Let’s Save the Thomas Memorial AME Zion Church
Preservation In Color was birthed out of my desire to want to engage in the many creative ways we preserve Black History, Community and Culture. Preservation In Color has been an idea of mine for the past couple of years and it took many forms before it became what it is now. During the COVID pandemic, I like others who transitioned from sitting in a cubicle to working from home, realized that there was much more to my days than just the 9 to 5 hustle and bustle of fulfilling some corporate organization’s vision. The stagnant urge to be creative began to flow and I finally launched Preservation In Color in January 2021. Through a blog and Instagram page, I have explored how Black families have been preservationist of their ancestral lineage by maintaining familial keepsakes such quilts and photos. I have also begun to share some of my own photos from my travels to historic sites that relate to Black history. Preservation In Color is still a work in progress but I am confident that it will grow into a resourceful platform.
Currently, Preservation In Color is assisting in bringing attention to the Thomas Memorial AME Zion Church located in Watertown, New York. Built in 1909, the church served as a safe haven for African Americans who lived in Watertown or passed through during their travels specifically for the African American railroad workers. As the demographics of the area has changed over time so has the use of the church. There is no longer an active congregation which ceased any scheduled church services. Due to the transit nature of the area, local community members have come and gone. William “Buster” Crabbe was one active member of the community who took on the duty of keeping the church in the public eye by hosting tours of the church and managing fundraisers. Unfortunately, Mr. Crabbe passed away in 2017 leaving the church in a bit of a limbo of much needed love, tender and care. I had the pleasure of meeting him and touring the church while I lived in the Watertown area from 2012 to 2015. As someone who is interested in the tangible remains of Black history I found the church fascinating since it is located in the middle of a residential neighborhood. It sparked an interest to start digging for any related history that was worth exploring.
I learned that the Upstate New York region played a vital role in the success of the Underground Railroad. Whenever I tell this to others they seem to be just as surprised as I was at that time. Although, I have moved away from the Watertown area, I have thought about the church often over the years. Last year, I decided to do a Google search to see if it generated any current information. That’s when I came across a couple of news articles about its unfortunate structural conditions. Currently it’s not in a state of being able to be used by the public. It seems to just sit dormant. I started to reach out to the points of contacts that were mentioned in the articles I read which led me to offer any assistance I could bring to the table. I know this is a labor of love so it’s going to be challenging. However we cannot let the church become a forgotten monument. Much can be done to preserve the church to bring it back to life. I can only hope others feel the same. Our historic sites still breathe the air of those who built its historic foundation. To demolish the physical structure will destroy that energy in turn erasing its historic fabric.
So here we are. We will be using our platform to the best of our abilities to start sharing information about the work that is being done to save the Thomas Memorial AME Zion Church.
Stay tuned for more…This will be a labor of L-O-V-E.
