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iii. VALUES

Recognition for the lesser-known founders of America through the preservation and protection

of underappreciated and represented sites and peoples. Upholding the value of history and the

perseverance of generations on whose shoulders United States citizens and people around the

world stand on today.

THE FREEMAN HOUSES

HISTORY

The Civil War in the United States

began in 1861 and lasted until 1865.

While the war broke out due to the

succession of the South from the United

States, a primary factor in the cause of

the war was the issue of the slavery of

African Americans. “Little Liberia”- photo from The Graham Foundation

However, even before President Abraham Lincoln issues the Emancipation Proclamation that freed all slaves

in every state, black peoples in the

United States (specifically in the North) had begun to live freely, though not always without difficulty and

discrimination that continued over one hundred years after the war was concluded.

The community known as “Little Liberia” (formerly Ethiopis), Bridgeport Connecticut, was settled by many

free blacks prior to the beginning of the Civil War. The settlement was for “free people of color” and included

those black peoples from the North, Native Americans, Cape Verdeans, and runaway slaves from the southern

States. A church, a school, and a library were

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