Five Questions With: Marjory O’Toole

Marjory O'Toole is managing director of the Little Compton Historical Society. / COURTESY CHRIS O’TOOLE
Marjory O'Toole is managing director of the Little Compton Historical Society. / COURTESY CHRIS O’TOOLE

Marjory O’Toole is managing director of the Little Compton Historical Society. Her introduction to both the nonprofit field and the museum world began when she was a 16-year-old tour guide for The Preservation Society of Newport County. This is her 21st year working in a museum, and she says it’s been her favorite so far. She spoke with PBN about a new exhibit on slavery in Little Compton.

PBN: What was the catalyst behind the society’s latest exhibit, “If Jane Should Want to Be Sold, Stories of Enslavement, Indenture and Freedom in Little Compton, Rhode Island”?
O’TOOLE:
About three years ago, I took a graduate course at Brown University on slavery in the Atlantic World and decided to write about Little Compton’s enslaved people for my final paper. It was supposed to be 20 pages. I passed in 60. Now it’s a 300-page book. When I started the paper I was working from a list titled “44 Negros and Indians” compiled by a Little Compton historian who worked in the first half of the 20th century. Within a few days it became clear that his list was only the tip of the iceberg. Using primary source documents, I was able to identify over 200 enslaved people, 50 forcibly indentured people and dozens more free people of color living and working in Little Compton from 1674 to 1816. The enslaved people were of African and Native American descent and some had English fathers. The forcibly indentured workers were of all races. I found researching the lives of these unfree people compelling, and it became really important to me to tell their stories and return their voices to our local history.

PBN: Can you explain the exhibit for those who won’t be able to see it
O’TOOLE:
The exhibit includes 300-year-old documents, Civil War-era photographs and some fascinating historic objects, but its focal point is a story wall sharing the true, personal stories of Little Compton’s enslaved, indentured and newly free people. It includes people like Jane, who does not have a last name, though her husband used the last name Bailey and her son used the last name Church. Jane was an African-American woman owned by Thomas Church, the son of Benjamin Church, who is best known for his role in King Philip’s War. When Thomas died he gave Jane the choice to be sold out of the Church family. This choice is fascinating because with it Thomas recognizes Jane as a person with the ability to make important decisions concerning her own future, while at the very same time thinking of her and treating her like property. Jane chose to stay with the Church family and was enslaved by them for another 40 years. Her son Cesar earned his freedom but lost his life fighting in the Revolution, making her a Gold Star mother.

The exhibit shines light on both the widespread nature of slavery in Little Compton and the individuality of enslaved, indentured and newly free people, each living in unique circumstances.

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PBN: What are your goals for the exhibit, in terms of educating the community about regional history?
O’TOOLE:
We would really like people who see the exhibit, or who read the book by the same title, to come away understanding that slavery was a brutal, pervasive and enduring institution in Little Compton and throughout Rhode Island. In 18th century Little Compton, it was almost impossible for people of any race to live a life untouched by slavery. Even families who did not own slaves benefited from the institution because of the economic opportunities provided by the slave trade, the military service of the enslaved and the ability to rent enslaved people when they needed extra laborers. The North has forgotten about its 200 years as a slave-holding society, and it is time to remember that history.

PBN: What would you like community residents to take away from the exhibit?
O’TOOLE:
I hope the exhibit helps people think about people of color, enslaved, indentured and free, living and working right alongside white colonists and patriots. I think when we reflect on our Colonial history, we tend to imagine white faces bending over a pot in the fireplace, operating a grist mill or even going to war against the British. In 18th Little Compton, 10 percent of those faces belonged to people of African, Native American or mixed race descent. We need to remember them, and we need to start hearing their stories in our local history books and in our elementary school and high school curriculums.

PBN: How long will the exhibit be up, and do you have future exhibits planned for this year?
O’TOOLE:
The exhibit will be on display at the Historical Society through February 2017, and we especially invite school groups to come and see it. We are even willing to waive our usual fees, if the cost would be a burden to the school, and we invite anyone interested in bringing a classroom or displaying the exhibit panels to contact us at (401) 635-4035.

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