IMAGINE! BLACK PIONEERS campaign seeks $100K in public funding of Roberts Settlement Legacy Walk; $340,000 raised to date

(Atlanta, Ind.) – Following a three-month successful fundraising effort among members of family, friends, and community supporters, plans for the Roberts Settlement Legacy Walk  were unveiled to the public on Thursday, February 23 at Bethel A.M.E. Church.

The construction concepts (and future fabrication and installation) created by Display Dynamics, Inc. for the Roberts Settlement Legacy Walk include an accessible walking path, beginning at the Indiana State Historical Marker and looping through the west side of the Chapel, providing the means for a self-guided journey through Roberts Settlement’s Black pioneer history as well as a peaceful place for reflection. Visitors will be greeted by “Morning Light,” a dazzling entry feature symbolizing exploration, discovery, opportunity, and hope. Beyond, the Legacy Walk will take visitors through four separate themed stations: Roots & Migration, Progress & Perseverance, Faith & Reverence and Legacy & Footprints. Each station includes a title monolith, a bench, and a graphic reader rail with interpretive content. Structures are fabricated from Corten-style steel and faux stone.

With more than $340,000 in pledges, cash, and in-kind donations, the IMAGINE! Black Pioneers fundraising campaign turns to the public for the remaining $100,000 to fund this interpretive outdoor public exhibit that focuses on the legacy of Hamilton County (Indiana)’s Black pioneers and broadens visitors’ understanding of the Midwest's diverse history.

Major community donors to the project to-date include: Hamilton County Tourism ($100,000), Roberts Settlement descendants ($60,000), the Merrell family ($30,000), Beck Hybrids (in-kind donation concrete infrastructure $30,000) and Burtner Electric (in-kind donation electrical $15,000). Central Indiana Community Foundation provided $20,000 for the initial project study and design concept.

“The outpouring of support of this magnitude has been little less than amazing,” said Roberts Settlement President LaVella Hyter. “These donations allow us to move forward with a groundbreaking during our 100th annual Homecoming in July with the intent to have the Legacy Walk open in late fall.”

Underscoring the national historical significance of the project, the African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund (AACHAF), a program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, recently announced its award of $75,000 to Roberts Settlement for Preserving Black Churches. Roberts Settlement is one of 35 organizations in 22 states to receive a total of $4 million in grant funding to advance long-term and sustainable strategies that strengthen stewardship and asset management, interpretation and programming, and fundraising activities for historic Black churches across the country. This program works to uplift the legacy of often-overlooked Black churches, ensuring their legacy of spirituality, history, and democracy endures. 

Roberts Settlement is located just east of US 31 on 276th St. It was founded in 1835 by free Blacks of mixed racial heritage who migrated mostly from North Carolina and Virginia to escape deteriorating racial conditions in the South. Their goals were the pursuit of economic, educational, and religious aspirations with greater freedom and fewer racial barriers. Today, set on a gently rolling landscape, visitors will find a chapel and cemetery, representing a once thriving community that continued to grow through the late-1800s. 

For more information about the Roberts Settlement Legacy Walk or how to donate, click to this page of the website.
 
About Roberts Settlement
Roberts Settlement was established in 1835 by free people of color who migrated mostly from North Carolina and Virginia to escape deteriorating racial conditions. Their goals were the pursuit of economic, educational, and religious aspirations with greater freedom and fewer racial barriers. Today, the descendants gather annually for a family Homecoming to celebrate their shared history and renew their family bonds. In 2023, Roberts Settlement publicly unveiled plans for the Roberts Settlement Legacy Walk with support from the Lilly Endowment Inc. This project was funded in part by a grant from the African American Cultural Action Fund of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. For more information, visit RobertsSettlement.org.  

