*The 27th annual Newsome Awards, taking place August 19-21, 2022 (various places) with an awards ceremony Saturday, August 20th at Martin West (6817 Dogwood Road, 21244) is where Dr. Kerri Moseley-Hobbs will be honored with the “Historical Author of the Year” Award. A Historian and Guest Lecturer, Dr. Moseley-Hobbs published the creative nonfiction book “More Than a Fraction: Based on a True Story” in 2017 after years of research into her ancestry which ended on the grounds that are now Virginia Tech University.
The land where Virginia Tech stands was the former plantations Smithfield and Solitude. The plantation owners, the Prestons, donated most of the Smithfield grounds for the establishment of the college and later the grounds of Solitude for the expansion of the college.
Dr. Kerri Moseley-Hobbs’ ancestors, the Fractions, were enslaved on those grounds by the Prestons. The main characters of her book “More Than a Fraction”, brothers Thomas and Othello Fraction, ran away from their enslavement to fight for their freedom in the Civil War. Both became honorability discharged veterans and before their death were well-established “colored men” in the state of Virginia.
Their roles in the history of Smithfield, Solitude and Virginia Tech were coming to light at the time Dr. Moseley-Hobbs contacted them about her ancestors. Eventually, through invitation, Dr. Kerri became a member of the Board of Trustees of the Smithfield estate and its history, as well as an adviser to the Virginia Tech University that oversees the Solitude estate.
MORE NEWS ON EURWEB: Biden Nominates Catherine Lhamon to lead Education Department’s Civil Rights Office
She helped in the establishment of a dedication plaque to be placed on the cabin near the Solitude Museum known to have housed the Fraction family and arranged a dedication to the Merry Tree, a 300 year-old tree on the Smithfield grounds where the enslaved and their decedents met for religious, social and civic reasons until 2021 when it finally died.
In 2021 Dr. Kerri Moseley-Hobbs established the More Than a Fraction Foundation with a mission to expand research and education into the history, life, culture, and experiences of the enslaved Africans in America and African-Americans. The Foundation, so far in 2022, has been awarded over $20,000 in grants to help in the operation of and execution of its programs. One of the programs was the Merry Tree Memorial event that was part of Virginia Tech University’s “1872 Forward” series held in celebration of its 250-year history.
The Newsome Awards is also honoring actor and actress of the year; album of the year; group and quartet of the year; female and male vocalist of the year; pastor of the year; promoter of the year; children’s book author of the year, and humanitarian of the year. Known for honoring Gospel music and artists, the Newsome Awards is the brainchild of Dr. Frederick Douglass Ware-Newsome a business consultant for over 30 years.
The Newsome Awards also offers the G-85 Summit which brings together 85 world leaders in music, film, fashion, modeling, and authors together for collaboration and showcases the Newsome Awards Choir directed by Tony Winston. The 27th Newsome Awards will be held 7pm – 11pm Saturday, August 20th at the Martin West in Baltimore, Maryland.
Requests for Dr. Kerri Moseley-Hobbs to present or lecture on her book, her ancestry research, the history of the involuntary migration of Africans to America, and the historical context of that era’s effect on today’s American … is constantly keeping her busy. She also offers the More Than a Fraction Traveling African Artifacts Exhibit with her presentations when the opportunity presents itself. Dr. Moseley-Hobbs has presented her data at Baltimore City libraries; the African America Civil War Museum in Washington, DC; at Virginia Tech University (various departments such as the Civil War Studies Center); the State of Virginia’s Governors House; the Historic Smithfield and Solitude Museums in Blacksburg, Virginia, and the Eubie Blake Cultural Center in Baltimore – to name a fee.
Log onto www.MoreThanaFraction.org and www.ImaginationLunchbox.com for more information on Dr. Kerri Moseley-Hobbs. Log onto www.NewsomeAwards.com to attend the event.
# # #
Media Contact
Freelance Associates
Long Beach, CA 90807
Off: (562) 424-3836
E-mail: [email protected]
We Publish News 24/7. Don’t Miss A Story. Click HERE to SUBSCRIBE to Our Newsletter Now!
