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Forensic Analysis At MattatuckReveals Much About Fortune's Life

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Forensic Analysis At Mattatuck

Reveals Much About Fortune’s Life

WATERBURY — “Fortune’s Bones,” the second of a three-part lecture series on the life and death of an African-American MAN enslaved in Waterbury in the 1700s, will be presented on Tuesday, April 14, from 6 to 7:30 pm, at the Mattatuck Museum Arts & History Center. The talk, presented by anthropologist Warren Perry, PhD, will describe how Mr Fortune’s bones were examined and what was revealed about his life. The lecture series is sponsored jointly by the museum and the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI).

Mr Fortune’s life experiences were written in his bones and revealed through forensic anthropology. By examining the bones using X-rays, chemical analysis and careful measurement, scientist have discovered much about Mr Fortune, portraying a human life rather than a skeleton. It has been determined that Mr Fortune was a strong man who worked hard his entire life.

His strenuous labor led to many injuries including a stress fracture of his back and smashed toes. Suffering from arthritis, Mr Fortune lived a relatively long life, and his bones revealed several clues about how he died. Dr Perry’s presentation will put myths to rest as you learn the truth about Mr Fortune, the man.

Dr Warren Perry has been excavating burial grounds throughout New York and Connecticut uncovering information about slavery in the North, and changing people’s perceptions that slavery was a southern institution only.

A professor of anthropology at Central Connecticut State University, Dr Perry was one of the first scientists to examine Fortune’s bones, and has done much to bring scientific information about slavery in Connecticut to light. He holds a PhD in anthropology from the City University of New York.

“Fortune’s Bones” is open to the public. Donations will be accepted at the door. Register by calling the Mattatuck Museum at 203-753-0381 extension 10, or OLLI at 203-236-9924.

The final session in the series, “Fortune’s World Walking Tour,” will begin at 1:30 pm on Saturday, April 25, beginning at the museum, and will take participants to significant sites in Fortune’s life. The program will also tell the stories of early African American residents as they achieved freedom or suffered through a life of slavery.

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