When it comes to pomp and circumstance, the Massachusetts General Court – originally founded in 1629 and formalized as a modern state legislature in 1780 – has been in the game longer than most.
“The Massachusetts Senate chamber is directly under the golden dome of the State House. So, if you've ever been down to Boston and you see the State House building with the giant gold dome- If you were to follow it directly, it would lead down to the chandelier that hangs over the Senate chamber and features the ceremonial fish, the Holy Mackerel," said Democratic State Senator Paul Mark of the Berkshire, Hampden, Franklin and Hampshire district. “Traditionally, it was the House of Representatives chamber, and then hundreds of years ago, it became the Senate chamber. And so, it is actually the oldest legislative chamber in the country where legislation still happens.”
The State House itself was officially completed in 1798.
In many ways, it still reflects that sense of antiquity.
“If you look around, there's these empty spaces, and in, I want to say six of the empty spaces, there is a bust right now of some gentlemen from history," Mark continued. "For the first time, last year, I believe it was, we added, for the first time, a person that wasn't white. We added a bust of Frederick Douglass. And so, the Senate formed a special art committee dedicated to figuring out who were we going to put into the chamber to be the first woman represented in this historic building.”
Four finalists were presented.
“The Senate voted to include Elizabeth Freeman in recognition of the work she did to effectively end slavery in Massachusetts under the Constitution of 1780," said Mark. "And also to add Abigail Adams, who was the wife of John Adams and was an advocate for the inclusion of women in the Constitution and in the revolution and in the founding of our state.”
Elizabeth Freeman was born into slavery in Upstate New York before being taken to Sheffield, Massachusetts to live as the property of a white family. She paved the way for abolition in the commonwealth when she successfully sued for her freedom citing its newly passed constitution in 1781.
The house she lived in is now a historical center, and Sheffield put up a statue of Freeman in 2022.
Last year, Boston-based family history center American Ancestors announced it had successfully identified Freeman’s first living descendent and brought her to Berkshire County to see her famous forebearer’s former home. WAMC checked in with Lisa Shepperson about the news of Freeman’s selection for the State House bust.
“I am very excited. I am very proud to be her family. I am who she is, and she is who I am- And I've said that before in the past, and I mean it even more now," said Shepperson, who lives in Richmond, Virginia. “Through the statue, I believe that her leadership as a Black woman and a Black slave would go on and on beyond me, beyond my children, and for the younger generation of the Berkshire County.”
Massachusetts marks Elizabeth Freeman Day on August 21st, a celebration Shepperson wants to see expanded.
“I am hoping for the legacy that it would go on to other states that are unaware of who she is and what she did and where she came from," Freeman's descendent told WAMC. "I want it to go further and further. I'm bringing it here to Virginia, I have some connections here, that, they'll be here in Virginia, and I hope to have an Elizabeth Freeman Walk here and in every state at on Elizabeth Freeman Day. So, the legacy lives on. It's going to live on through me and through my children. I'm trying to educate them.”
Freeman is also the first person from Western Massachusetts to be recognized with a bust in the chamber.
“It's also important, maybe from just a personal point of pride for those of us in the Berkshires, it's also going to be the first person from Western Massachusetts represented in the State House Senate chamber," Mark told WAMC. "And so, yeah, I think it stands for equality, it stands for freedom, it stands for diversity, and diversity making us stronger.”
The Senate art committee’s next task is to select an artist to create the likeness.
WAMC asked Mark if he thinks one might be chosen from Western Massachusetts.
“Oh, yeah, that would be amazing," he responded. "I imagine they'll consider maybe even the people that worked on the Elizabeth Freeman statue or the people that worked on the Susan B Anthony statue or the people that are working right now on the W.E.B. Du Bois statue. I mean, we have a lot of amazing history reflecting our rich culture in the Berkshires, and, yeah, it'd be great to try to also advertise, how do we get someone from Western Massachusetts, or at least someone that we know has come through with really amazing works in the past to make this happen. I think it would be a great touch.”
