MACON, Ga. — The Tubman Museum hosted an educators summit and a volunteer appreciation event for all teachers, school staff and administrators on Friday.
The event had a drum circle along with a reception. Teachers and volunteers were handed Central Georgia Africa American-themed coloring books and appreciation certificates.
With free admission, attendees also got to tour the museum's exhibits including the newest exhibit "The Enslaved People Project 1823-1865."
The project shows how Black people were used as commodities during the 19th century. In side-by-side displays, the exact details of the slave transactions are described with a synopsis transcribing the recorded information.
The exhibit's documents show the buying and selling of slaves, the loaning and trading of people and the use of Black bodies as collateral for loans.
It started out as an accidental discovery of documents recording slave transactions in Old Bibb County deed books in 2013, which led to a decade-long collaboration with Mercer University and the Superior Court Clerk's Office.
It took 10 years to complete.
Superior Court Clerk Erica Woodford discovered the records of slave transactions in old Bibb County deed books while conducting routine inventory.
"It's empowerment. The opportunity to learn about yourself is empowering. I love learning about African American history, and I like to share that with young people," the Tubman's Museum's education direction Georgie Crawley said. "I like to share and learn from older persons and seasoned saints because when I listen to them I'm learning more about myself."
The exhibit opened on July 1 and will be available until Aug. 1.