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Over 134 years of preservation and study of
Kennebec County history (1891-Present)
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KHS February Program:
"Re-Collecting Jim"
James Matthews and His Journey from Bondage
in South Carolina to Freedom in Hallowell
Photo of James Matthews gravestone by the late Hallowell Historican, Sam Webber.
This talk traces the life and afterlife of an enslaved man whose voice survives
in an anonymously published slave narrative first printed in Maine in 1838.
Long dismissed or left unexplored, Professor Susanna Ashton discovered his
true identity first by discovering the name Jim and then as James Matthews.
His testimony can be reassembled through careful attention to detail, place,
and archival context. Beginning with Jim’s harrowing account of enslavement
in South Carolina and his escape north, the presentation follows his arrival in Maine and argues that Hallowell became the final and most consequential site
of his life. Drawing on abolitionist newspapers published in Hallowell, census records, poor farm records, cemetery evidence and his own testimony, Ashton demonstrates that Jim can be confidently identified with James Matthews, a Black man who lived his final decades in Hallowell and is buried there. Rather than offering a seamless biography, the talk reflects on the ethical work of historical recovery when lives are recorded unevenly. Centering Hallowell as both an abolitionist publishing hub and a place of refuge, this program invites
the community to consider how local records preserve Black presence,
suffering, endurance, and belonging, and why these fragments matter to
history today.
KHS presenter, Susanna Ashton is a Professor of English at Clemson University and a scholar of nineteenth-century American literature and slavery. She is the author of A Plausible Man. The True Story of the Enslaved Man who Inspired Uncle Tom’s Cabin and a specialist in authorship, and the testimony
of witness. She regularly writes and speaks for both academic and public audiences, with research focused on recovering the lives of formerly enslaved people through archives, newspapers, and local history.
Ashton’s presentation will be posted on the society’s Facebook page on February 18, 2026. For more information, call Scott Wood, the society’s executive director, at 622-7718.
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Did you miss the KHS
January Presentation?
You can watch by clicking on
the link below:
“A Firsthand Look at
Secondhand Books”
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KHS March Program:
"History and Fate of the
Clipper Ship Snow Squall"
The American clipper ship Snow Squall was a Maine-built merchant carrier
that participated in the China Trade and Gold Rushes of California and
Australia. It tangled with Confederate raider ships during the American Civil
War and faced numerous roundings of Cape Horn, one of which helped bring about its end. Condemned in the Falkland Islands, the ship was eventually recognized as one of the last remaining representations of the clipper ship era, which brought about the incredible effort to bring Snow Squall back home to Maine.
KHS presenter, Charles H. Lagerbom received his BA in History at Kansas
State University and MA in History and Archaeology at the University of
Maine. He has organized shipwreck surveys in Maine lakes, sites from the
1779 Penobscot Expedition as well as the search for the 17-Century English galleon Angel Gabriel off Pemaquid. Two field seasons were spent in
Antarctica as a glacial geology field assistant for University of Maine
Quaternary Institute, now Climate Change Institute. He is author of Henry R. Bowers: The Fifth Man (1999); Whaling in Maine (2020) and Maine to
Cape Horn: The Most Dangerous Journey (2021). His latest book The Hero Way: History and Science of an Antarctic Research Vessel is due out this winter. A 30+ year veteran teacher at Belfast Area High School, Charles is Social Studies Department Chair and teaches AP US History and an
archaeology elective. He is also part of the Belfast Marine Institute (BMI) Floating Classroom, an initiative to get students out, in, around, on and under
the waters of Penobscot Bay, for marine commercial, career and education opportunities. Charles “Chip” Lagerbom travels to and speaks on topics regarding Antarctica, Cape Horn, Maine whaling and New England colonial
and maritime history.
Lagerbom’s presentation will be posted on the society’s Facebook page (www.facebook.com/KHS1891) on March 18, 2026. It also will be archived
at the society’s headquarters for those who want to watch it later. For more information, call Scott Wood, the society’s executive director, at 622-7718.
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Discovering, preserving, and disseminating
Kennebec County history
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KHS is located in Maine's Capital City ... in
historic Kennebec Valley at
Henry Weld Fuller, Jr. House
107 Winthrop Street
Augusta, ME
Click the "donate" button below to join KHS or make a donation. Please be sure to explain what the amount is for in the "Add special instructions to seller" section.
Thank you!
READING ROOM
OPEN TO THE PUBLIC
10am-3pm
Tuesday through Thursday
APPOINTMENTS PREFERRED
If unable to visit during our open hours, please call for an appointment.
Phone:
(207)
622-7718
Mailing Address: P.O. Box 5582
Augusta, Maine 04332-5582
Those unable to visit us may send questions to our email:
kennhis1891@gmail.com
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