BURGAW- Pender County Library will host Pender County author Curtis Hardison for two events discussing his new book, “Griot,” about the history of the Edgecombe community in eastern Pender County. The events will be held at the Hampstead Branch Library on Thursday, May 4, at 6 p.m. and at the Main Library in Burgaw on Friday, May 5, at 5 p.m.
Hardison writes of his journey of four decades of research into his family tree going back to the early 1800s. Emancipated from slavery after the Civil War, his ancestors worked to create the farming community that evolved into the thriving independent community of Edgecombe in eastern Pender County. The book also includes stories of notable members of the Edgecombe community, including Mattie Sharpless, who served as US Ambassador to the Central African Republic from 2001 through 2003.
In “Griot,” Hardison also writes about two Rosenwald schools in Pender County that he attended: Sloop Point Elementary School, which was built using funds raised by the Edgecombe community plus matching Rosenwald funds, and the Pender County Training School in Rocky Point.
Hardison will be joined at both library events by Claudia Stack, a local author and documentary filmmaker whose new children’s book “School Belongs to Me” celebrates the 100th anniversary of the Canetuck Rosenwald School in Pender County.
For more information, contact Shannon Kidney (910-259-1234) or email us at: infodesk@pendercountync.gov.