Solomon Northup Committee for Commemorative Works

06/01/2026

Are you new to the story of Solomon Northup? Looking to learn more about his life?

There is no better place than Old Fort House Museum in Washington County, NY to start your heritage tour. This very place is where Solomon & Anne rented a room after they married in 1828 and lived for a short time. A room decorated in their memory provides a glimpse into their incredible tale of life during the early 19th century pre-civil war era as a free born African American couple.

Plan your visit today and experience history up close.

Today is the day! We are now open for the season and offering tours daily from 1 to 4 PM.

Our campus houses a diverse collection of historic structures. At it's heart is the 1772-1773 home that served as a tavern and headquarters for British and Continental forces during the Revolution .It is one of the oldest wood frame houses still standing in the area. Our three-acre campus includes five other historic buildings preserved to represent eras of American life from pre-Revolutionary days through World War II, with exhibits including a model of French and Indian War-era Fort Edward, The Solomon Northup room, Victorian era home furnishings, an extensive collection of Fort Edward Pottery, and so much more!

We can't wait to show you how we are keeping history alive here in Fort Edward📜

📍The Old Fort House Museum, 29 Broadway (Route 4)
Living History in Fort Edward, New York🗺️
https://www.oldforthousemuseum.com/

05/29/2026

The Northup Legacy will historically be tied to Morris-Jumel Mansion for it was for a time the place where Anne Northup and three children lived and worked under Madame Jumel between 1841-1844.

Solomon and Anne resided in Spa City Saratoga Springs when they came to make the acquaintance of Jumel who spent summers in the city. That same home still standing as a well kept private residence in present day.

When Jumel visited in the Summer of 1841, she invited Anne and the children to come live with her in New York. Anne would attend to cooking while the children played different roles within the home.

Within a years’ time, Anne and Alonzo had returned home to Upstate, while Margaret stayed in New Jersey with family of Jumel as a playmate to a young child.

Today, Morris-Jumel Mansion pays tribute to the Northup family offering an historical tour offering a glimpse into life in the mansion in mid-19th century.

On your next visit to New York, visit Morris-Jumel mansion and experience another piece of Northup history.

05/08/2026

Photos: The Northup Trail and Byway follows the footsteps of Solomon Northup, a free man of color who was kidnapped and sold into slavery in Louisiana. See link below ⬇️

📸 Melinda Martinez/The Town Talk

05/08/2026

The Northup Trail and Byway in Central Louisiana follows the steps of Solomon Northup, a free man of color, who was kidnapped and sold into slavery. See link below ⬇️

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05/05/2026

Thank you Louisiana Life Magazine & writer Kevin Rabalais for a wonderful spotlight on Solomon Northup Monument Plaza at Marksville, LA and the incredible work “Hope Out of Darkness” by Wesley Wofford Sculpture Studio.

This project is a remarkable feat and the first of its kind. Dedicated to the true story of an African American New Yorker whose journey down from freedom, and up from slavery, captured the attention of a nation on January 20, 1853 with the New York Daily Times front page article “The Kidnapping Case: Narrative of the Seizure and Recovery of Solomon Northup” and renowned as ‘Twelve Years A Slave’ from Northup’s self-titled slave narrative published in July 1853.

Louisiana’s connection to Solomon’s enslavement is deeply rooted in the land, the people and its culture of the near 12 years he labored as a slave. Solomon Northup Monument Plaza is a commemorative work of art and public gathering space which acknowledges, in his own words, the depth of emotion which he carried within him all those years. The plaza is a culmination of his trajectory- his hope realized- the affirmation of the right to freedom and a legacy that lives on today.

Article: https://www.louisianalife.com/hope-out-of-darkness/

To visit Solomon Northup Monument Plaza, visit: www.snccw.com.

04/13/2026

Thank you to the IndieCollect Team for its incredible mission to save iconic cinematic film’s like !

The late director Gordon Parks directed Solomon Northup’s Odyssey with production in Savannah, GA in 1983. The film was one of a trilogy of television movies created for PBS’ American Playhouse series. The other films incuded Denmark Vesey’s Rebellion & Charlotte Forten’s Mission.