Hamilton County church among 35 sites awarded national grant funding from the African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund

(Atlanta, Ind.) – The African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund (AACHAF), a program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, announced its award of $75,000 to Roberts Settlement for Preserving Black Churches.
Roberts Settlement is one of 35 organizations in 22 states to receive a total of $4 million in grant funding to advance long-term and sustainable strategies that strengthen stewardship and asset management, interpretation and programming, and fundraising activities for historic Black churches across the country. This program works to uplift the legacy of often-overlooked Black churches, ensuring their legacy of spirituality, history, and democracy endures. 
Located 30 miles north of Indianapolis, Roberts Settlement was founded in 1835 by free Blacks of mixed racial heritage who migrated mostly from North Carolina and Virginia to escape deteriorating racial conditions in the South. Their goals were the pursuit of economic, educational, and religious aspirations with greater freedom and fewer racial barriers. Today, set on a gently rolling landscape, visitors will find a chapel and cemetery, representing a once thriving community that continued to grow through the late-1800s.

This grant will aid in the funding of an interpretive outdoor public exhibit that centers the legacy of Hamilton County, Indiana’s Black pioneers and broadens visitors’ understanding of the Midwest's diverse history. The plans for this project will be unveiled later this month along with a public fundraising campaign.
“We are honored and humbled to be chosen to receive this grant among more than 1,500 applicants,”  said Roberts Settlement President LaVella Hyter. “In assisting with the creation of this exhibit space, the grant helps ensure the legacy of the Roberts Settlement for years to come.”

The Action Fund’s Preserving Black Churches program is a $20 million initiative funded by Lilly Endowment Inc., to help historic Black churches and congregations reimagine, redesign and deploy historic preservation to protect the cultural assets and legacies they steward, tell their stories of resiliency and hope, and carry their missions into the future. With more than $85 million in funding, the Action Fund is the largest U.S. resource dedicated to the preservation of African American historic places.

“Leaving an indelible imprint on our society, historic Black churches hold an enduring legacy of community, spirituality, and freedom that continues to span generations,” said Brent Leggs, executive director, African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund and senior vice president, National Trust for Historic Preservation. “The Action Fund created the Preserving Black Churches program to recognize and celebrate the Black church for its contributions on American life, culture, and history, while also investing in their physical permanence and financial sustainment into the future. We are honored to award our first round of grantees with the resources needed to ensure the Black church continues to stand in its fullest glory.”
 
Since our nation was founded, the Black church has played a prominent role in advancing critical democratic and societal change.  According to Pew Research Center, around three-quarters of Black adults say predominantly Black churches have helped advance the fight for racial equity.
 
“From one room praise houses to unprecedented metropolitan mega churches, Black churches since slavery times have been the heart and soul of the African American community,” said Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr., professor, historian, filmmaker, and national advisory councilmember for the African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund. “So, it is inspiring to see the Action Fund’s commitment to preserving their history and their physical structures. After all, these are our sacred sites, which our ancestors built from the ground up, and we must do everything we can to ensure their survival.  Preserving these structures is a visible way of preserving a crucial chapter of Black History.”
 
Today Black churches are experiencing challenges like deferred maintenance, insufficient funds and threats of demolition. With leadership support from Lilly Endowment Inc, Preserving Black Churches will advance strategies that model and strengthen stewardship and asset management, interpretation, and fundraising activities of historic Black churches across the country. In addition to helping churches preserve their historic buildings, the program is designed to help congregations strengthen their capacities to serve the spiritual and social needs of their communities for years to come.
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Learn more about the 2023 recipients of the Preserving Black Churches Fund at SavingPlaces.org/BlackChurches.

About Roberts Settlement
Roberts Settlement was established in 1835 by free people of color who migrated mostly from North Carolina and Virginia to escape deteriorating racial conditions. Their goals were the pursuit of economic, educational and religious aspirations with greater freedom and fewer racial barriers. Today, the descendants gather annually for a family Homecoming to celebrate their shared history and renew their family bonds. In 2023, Roberts Settlement publicly unveiled plans for the Roberts Settlement Legacy Walk with support from the Lilly Endowment Inc. This project was funded in part by a grant from the African American Cultural Action Fund of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. For more information, visit RobertsSettlement.org.  

