Black Heritage Trail NH Marker Added to the John Kulish Forest/Welch Family Farm

Anna Berry | September 20, 2021
Tags:
Stewardship
The marker was unveiled on a stone at the property.

The Forest Society President Jack Savage was honored to represent the Forest Society as a part of the marker unveiling ceremony on Saturday, September 18 at at the Forest Society's John Kulish Forest/Welch Family Farm, presented by the Black Heritage Trail of New Hampshire.

JerriAnne Boggis, Executive Director of the Black Heritage Trail of NH, and Jack Savage, President of the Forest Society, stand in front of the newly unveiled marker in Hancock under a blue sky.
JerriAnne Boggis, Executive Director of the Black Heritage Trail of NH, and Jack Savage, President of the Forest Society, stand in front of the newly unveiled marker in Hancock. (Photo: Maria Finnegan)

Building on the success of the Portsmouth Black Heritage Trail that began more than two decades ago, the Black Heritage Trail of NH is now a statewide organization that connects the stories of New Hampshire’s African heritage by documenting and marking the many historic sites that testify to this rich history. The Hancock marker is its first outside of Portsmouth.

The marker unveiled on a stone at the property is black and gold.

The Hancock marker describes the Due family and Jack, a once-enslaved African who gained his freedom and lived in Hancock in the late 1700s and early 1800s.

Forest Society President Jack Savage speaks in front of the marker at the event.
"This land came to us as the Welch Family Farm & Forest in recognition of a century of one family’s stewardship, and now we welcome the opportunity to recognize and share the story of the Due family and their imprint on this land," said Savage.
The Due family, identified in early censuses as free people of color, endured many issues with the Church of Christ in Hancock around the same time.

The ceremony was covered by WMUR-TV and the Union Leader.

The Welch Forest was acquired by the Forest Society in 2000. The town of Hancock holds the conservation easement on the property and the Harris Center holds an executory interest.

Learn More

  • Learn more about the mission of the Black Heritage Trail of New Hampshire here.
  • To support the Forest Society's stewardship efforts for the Welch and Due family marker and interpretation, please donate here.
  • Read about the history of the Due family in this Forest Notes article by Eric Aldrich.