African-American Contributions To Revolutionary War Era' Topic for Conference

ArOn Saturday, March 15, a Black history conference will be held at the Yorktowne Hotel in York, as part of the Nine Months in York Town celebration. "African-American Contributions to the Revolutionary War Era" is designed for area educators and those individuals interested in history. The program will feature four outstanding speakers: n DEBRA NEWMAN HAM. Her topic will be "African-Americans in Pennsylvania During the Revolutionary War Era." A graduate of William Penn High School in York, Dr. Ham is a professor at Morgan State University. She holds her Bachelor's degree in History from Howard University, her Master's degree in African History from Boston University and her Doctorate in African history from Howard University. n CHARLES L. BLOCKSON. He will discuss "Little Known Facts About African-Americans During the American Revolutionary War Era." Born in Norristown, Dr. Blockson is a noted scholar and author. He holds three honorary degrees and has written more than 10 books. He has donated his extensive collection related to Black culture to Temple University. The Charles L. Blockson Afro-American Collection has grown to more than 150,000 books, document and photographs. Scholars from around the world have used the collection for resource information. MORE n EMMA LAPSANSKY. Her topic of discussion will be "Bringing African-American History Alive in the Classroom." Dr. Lapsansky is curator of Haverford College's Quaker Collection and a professor of History at the Pennsylvania college. She holds her Bachelor's, Master's and Doctorate degrees from the University of Pennsylvania. She oversees the care and maintenance of one of the most extensive collections of Quaker history in the world. The collection includes 40,000 books and several hundreds of thousands of manuscripts. She was also at speaker at the Pennsylvania conference last May. n RUSSELL P. SMITH. The luncheon speaker, Mr. Smith talk about "Good Intentions: Observations on the Interpretation of African-American History in the National Park System." Mr. Smith is Chief of Interpretation and Visitor Services for the Northeast Region of the National Park Service. His area of responsibility includes working with park superintendents in more than 70 areas from Maine to West Virginia. A native of New Castle, Delaware, he is a graduate of the University of Delaware with a degree in American History. Pennsylvania certified educators will be awarded Act 48 hours for participating in these workshops. There is no charge for the programs, however the cost of the luncheon is $25 and pre-registration is required by March 10. Additional information is available by calling the York County Heritage Trust at 848-1587. The program will conclude at 4 p.m. with a reception and book signing at the Historical Society Museum, 250 East Market Street, York. "Nine Months in York Town" is a celebration of the Continental Congress' stay in York from September 1777 through June 1778. Information about the conference and other upcoming events is available by logging on to www.yorkheritage.org and clicking on the Nine Months in York Town logo or by calling 848-1587.

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