About the African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund
The African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund is a program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation in partnership with the Ford Foundation, The JPB Foundation, the Mellon Foundation and other partners, working to make an important and lasting contribution to our cultural landscape by elevating the stories and places of African American resilience, activism, and achievement. Visit savingplaces.org/actionfund. The National Trust for Historic Preservation, a privately funded nonprofit organization, works to save America’s historic places. Visit savingplaces.org.
  
Lilly Endowment Inc.
Lilly Endowment Inc. is an Indianapolis-based private philanthropic foundation created in 1937 by J.K. Lilly, Sr. and his sons Eli and J.K. Jr. through gifts of stock in their pharmaceutical business, Eli Lilly and Company. Although the gifts of stock remain a financial bedrock of the Endowment, it is a separate entity from the company, with a distinct governing board, staff, and location. In keeping with the founders’ wishes, the Endowment supports the causes of community development, education, and religion. Although the Endowment maintains a special commitment to its founders’ hometown, Indianapolis, and home state, Indiana, it also funds programs throughout the United States, especially in the field of religion. Visit lillyendowment.org.
 

This article is reprinted with permission from the Journal of the National Medical Association, written by Charles R. Drew, MD, March 1950, Vol. 42, No.2, pages 109-110

Those that gathered for the Sunday service witnessed a trio of melodic solos played by the accomplished violinist, Melissa White, founding member of the Harlem Quartet, and daughter of Jerome White, Sr.  Melissa performed the classic spiritual songs:  Blessed Assurance, Amazing Grace and The Lord’s Prayer.  Reverend Robert Hayes, husband of Cathy (Newsom) Hayes and the minister of Restoration Baptist Church, Indianapolis, delivered an inspirational sermon with the service adjourning with prayer. 

As the morning mist cleared, hugs were exchanged and goodbyes uttered.  Roberts Settlement, 90th   Homecoming Reunion becomes a memorable part of the archives! 

John Elson

My name is John Elson and I grew up on a farm in Eastern Iowa.  I was born in Vinton Iowa, the son of Van and Mary Johnston Elson.  I never knew my maternal grandparents. Grandma Johnston died before I was born and Grandpa died shortly after.  My mom always said we were part Cherokee, but we identified as white folks in a white community.  Mom’s ethnicity of choice was Irish, and she learned songs from her father that were passed down from his parents and grandparents who came from Belfast. Mom also said that grandma had moved from Indiana and had fond memories of living there.  For many years that was the extent of my knowledge.

I was curious to find out more about the Cherokee story, but my cousin Larry (who lives in California) was even more curious and he researched the family origins in Indiana.  We knew our grandmother's birth name was Cleo Desdemona Roberts and she was born in Sheridan, IN in 1880.  Her parents and siblings moved to Iowa in 1898 and settled on a farm in Jefferson County in the SE part of the state. After making a phone call to the Sheridan newspaper and learning about the mixed-race settlement in Hamilton County, Larry was able to find out a great deal more in the 1990's, especially with the advent of Internet searching. He e-mailed me a list of sources and I started reading about the Roberts Settlement. It was a revelation to sit down with Steve Vincent's book, "Southern Seed, Northern Soil" and read in the opening pages about my great, great, great grandfather Willis Roberts, who was torn between remaining in North Carolina, where the rights of people of color were being restricted in the aftermath of the Nat Turner rebellion, or moving to Indiana to face new challenges and opportunities. I went back and found additional writings about the Roberts Settlement, the article in Ebony from November 1951 and the thesis written by Edgar Conkling, who interviewed Carl Roberts, the successful surgeon and family genealogist.

When you add the scores of newspaper and magazine articles, there is enough reading to keep busy for months, or years if you expand the quest to include related material on African American history. “The Invisible Line” by Daniel J. Sharfstein, documents the stories of 3 different families and their journey from black to white, and I recommend this book for anyone interested in the topic of passing. We follow their family stories over time, stories with drama, suspense and poignancy. I can only imagine what my great grandfather and family experienced, and much of their story has been hidden and lost. While passing can be a sensitive issue for a few in our family, I think attitudes have changed over time and I know that many of the cousins I know from Iowa embrace and celebrate our ancestry.

