Saturday, March 30 – Mercer County
If These Stones Could Talk: Reading and Book Signing
Local authors document the history of African American families in New Jersey’s Sourland Mountains communities
Trenton, NJ (For immediate release)—The Trent House Association welcomes Elaine Buck and Beverly Mills, authors of the recently released If These Stones Could Talk: African American Presence in the Hopewell Valley, Sourland Mountain and Surrounding Region in New Jersey for a presentation and reading, followed by discussion and book signing. The program will be from 1:00- 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, March 30, at the Trent House Museum, 15 Market Street, Trenton, New Jersey.
If These Stones Could Talk brings fresh light to a forgotten corner of American history that begins in a small cemetery in central New Jersey. Authors of If These Stones Could Talk Elaine Buck and Beverly Mills started their journey through the past as two middle aged African American women with busy but quiet lives. Lifelong friends, they were both board members of the Stoutsburg Cemetery Association, a cemetery that is nestled in New Jersey’s Sourland Mountain region. The Stoutsburg Cemetery was purchased by three Black men in the early 19th century as a location to bury Blacks with honor and dignity in the early 19th century. When Buck and Mills got an unexpected call for help, what began as a search through the woods for gravestone markers soon had them rummaging through land deeds and making relentless calls to state officials, archeologists and reporters.
Elaine Buck is a founder of the Stoutsburg Sourland African American Museum and Trustee of the Stoutsburg Cemetery Association, a historic cemetery for people of African descent located in the Sourland Mountains in Hopewell, New Jersey. Beverly Mills, also a founder of the Stoutsburg Sourland African American Museum and Trustee of the Stoutsburg Cemetery Association, co-authored with Elaine If These Stones Could Talk, based on over a decade of research on the contribution of the African American population who lived in the Sourland Mountain and surrounding region.
Tickets are $10 for Trent House Association Members and $15 for general admission, with 50% of the proceeds donated to the Stoutsburg Sourland African American Museum. Free off-street parking will be available and light refreshments will be served. Details are available at https://williamtrenthouse.org; tickets can be purchased at the door. 
