SLIDE PRESENTATION

The one hour program is entitled From Bondage to Freedom. Dressed in traditional African Clothing, the speaker begins with the history of Classical Africa (via slides). Once the program leads into European Invasion of Africa, the speaker removes the African garment to reveal a ragged slave outfit. This symbolizes the stripping away of African Culture and Freedom. Explained to the students are the reasons for the European Invasion of Africa. Included are conditions on slave ships, slavery in the United States and the eventual escape to freedom through the Underground Railroad. Highlighted are many of the routes and sites of the Underground Railroad in Western New York and Southern Ontario. Various points in the program show the contemporary relevance between four centuries of slavery and present day conditions that affect American's youth.

There is an honorarium of $250.00 for this program, which will often last longer than one hour, depending on the amount of questions asked by the students, at no additional cost. There is also a teacher's packet made available to you that can be used before or as a follow-up to the presentation.

National History Day Gets The Spotlight At Lew-Port Middle School

From a newspaper article in the Lew-Port Sentinel The National History Day competition was held in the Lew-Port Middle School cafeteria Saturday, Feb. 26. Static displays, slide presentations and videos not only brought events in history to life for exhibit viewers but were great learning experiences for the creators.

Winners in the media category were Kathy Clarke, Laura Muto, Stephanie Etiopo and Kacey Martinez for their slide presentation ; Shaun McGarvey and Mike Carella for their video of Fort Niagara; and Eileen Rieger for her video of Fort Niagara.

Individual winners were Janene Fuerch for her project on Fort Niagara, Chantal Martin for her project on Fort York and Laura Zachary for her project on Tryon's Folley, a house on Lower River Road.

Drew Curtis won for an historical paper on Japan.

Group project winners were Adrienne Gray, Mara Manzare and Natalie Rizzo for their project on the suspension bridge; Lauren Passanese, Eric Swannson and Colin O'Keefe for their project on the geography of war; and Lindsey Crissman, Danielle Malinowski and Lauren LaDuca for their project on the underground railroad. (Webmaster Note: For this particular project, the students interviewed Kevin Cottrell of Motherland Connextions to learn how Geography affected the Underground Railroad... and how African slaves became Farmers after coming from a farming culture.

Judges included Youngstown Historian Don Ames, who also writes for the Sentinel; 12th-grade social studies teacher Bill Geiben; and Verret Gentner,a historian at Cambria and a media specialist.

Winners will continue on to the State Competition in Long Island.

TOURS

The students are expected to eat their lunch on the bus with a bathroom break provided during the lunch hour. We do this to give them a sense of what the (fugitive Africans) slaves went through on their journey to freedom. This also aids the fact that we have so much information to provide and so little time to present it in. There is a teacher's packet made available to you that can be used prior to, or as a follow-up to the tour.

The cost of the tour is $480.00 (due day of trip) which includes the cost of the school bus and your "Conductor" (tour guide) dressed in period costume. Most school buses hold 42 students. Full capacity groups are estimated at $11.45 per student. On the day of the tour, the bus and Conductor arrive at your school 15-30 minutes prior to the start of the tour. To confirm your tour date, information is received by telephone and a confirmation form is sent to you to sign and return. Please make a copy for your records. The deposit fee is waived for school groups.

Specific tours are described on our Company Profile page.

STUDENTS' VOICES

When we got on the bus we took off our caps and rode off. The man on the bus talked a lot about slavery. The first place we went to was a red brick church in downtown Buffalo. The man told us that this church had a lot to do about slavery. After that we got back on the bus and rode off. We talked and had a few laughs but mostly we were just having fun. Also on the field trip we saw Niagara Falls. After a long time on the bus we had lunch. After that we went to a monument that the runaway slaves built. He told us a lot about this monument. After that we got back on the bus and rode off. Next, we went to the Whirlpool Bridge. He told us a lot about this bridge back in slavery time. When we were walking across the bridge some people were crying and scared. That was an experience that our class will never forget. Then we got on the bus and went all the way back to the school. I thought that the tour guide expressed himself well.

FRIDAY: OUR DAY OUT

On Friday April 22, 1994 we had a ball. First we were in the auditorium. Kevin, our guide, was showing us how the blacks used to wear very nice clothes. The guides were also showing us how gold was so common in Africa everybody had gold. After that we got on the bus and we rode down Michigan Ave. and saw an old slave church that the slaves used as an Underground Railroad Station. After that we went down to the waterfront and the other guide showed the students where the slaves use to escape to Canada. Most of the slaves were beaten badly and some of the other slaves helped clean up the wounds. We went to Niagara Falls and ate lunch at a church called St. Louis. After lunch we got back on the bus and the bus driver drove us passed the power plant to show us how water makes energy. After that the bus driver drove us to the Whirlpool Bridge. That was a scary bridge, because of all of the water was washing up against the big rocks. We walked half way across. Our tour guide told us to act like we were walking across to freedom. That is the end of my story.

THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD

My class went on a field trip to the Underground Railroad. The tour guide told us about Harriet Tubman. He said she put words in songs to get messages to other slaves. She used codes. We saw a Methodist Church. He told us the slaves would hide in the church. We got back on the bus and went to see a bridge and Niagara Falls. The guide said that slaves would escape to Canada.

UNDERGROUND RAILROAD

My class and I went on the Underground Railroad Tour. The first thing we did was go into the auditorium. Our tour guide was dressed in African clothing and he said that Black people were once kings and queens. Next, he dressed in rags and told us that this was how the slaves were dressed. Then we went on the bus. The first stop we made was to a square house and he said that those were the kind of houses they had during slavery. Then we went to a church on William Street. Next, we went over a big black bridge to the foot of Ferry where the slaves had tried to escape by boat or walking across the frozen water. Then we went to lunch at a church. After lunch we went to the back of the church and we sang a song by a monument. Then we went back to school.

UNDERGROUND RAILROAD

Today my class and I went on the Underground Railroad tour. We saw many different things. We saw an old church that slaves hid in from the slave masters. Some runaway slaves slept in barns, very old houses or in basements with all kinds of things. Harriet Tubman kept a gun on her so if some one tried to leave she'd convince them to stay. This was because she knew that the slave masters would find out and get the slave because he or she would talk. The runaway slaves had to cross bridges, lakes and back roads. Some of them died but most survived. Harriet's nickname was Moses. She had to travel to certain places to be free.

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