enduring roots of Black life in Great Barrington. Her legacy reflects the early presence and perseverance of African American families who built the foundation of the community that shaped W. E. B. Du Bois.
Clinton A.M.E. Zion Church Cornerstone — October 6, 1886
The cornerstone of the Clinton A.M.E. Zion Church was laid, symbolizing faith, unity, and resilience in the face of racial exclusion. The church became a spiritual and social center for Great Barrington’s Black community—a lasting testament to collective strength and hope.
Railroad Street Fire — October 1896
A devastating fire destroyed Manuel Mason’s Catering Restaurant, a beloved Black-owned business in Great Barrington. Mason’s perseverance and dignity in the aftermath stood as a reflection of the endurance and determination that defined the early Black Berkshires community.
Edna Dixon Hardy’s Wedding — October 13, 1949
Edna Dixon Hardy became the first Black woman in Berkshire County to have her wedding featured in the Berkshire Courier. The publication of her photo and story represented a quiet yet powerful act of recognition and equality during a time of limited Black visibility in local media.
“An Appeal to the World” — October 23, 1947
On behalf of the NAACP, W. E. B. Du Bois submitted “An Appeal to the World” to the United Nations, denouncing racial injustice in the United States as a violation of human rights. This landmark action positioned the struggle for racial equality within the global movement for justice and peace.
Du Bois Resigns from the NAACP — October 28, 1948
Du Bois resigned from the NAACP for the second and final time, choosing to devote his energy to Pan-Africanism and global liberation. His decision marked a turning point toward a broader vision of freedom that transcended national boundaries.
Du Bois Homesite Dedicated — October 18, 1969
The W. E. B. Du Bois Homesite in Great Barrington was dedicated in a ceremony led by Julian Bond and Ossie Davis. Despite local resistance, the dedication honored Du Bois’s legacy and affirmed his enduring importance to American and global history.
W. E. B. Du Bois Library Named — October 5, 1994
The University of Massachusetts Amherst renamed its main library the W. E. B. Du Bois Library, commemorating his intellectual legacy and lifelong pursuit of truth. The renaming recognized Du Bois not only as a scholar but as one of the most profound thinkers in American history.
Reflect. Remember. Continue the Legacy.
These moments remind us that Du Bois’s story—and that of Great Barrington’s Black community—is not just history. It is a living legacy of courage, faith, and imagination that continues to shape our shared pursuit of freedom and equality.
Follow the Du Bois Freedom Center to explore Du Bois’s ongoing influence and join us in celebrating the power of history to inspire change.
September
Civil Rights Act Signed — September 9, 1957
President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the Civil Rights Act of 1957—the first civil rights legislation since Reconstruction. Designed to protect African American voting rights, especially in the segregated South, it created the Civil Rights Division in the Department of Justice and the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights. Though limited in enforcement, it marked a turning point and paved the way for the sweeping civil rights laws of the 1960s.
W. E. B. Du Bois Papers at UMass Opened — September 19, 1980
Seventeen years after Du Bois’s death, the University of Massachusetts Amherst officially opened his papers to the public. Secured through efforts led by Chancellor Randolph Bromery in the 1970s, the collection brought Du Bois’s intellectual legacy to Western Massachusetts. Today, the archive remains a cornerstone for scholars of Black history and thought.
Atlanta Race Riot — September 22–24, 1906
Over three days in Atlanta, white mobs—spurred by false newspaper reports—attacked Black neighborhoods, killing dozens and devastating businesses. W.E.B. Du Bois narrowly escaped the violence and later captured the trauma in his powerful work “A Litany at Atlanta.” The riot reinforced his belief in organized resistance and exposed the fragility of America’s promises of equality.
Du Bois River Garden Dedicated — September 28, 1980
In Great Barrington, the W. E. B. Du Bois River Garden Park was dedicated at the First Congregational Church, with Dr. David Graham Du Bois delivering the keynote. Du Bois often evoked rivers as symbols of justice and freedom—“born by a golden river,” he wrote of the Housatonic near his birthplace. The River Garden honors that vision, linking racial justice with environmental justice.
August
Anniversary of the Passing of W.E.B. Du Bois (August 27, 1963)
August 27 marks the anniversary of the death of Dr. W. E. B. Du Bois, one of the most influential intellectuals and freedom fighters of the 20th century. He died in Accra, Ghana, at the age of 95, where he had spent the final years of his life in exile, invited by President Kwame Nkrumah to work on the Encyclopedia Africana.
March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom (August 28th, 1963)
His passing occurred on the eve of the historic Civil Rights March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, at which Roy Wilkins, Executive Secretary of the NAACP, addressed the 250,000 people gathered at the Lincoln Memorial and proclaimed: “At the dawn of the 20th century, his was the voice that was calling to you to gather here today in this cause." (Starts at 8:30)
Du Bois Given a State Funeral in Ghana (August 29–30, 1963)
W.E.B. Du Bois was honored with a state funeral in Ghana on August 29 and 30, 1963, just days after his death. The ceremonies reflected the high regard in which he was held across Africa and the African diaspora. Ghanaian President Kwame Nkrumah, who had welcomed Du Bois as a citizen and collaborator, delivered a powerful eulogy calling him a “citizen of the world” and a "great African patriot" whose life was devoted to the liberation of oppressed people.
Dignitaries, scholars, and freedom fighters from across the globe attended the funeral, which was both a political and spiritual affirmation of Du Bois’s lifelong struggle for human rights, Black dignity, and Pan-African unity. His burial in Accra marked a final symbolic homecoming to the African continent. Today, the W.E.B. Du Bois Centre for Pan-African Culture, located at his former home and burial site, continues to serve as a place of research, remembrance, and pilgrimage for those carrying forward his legacy.