As fate would have it, Steve Vincent and his wife moved to Iowa City and our paths crossed at coffee hour after church.  I am grateful for his never ending enthusiasm for all things related to the Roberts Settlement history and for Steve’s willingness to share his knowledge.  

I have learned about relatives who were successful in law, in the clergy, as well as other professions. Judge Milton Arrah Roberts was my great-great uncle, who moved to Iowa before his brother, my great grandfather, Charles Sylvester Roberts did. Their father Elias reportedly donated the land where the chapel and cemetery are.  My great-great grandfather Abram Brown, a civil war veteran who served in the 28th Colored Infantry, settled in Kokomo, Indiana and ran a boarding house for black residents and visitors.  The Noblesville library and the Howard County library in Kokomo have been wonderful sources of information.  The new webpage is great and the short film is very inspirational. Thanks to all who work to keep the Roberts legacy alive.

John has made several visits to our Roberts Homecoming. He is a descendant of Charles Sylvester Roberts, son of Elias Roberts and grandson of Willis Roberts.

Education has long been valued at Roberts Settlement and in the early beginnings teachers primarily came from within the community.   After instructing at Roberts Settlement, several educators moved on to larger cities and gained prominence in their professions in schools located in the Midwest.  One of these teachers was Adorah L. Knight.  She was born about March 1860 in Cincinnati, Ohio to Eliza (Mason) of Ohio and George Knight of Virginia and the youngest of three siblings (Margaret and George E.).  It was the second marriage of their father, George, whose profession was a plasterer.  

Following George’s death in 1869, the family moved with their mother to Campbellstown, Ohio on the southwestern border of Ohio and eventually settled in Muncie, Indiana where Adorah received most of her primary and secondary education.  She became the first African-American woman to graduate from Muncie High School in 1879.    Her first teaching experiences were in the Knightstown and Spencer, Indiana area schools.  (At that time in history, it was not essential for teachers to have the stringent educational requirements that are mandated today.  Although prerequisites in this country changed over time, early teaching was viewed by many as an innate talent and formal training was not necessary).

After the death of their mother, Adorah and her brother, George, eventually relocated to Hamilton County to reside with Margaret, the eldest of the children, who was by then the wife of Eli N. Roberts, a farmer at Roberts Settlement.   By 1880, George, age 22, worked as a farm laborer and Adorah, age 19, as a teacher at Roberts Settlement while they lived with Margaret and Eli on their farm.

In 1888, the acquisition of a post secondary education took Adorah to Indiana State Normal School (Indiana State University) located in Terre Haute, Indiana which was well known for educating teachers.   Around 1900, George acquired his own farm at Roberts Settlement.  Adorah was working as a teacher in Terre Haute at that time and returned in the summers to the countryside to reside with her brother in their home located east of the chapel.  Nearby neighbors were the families of brother-in-law, Eli N. Roberts, Eli’s brother, William Penn Roberts and Albert Walden.

For nearly forty years Adorah was an educator and spent most of her life teaching primary grades at the Lincoln School, an all Negro school in Terre Haute.  In addition, she served as a principal at Dunbar School.  This school was the first tax supported “colored” school in Terre Haute, established in 1869 after the amendment to fund separate schools for “colored” children in Indiana was passed. Miss Knight was also one of the first teachers and second principal at Booker T. Washington School, established in 1887 in District 10 which was located in the southeast area of Terre Haute.   

Return stays to the settlement in the summer included participating in local community involvement.   She organized an annual Children’s Day Program each June collaborating with Sunday school teachers and the children at the church.  The Roberts Settlement Homecoming Association elected her secretary July, 1927. Alongside Reverend L.N. Gilliam, she was a featured speaker, at a Mother’s Day program held at Bethel A.M.E. Church, Noblesville, on May 13, 1934.

February 4, 1938, Adorah L. Knight passed away at Roberts Settlement and is buried in the cemetery behind the chapel alongside her brother, George, who preceded her in death circa 1928. She will not only be remembered for her dedication to the education of children but also revered for her civic activism in improving the conditions of the African-American youth in her community.

Lezli Davis, as told by Bryan Glover.

