Hinsonville’s Heroes: Agents of Emancipation and Civil Rights

FLYER

Hinsonville’s Heroes: Agents of Emancipation and Civil Rights
A talk by Dr. Cheryl Renée Gooch

The New London Area Historical Society and Franklin Township Historical Commission
invite you to join us on September 12th to hear Dr. Gooch discuss her book Hinsonville’s
Heroes: Black Civil War Soldiers of Chester County, Pennsylvania, which traces the stories
of residents of Hinsonville, a former free black community in southeast Pennsylvania, who
fought for the Union. The 19th-century village of Hinsonville attracted both free and
determined-to-be-free people who championed religious freedom, higher education, land
ownership and equal rights. Residents organized a black Protestant church, supported the
founding of Ashmun Institute (now Lincoln University), vigilantly opposed slavery and, in
some cases, emigrated to Liberia as a part of the colonization movement. The community’s
tradition of self-determination compelled 18 of its men to enlist and fight for freedom. Some
of the men are buried at Hosanna church cemetery next to Lincoln University, where their
headstones are historical monuments to their lives and commitment.

An active historical researcher, Dr. Gooch also has written On Africa’s Lands: The
Forgotten Stories of Two Lincoln-Educated Missionaries in Liberia and numerous historical
articles. She served as Dean of Humanities and Social Sciences at Lincoln University, and
was historian and primary writer for the Delaware History Museum’s permanent exhibit
“Journey to Freedom,” which chronicles the Black Delawarean experience. Currently, she is
President of Friends of Hosanna AUMP (Lincoln University, PA) and Executive Director of
the African American Resources Cultural and Heritage Society (Frederick, MD).

September 12, 2024, at 7 PM, at the New London Academy (New London Twp. building)
902 State Rd., New London, PA (1/2 mile east of Rte. 896).
(For a GPS, use 902 State Rd., Lincoln University, PA 19352.)
The talk is free; everyone is welcome.