2026 Black Family History Symposium

Returning for 2026, Getting Word's Black Family History Symposium is a one-day gathering dedicated to exploring how Black families continue to reshape and refine America's origin story. Held on Saturday, February 7, 2026, at the Jefferson School African American Heritage Center, this year's symposium centers on the theme "REFOUNDING LEGACIES."

As the nation approaches the 250th anniversary of its founding, conversations about American history are intensifying. This milestone invites us to confront the gap between the nation's written history and lived reality, especially for African American families whose stories have long been pushed to the margins. Black families have always offered their own edits, additions, and corrections to the American Story, preserving accounts of kinship resilience, creativity, and generational memory that challenge and enrich our national understanding.

The 2026 Symposium invites attendees to explore how Black family history remains a timeless and powerful tool for reshaping the narrative of America itself, moving us closer to a final draft that includes everyone. Join us for negaging panels, hands-on workshops, keynote reflections, and opportunities to connect with community members, scholars, genealogists, and cultural practitioners who are working to preserve and interpret African American history across generations.

Registration is free and includes a catered lunch. Whether you are beginning your family history journey or continuing a long tradition of research and storytelling, this symposium offers space to learn, share, and build community.

An event by the African American History Department at Monticello in collaboration with . The Getting Word African American History Department at Monticello and its Black Family History Symposium are generously supported by The Mellon Foundation.

Info: Highlighting individuals who have used the stories of their families and communities to deepen, complicate and humanize the narrative of American history. Through oral histories, personal archives, and intergenerational storytelling, panelists demonstrate how communal memory can reveal overlooked dimensions of the national story, challenging myths, filling silences, and reframing what we think we know about America's past. As the nation approaches its 250th anniversary, this conversation invites attendees to consider how personal narratives shape collective understanding and why the history of a nation is incomplete without the voices of the families and communities who lived it.

Info: Across generations, African Americans families have preserved their histories not only through written accounts but through the living traditions that sustain them. This panel explores the many ways legacies are passed down through food and recipes that hold ancestral memory, land that grounds community identity, music that carries story, and faith that nurtures resilience. Panelists will share how these forms of heritage serve as vessels of history, connecting past to present and shaping a sense of self across time. By centering the everyday practices through which families remember and honor their lineage, this discussion reveals how heritage becomes a language of survival, creativity, and cultural continuity within the African American experience

Info: Catered lunch is included with registration.

Info: Workshop 3: Archiving
In this workshop, attendees will gain foundational skills in archiving, including organizing, cataloging, and managing historical materials. The session covers best practices for digital and physical archives, ensuring that valuable documents and artifacts are preserved and accessible for future generations.

Info: Workshop 2: Genealogy
This workshop explores the fundamentals of genealogy and family history research. Participants will learn how to build their family trees, uncover historical records, and navigate key research tools. Through guided activities, this session equips attendees with the skills to trace their roots and connect with their heritage in meaningful ways.

Info: Workshop 1: Oral History
This workshop dives into the art and technique of oral history. Participants will gain practical guidance and tools on how to conduct meaningful interviews, capture personal narratives, and document family and community stories with authenticity and respect.

Info: This panel examines how Black descendant organizations across the nation are defining what it means to remember, recognize, and reclaim the stories of their ancestors. Through storytelling, dialogue, and reflection, panelists will explore how descendant-lead initiatives are advancing the work of historical recovery, restoring connections, strengthening belonging, and expanding self determination across generations. This conversation illuminates the vital role descendant organizations play in preserving Black history and ensuring that the narratives of their communities continue to shape the story of America.

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

Jefferson School African American Heritage Center, 233 4th Street Northwest, Charlottesville, United States

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