Live Program For Black History Month

Elizabeth Keckley is a name not often heard, but she played an important role throughout the Civil War in the White House of Abraham and Mary Todd Lincoln.

Newtown Historical Society and C.H. Booth Library will jointly sponsor a reenactment of her life Monday, February 9, in the library’s lower community room, 25 Main Street (route 25) in the center of Newtown.

The presentation, titled “They Called Me Lizzy... From Slavery to the White House,” will begin at 7 pm (note early start time for this historical society program).

Elizabeth Hobbs Keckley was born into slavery in Dinwiddie Courthouse, Va., in 1818, but eventually managed to purchase her freedom. She made her way to Washington, D.C., where her dressmaking skills and entrepreneurial savvy brought her to the attention of many political families.

When the Lincolns moved into the White House, Mary Lincoln hired Keckley as her dressmaker and stylist, launching a relationship beyond anything Lizzy might have envisioned for herself. She became Mrs Lincoln’s confidante, and was close to the entire family.

The one-woman performance in Newtown will be by Tammy Denease Richardson, and will last about an hour.

Admission is free, but reservations are requested; call the library at 426-4533.