The Four Families
This exhibition centers family intimacy as the foundation of community building. It emphasizes the importance of place-making by highlighting locations throughout the area that were significant to Black community life, drawing directly from the oral histories of each family to paint a picture of what it was like to build a life in Washtenaw County as an African American in the 19th and early 20th centuries. These oral histories, given by the descendants themselves, will be available for listening at each exhibition site.
Using audio, photography, and the written word, the audience will experience a lively retelling of this pivotal century of Black community building in Washtenaw County, as told by the Bass, Kersey, Asher-Aray, and Jewett families.
Image Instructions:
Below there are four images, one for each family in the exhibit. The different elements in each living room represent the various materials in the exhibit, the boxes, the radio, and the photo frames represent the various materials donated to the exhibit by the four families.
Click on the button links below the images to access the exhibit materials.
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![A decorative image of a living room, containing furniture, photos on the mantel, boxes of archives, and a radio]()
Asher-Aray Family
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![A decorative image of a living room, containing furniture, photos on the mantel, boxes of archives, and a radio]()
Bass Family
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![A decorative image of a living room, containing furniture, photos on the mantel, boxes of archives, and a radio]()
Jewett Family
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![A decorative image of a living room, containing furniture, photos on the mantel, boxes of archives, and a radio]()
Kersey Family
