2018 Past News & Events

By Deborah McDermott, reprinted from SeacoastOnline.com, Sept. 2, 2018 PORTSMOUTH — These are uneasy days to be a person of color, said JerriAnne Boggis. There is a sense that it’s important to watch your back, a knowledge that there is pushback “on all the advances and growth we’ve made. It seems like we’re regressing. There’s not one black person I’ve spoken to who is not cautious of where we are now.” She herself received a phone call last month, after…

By The Exchange, NH Public Radio, Aug 10, 2018. One year after a white nationalist rally turned deadly in Virginia, we sit down with Granite Staters who watch these movements and reflect on the state of civil discourse in our state and our country. GUEST SPEAKERS: JerriAnne Boggis, Executive Director of the Black Heritage Trail of New Hampshire, a non-profit that focuses on the state’s African-American history. Reverend Eric Jackson, Pastor at Brookside Congregational Church in Manchester. He is also…

The Black Heritage Trail of New Hampshire purchased a property this summer that will become its new home in Portsmouth, NH. Part of the group’s mission is to share New Hampshire’s African-American history. Executive Director JerriAnne Boggis says the new headquarters will be an anchor for statewide educational tours. “We’re creating a new space where we can tell an alternative story, a more inclusive state history story,” Boggis said. “A place to tell stories that have long been erased from…

“Growth is never by chance. It is the result of forces working together.” — James Cash Penny Dear Friend of the Trail, Our hearts are full of gratitude. Your support has helped us to progress and to grow by leaps and bounds in just one year. And what a phenomenal beginning we’ve had! Last year, we officially launched the Black Heritage Trail of New Hampshire with an all-day Juneteenth celebration. This year, on June 19, 2018, Governor Sununu officially recognized…

Help Support Our Mission During NH Gives Days In times like these, when some are fostering hate and fear, the Black Heritage Trail of New Hampshire counters the narrative with inspiring stories of inclusion, courage, and hope.  We are building a way for New Hampshire to proudly present its history with its African American roots that extend to 1645.  Your gift ensures that truth is among our highest values in this state and that humanity and the way we connect to each other matters. Support Our…

By Anne Richter Arnold, May 31, 2018
PORTSMOUTH — On Wednesday, nearly 100 years after her graduation from Portsmouth High School, Elizabeth Virgil was given an honorary PHS faculty position in perpetuity.

Virgil, an African-American woman who graduated PHS in 1922, was also the first African-American to graduate from the University of New Hampshire.