Visit Historic Stagville Saturday, April 7, for a birthday celebration for American Girl doll Addy Walker! Addy is based in part on the story of a real person from Stagville in Durham. The site will celebrate with traditional birthday party foods and hands-on activities from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. The cost is $5 per child.
plenty of colorful cupcakes, make your own ice cream, and enjoy plenty of snacks. The many hands-on activities will include making cloth dolls and cowrie shell necklaces, dressing up in historic children’s clothing and trying popular hairstyles from Addy’s day.
Families can help with planting and fence building at the big house and slave dwellings in Horton Grove. Learn more about tobacco and the hornworms from Addy’s story. Enjoy a spring stroll with the Triangle Land Conservancy on a nature walk at noon or 2 p.m.
Researchers visited Stagville nearly 30 years ago and loosely based American Girl’s first African American character on the incredible journey of Mary Walker, who escaped from slavery in 1848. Many of Addy’s personal items in books are based on archaeological artifacts discovered at Stagville, such as her family heirloom cowrie shell necklace. Come learn the full story of Mary Walker and meet some of the characters from Addy’s book series.
This is a children’s event and parents must attend with their child. Children are encouraged to bring their American Girl dolls. The $5 fee is payable in cash or check only.
Historic Stagville was once the plantation of the Bennehan-Cameron family and covered almost 30,000 acres, and where over 900 enslaved workers labored. Today it includes the Bennehan house, four rare slave dwellings and a large agricultural barn built by enslaved craftsmen.
For more information, please contact Historic Stagville at (919) 620-0120. Historic Stagville is located at 5828 Old Oxford Highway, Durham, N.C. 27712. It is within the Division of State Historic Sites of the N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.