The Past, Present, and Future of African American History

The Chesapeake bay region is one of the hotbeds of African American culture in the United States. Stretching across four centuries of history, this region is rich in history, artifacts and communities that have survived through the turbulent tapestry of America’s past. The Chesapeake Heartlands Project is a community-led organization that has documented this history extensively through community engagement, artifact digitization, documentaries and more.

Night Kitchen Interactive was brought in by the Chesapeake Heartland Project to help them consider the next stage of their development, and to help them leap from the local to the national spotlight. Through an extended consultation, Night Kitchen Interactive helped them consider what stories to tell, and how best to tell them to a wider audience.

Night Kitchen Interactive met with the team at the Sumpter house, the oldest African American military lodge in the country that dates back to the Civil War. Over the course of a multi-day discovery, dozens of community advocates, historians, leaders and educators were consulted on what stories resonated with them, how best to engage a wider audience, and more. Our consultation also included crafting a detailed Stakeholder Poll designed to provide powerful analytic tools to guide future expansion and digitization. The consultation culminated in an extensive white paper which will serve as a bedrock for future grant-writing and fund-raising opportunities.