Kenneth E. (Kenny) Stonestreet, Jr., met the late Natalie (Glover) Richardson of Noblesville, Indiana, in the late 1960s while they were attending Compton Community College in Los Angeles, California.  It was the start of a more than 50-year friendship.  

In the course of many conversations over the years, Natalie often talked to Kenny about her Hoosier hometown. On one occasion she told him about a historic white clapboard chapel in the rural countryside of Atlanta, Indiana, near her hometown.  She explained that the descendants of “free” African-American farmers, who had migrated from North Carolina, gathered every year for a reunion at Roberts Settlement, the site of this chapel.  

Kenny, a Detroit native, told Natalie that as a very young boy he had made several annual summer weekend trips to the Indiana countryside with his father and grandmother. Kenny vaguely recalled that their Indiana destination was a small rural church surrounded by lots of cornfields.  Kenny did remember that everyone gathered at the chapel for a very big picnic!  He could not recall the exact location of the chapel, but the setting seemed very similar to the one Natalie had often described.  Kenny told Natalie that their conversations about the little white chapel always felt like “déjà vu moments!”  

Over the years, Kenny became acquainted with many of Natalie’s relatives from Indiana, including her nephew, Bryan Glover, who moved to Los Angeles in 1979.  When Kenny learned that Bryan was also from Noblesville, Kenny told Bryan about the occasions he visited a little church located in the Indiana countryside.  He sensed that his family had an Indiana connection, but he didn’t know enough to explain the connection.

The mystery remained unsolved for many years, and Bryan moved back to Noblesville in 2007.  In 2013, Bryan and a host of others were working on a short documentary film about the Roberts Settlement history and its legacy.  While reviewing genealogical information pertinent to the Settlement, he discovered the name of Ella Hammonds and her spouse with the surname “Stonestreet.”  Following a hunch that the church Kenny had remembered visiting with his father many years ago may have been Roberts Chapel church, Bryan decided to collect more information from Kenny regarding his family tree. Bryan phoned Kenny and his wife, Brenda, who still live in Southern California.  

Kenny provided the name of his grandfather, and Census records in turn revealed the names of his great-grandparents, William and Ella (Hammonds) Stonestreet.  Earlier records reflected that Ella Hammond’s parents were Thomas Hammonds and Sarah Roberts.  Sarah was the daughter of Abner Roberts, son of Anthony Roberts, a resident of Beech Settlement (the Beech Settlement is in Rush County, Indiana)!  Anthony Roberts was the brother of Elijah Roberts (Bryan’s third great-grandfather), one of the founders of Roberts Settlement.  

The two settlements, Beech and Roberts, share many commonalities. Anthony Roberts (Kenny’s fourth great-grandfather) migrated from North Carolina in 1830 and farmed at Beech Settlement.  The Settlement has a rich history and was an early farming community of “free” African-American migrants from the South.  Descendants gather at Beech in August for an annual reunion in celebration of their ancestors’ legacy much like they do at Roberts Settlement.  Like Roberts Chapel, “the Old Beech Church” is the remaining landmark for the Beech Settlement.  

It is very possible that Kenny and the Stonestreet family attended the Roberts Settlement Homecoming; however, in all likelihood Kenny’s visit as a young boy to a “place” that stood in the Indiana cornfields was probably the historic Beech Settlement.  

Bryan’s genealogical research revealed that he and Kenny are fifth cousins, once removed.  Not only can Bryan and his family claim Kenny as a friend of more than 50 years, he can now claim Kenny as part of his Roberts kindred!

Click the button below to read an article about Roberts Settlement by Kurt Meyer, originally published in 2002 in NUVO Newsweekly magazine.

It was the desire of Milton and Pauline Roberts Wallace Baltimore to preserve the heritage of Roberts Settlement. They loved the church, and they hoped that "future generations would maintain, preserve, and cultivate a sense of pride and memory of our unique history." Therefore, in September 2002 the children of Milton and Pauline requested a timeline be developed for their parents honor and memory.

Click the "Timeline" button below to see the document that was compiled. The timeline places the events of Roberts Settlement within the context of nation- and world-wide events.