The HEARTS Reunion Project
Connections Through Collections
The Reunion Project is the "R" in HEARTS and provides an important genealogical component with the mission to connect all those who've lived on Hugh Torance's land to their heritage. Once home to indigenous peoples, European colonists, enslaved peoples, and farm tenants, the HEARTS Reunion Project seeks the connections and stories of all those who've called this place home by bridging connections and building community.
Many descendants of enslaved people seek connections to their heritage, which is often difficult due to a lack of documentation. The project has uncovered documented direct connections of the enslaved brought here before emancipation with the surrounding historic African American communities of Long Creek, Miranda, Pottstown, and Smithville, building collections specific to these communities and historic African American sites around the region.
In addition, the project continues to seek connections to the Native American heritage of the Hugh Torance House and Store site. Home to Paleo Indians and the tribes of their descendants for thousands of years, the project researches, collects, and documents this important tribal history of the land.
Stories learned from these connections and collections are shared at HEARTS Happening events throughout the year, with an annual celebration of the project each year at the HEARTS Junion event, which began in 2022.
At HEARTS Junion ‘24, a compiled list of 143 people once enslaved at the site was presented after the painstaking research and assembly by Andre’ Kearns. One of the sources Kearns drew upon was a notebook kept by James G. Torrance called “Ages of Negroes.” This list is now permanently displayed in the Center Hall Gallery of Cedar Grove. HEARTS is honored for these names to be included in the 10 Million Names Project, a collaborative effort dedicated to recovering the names of the estimated 10 million men, women, and children of African descent who were enslaved in pre- and post-colonial America between the 1500s and 1865.
If you are interested in participating in the Reunion Project, please complete this brief survey:
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