Oldfield: A Community of Enslaved and Free People on Maryland's Underground Railroad illuminates how the founding of Beverly Institute-the first community-owned school for Black children in Dorchester County-sparked a legacy that would shape future civil rights and religious leaders across the nation. Drawing on genealogy, oral history, newspapers, and primary documents, author Keesha Ha reveals close family ties to Harriet Tubman and the enduring spirit of those who built lives of purpose and dignity. Today, their descendants continue to honor that legacy by preserving Oldfield's Vaughn Chapel Church and cemetery-solemn reminders of the past and powerful symbols of faith, perseverance, and the fight for freedom.
About the Author :
Keesha Ha is a former journalist and retired community college professor. A native of Baltimore, she has traced her family's roots to several of Maryland's plantations and free Black communities. A genealogist and supporter of Black Lives Matter, she continues to research untold histories, including the impact of Johns Hopkins medical studies on Black families. She currently lives in Southern California. This is Ha's first book.
Review :
"Black residents of Maryland's Eastern Shore made important contributions to Harriet Tubman's
successes. They kept the secrets, hid the freedom seekers, and understood the landscapes that made escape
from slavery possible. Many of these communities have disappeared, but Keesha Ha's Oldfield restores
one of them to memory, shedding light on a people who thrived against all odds."
- Rona Kobell, journalist and author of What Harriet Left Behind
"Like the spiral of a nautilus shell, Keesha Ha's Oldfield traces the long and powerful history of a
Black community in Dorchester County, Maryland. This valuable text deepens our understanding of
the Eastern Shore's tradition of Black empowerment and liberation across generations. Ha effectively
illustrates how the past is much more than a collection of people, places, and dates. For the Oldfield
community's descendants, the past is a living part of who they are that empowers them to keep
moving toward liberation."
- Joseph R. Fitzgerald, PhD, author of The Struggle Is Eternal: Gloria Richardson and Black Liberation
