Orange County NC Website
I� C� JOa ) tea r <br /> 1C <br /> ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS <br /> PROCLAMATION <br /> COMMEMORATING THE 200Tx ANNIVERSARY OF THE BURWELL SCHOOL <br /> PRESENTED TO THE HISTORIC HILLSBOROUGH COMMISSION <br /> WHEREAS , the Burwell School Historic Site , located at the northern edge of the Historic District of <br /> Hillsborough, North Carolina, includes an early 19th- century structure , circa 1821 and expanded in <br /> 1848 , surrounded by outbuildings and gardens on two acres ; and <br /> WHEREAS, the property was the home of the Reverend Robert and Margaret Anna Burwell and their <br /> family beginning in 1835 , and , at this site , Anna Burwell founded and operated the Burwell School for <br /> Girls , an academy for privileged white girls , from 1837 to 1857 — offering lessons in English, French, <br /> Mathematics , Art and more — educating more than 200 girls who came from near and far to study here; <br /> and <br /> WHEREAS , African Americans , both enslaved and free , provided much of the labor for the maintenance <br /> of the school and grounds , and provided personal services to family members and students ; and <br /> WHEREAS , Elizabeth " Lizzie" Hobbs Keckly, once enslaved by the Burwell family and also the half- <br /> sister to Reverend Burwell , purchased her freedom in 1855 and became the accomplished dressmaker <br /> and confidante to Mary Todd Lincoln while she was First Lady; and <br /> WHEREAS , the Historic Hillsborough Commission, a non-profit organization established by the North <br /> Carolina General Assembly in 1963 , obtained the Burwell School property in 1965 , restored the existing <br /> buildings and opened them to the public as a historic site; and <br /> WHEREAS , Mary Claire Engstrom, a local leader in preservation, was instrumental in the <br /> establishment of the Commission and served as its chair during the restoration of the Burwell School ; <br /> and <br /> WHEREAS , the mission of the Commission is to maintain and preserve the Burwell School Historic <br /> Site , to interpret the history of 19th and 20th century Hillsborough, and to celebrate and promote the <br /> culture and heritage of Hillsborough and Orange County; and <br /> WHEREAS , members of the Commission are appointed by the North Carolina Governor, and they, <br /> along with community volunteers , donate time and effort to the operation and upkeep of the site; and <br /> WHEREAS , in 2018 , the Commission honored the bicentennial of the birth of Elizabeth Keckly with a <br /> series of programs and events , and an exhibit about Keckly is in the South Parlor of the schools and <br /> WHEREAS , in 2019 , the Commission published a landmark report recognizing and acknowledging the <br /> contributions of the people of color, free and enslaved , who worked and lived at the site during the <br /> operation of the Burwell School; <br /> NOW THEREFORE, the Board of County Commissioners of Orange County does hereby proclaim <br /> Sunday, October 2411', 2021 as Burwell School Historic Site Day in Orange County in celebration of <br /> the Bicentennial of the Site , and in appreciation of the Historic Hillsborough Commission for its work <br /> in preservation and in elucidating an inclusive history of Hillsborough and Orange County, <br /> This the 19th day of October , 2021 . � g' �� < <br /> Renee A . Price Chair <br /> . , Orange County Board of Commissioners <br /> r <br /> A <br /> g Q4 <br />