Solomon Northup’s Odyssey debuted on December 10, 1984 on PBS. In 1985, the movie was re-released on VHS under the title “Half
Slave, Half Free.” Following the interest of 2013’s theatrical release of Steve McQueen’s 12 Years a Slave, Odyssey was released once more as ‘Twelve Years A Slave: Solomon Northup’s Odyssey’ on dvd.

SNCCW board member Melissa Howell attended the premiere screening of the restored cut of the television movie for the first time in a theatrical setting at BAM Easter weekend. Following the screening, a short Q & A was held with actresses Petronia Paley (Anne Northup) and Lee Bryant (Mrs. Epps), Melissa Howell (SNCCW & Northup descendant) and Indie Collect Film Colorist Eva Yuma with moderator Sandra Schulberg, IC’s founder and President.

Gratitude to the entire staff at Brooklyn Academy of Music & Rose Cinemas for hosting this special evening.

04/06/2026

On this day in 1841, Solomon arrived in the Nation’s Capitol of Washington City to accompany Brown & Hamilton’s circus having departed New York City a few days prior.

The following day on April 7, the men and Solomon would observe the funeral of the late President William H. Harrison. Later that evening, Solomon would dine with Brown & Hamilton and fall terribly ill.

Days later, Solomon would awaken in unfamiliar clothing- and chained to the floor. Confused and disoriented by the loss of time due to having been drugged- he learns he has been kidnapped- “within the very shadow of the Capitol.” (Northup, Twelve Years A Slave)

In 2017, two info-panel markers were installed to reclaim the slave history. Located at the former site of the FAA building, Independence Avenue Southwest west of 7th Street Southwest, there stood a slave pen operated by William H. Williams from 1836 through 1850.

Williams’ Slave Pen, also known as the Yellow House, is recalled by Solomon having been imprisoned there a short time as details in Twelve Years A Slave:

“The light admitted through the open door enabled me to observe the room in which I was confined. It was about twelve feet square—the walls of solid masonry. The floor was of heavy plank. There was one small window, crossed with great iron bars, with an outside shutter, securely fastened. An iron-bound door led into an adjoining cell, or vault, wholly destitute of windows, or any means of admitting light. The furniture of the room in which I was, consisted of the wooden bench on which I sat, an old-fashioned, dirty box stove, and besides these, in either cell, there was neither bed, nor blanket, nor any other thing whatever. . . . [Outside was] a yard, surrounded by a brick wall ten or twelve feet high . . . . It was like a farmer’s barnyard in most respects, save it was so constructed that the outside world could never see the human cattle that were herded there. . . . Its outside presented only the appearance of a quiet private residence. A stranger looking at it, would never have dreamed of its execrable uses. Strange as it may seem, within plain sight of this same house, looking down from its commanding height upon it, was the Capitol. The voices of patriotic representatives boasting of freedom and equality, and the rattling of the poor slave’s chains, almost commingled. A slave pen within the very shadow of the Capitol!”

03/31/2026

177 years ago in late March, Mr. Moon introduced Solomon Northup to Hamilton & Brown at the corner of Congress and Broadway in Saratoga Springs, NY.

Just seven years later in March 1848, James C. Derby would partner with Norman C. Miller in an effort to expand his growing publishing and bookselling business at Auburn. The firm known as J.C. Derby & Co. from 1840-48 would birth the new firm known as Derby, Miller & Co. Two short years later in 1850, the firm would evolve with a change in partnership and take on the name Derby & Miller.

This year marks the 170th anniversary of the establishment of the firm Derby, Miller & Co.

03/31/2026

Join us for PREMIERE NIGHT this Friday - Brooklyn Academy of Music Rose Cinema!

Solomon Northup, a free man of color, skilled carpenter and talented violinist, was living with his wife and children in Saratoga Springs, NY, when he was lured to Washington, DC to perform. Once there, he was kidnapped and sold to slavers who transported him to Louisiana. He was held in bo***ge for...

03/30/2026

Come experience the premiere of ‘Solomon Northup’s Odyssey’ in 4K at BAM Rose Cinema, Brooklyn this Friday, April 3rd!

Tickets online: https://www.bam.org/film/2026/solomon-northups-odyssey