Monument Dedication in Honor of Historic Black Family in Simsbury, Connecticut

Monument dedication for an enslaved Simsbury family with 12 members who fought in the French and Indian War, Revolutionary War and Civil War; six dying at war.

SIMSBURY, CT, UNITED STATES, May 12, 2025 /EINPresswire.com/ -- On June 19, 2025 at 10am, the Alex Breanne Corporation in Collaboration with Simsbury Historical Society and the Town of Simsbury will be unveiling a new monument at Simsbury Cemetery honoring a historic black couple and their family. Their names are Peter and Esther Jackson.

In the mid 1770's, Peter was said to have been brought to Simsbury from Barbados in trade for a Native American enslaved man. In the early 1780's, Peter married Esther Wallace, the daughter of a Simsbury enslaved man named London Wallace. London fought in the French & Indian War and had 3 sons (and a son-in-law) who all fought in the Revolutionary War. In later years, 7 of Peter and Esther's grandsons would enlist and fight in various Civil War Colored Regiments (4 in the Connecticut 29th, 2 in the Rhode Island 14th, and 1 in the Massachusetts 54th). Six of these men died while at war, their bodies never making it back to Connecticut.

Peter Jackson died in 1810, drowning in Salmon Brook, but Esther would live until 1857, dying at age 93. Esther was one of the early members of Simsbury Methodist Episcopal Church, having been a member for nearly 50 years on her death. It is said that she walked the 2 miles from her home to church 12 days prior to her death.

In preparation for next years 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, this new monument will honor this heroic black family from Simsbury, as well as list all 12 members of the family who fought in the various wars that established our country. We've also commissioned an artist who will unveil a reimagined portrait of what Esther looked like based on images of 3 of her Great Granddaughters.

The event is being held at Eno Memorial Hall in Simsbury. This is a building that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. visited often during the summer of 1944 while he was here for the summer as a teenager. In this building, Dr. King would watch movies seated with young white children, something he could not do in the south. After the ceremony, we will walk across the street to Simsbury Cemetery to officially dedicate our new monument to the Jackson/ Wallace Family. A reception will be held after the event, sponsored by the Simsbury Historical Society.

This is a free event. You can register for the event here.

Please join us in celebration of this historic Connecticut family.

John Mills
Alex Breanne Corporation
+1 860-212-9897
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John Mills Cleaning the Headstones of the Jackson Family