WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — In 1802, four acres -- on what is now Liberty Street in Winston-Salem -- sat a house and a farm. It's where Peter Oliver and his family put down roots. By June next year, that area will be dedicated to honoring the Freedman's legacy.
Oliver's journey to freedom wasn't easy. He was born into slavery in 1766 in Virginia. He was later sold to the Salem Congregation in Old Winston. After some time, he sold again to an owner up north, so he could buy his freedom.
"June 13, 1800, is when Peter Oliver signed for his freedom in Pennsylvania," said Christie Williams, the Creative Corridors Coalition Board Chair.
He then moved back to Winston-Salem and became a significant figure in the Moravian community, becoming a potter, a firefighter and a staple inside the church.
"He learned the German language while he was there and he did a lot of different things. He worked the organ, the big organ. He worked as a firefighter, helping with fires," said Sandra Brown, a descendant of Peter Oliver.
Brown is a fourth-generation descendant. She grew up hearing stories about his rich history but only recently discovered they were related.
"My family and I would come up and down this road and never knew that Peter Oliver had a farm here, so that was amazing in itself."
Now, a monument to highlight his work and bring the area's lesser-known Black heroes to the forefront is in the works.
“After it all settled in, I felt gratitude just happy that they thought to do that for our family and for our city," Brown said. "It’s not just for our family it’s for our city as well. We want them to learn the story. We have many stories about African Americans here in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, and their stories have not been told. This is a great beginning."
However, when Moravian historians
“Martha Hartley, who is the Moravian historian at Old Salem, she was doing some research on Peter Oliver really an expert at old Salem about Peter Oliver and his story," Williams said. "The time it came up is when she found the map and it’s a four-acre piece of land that we're standing on now and that map another individual in that meeting, Steve Bumgarner and they realized, it is right here.”
Williams said what makes Oliver's life stand out is the number of documents that exist. Oliver is buried in God's Acre Cemetery, just a half mile from where his home used to sit. That ties his storied legacy to Winston-Salem forever.
“His story has many elements. We have over 20 years of history of him as an enslaved man which is very unique and many documents and we have 10 years before he passed away as a freedman which is so significant as he pushed he used his own agency for his freedom that then led to his children being free and so on.”
The pavilion gallery will showcase Oliver's pottery and other artifacts from his life. The project will cost around $8 million and the organization hopes to break ground on June 13, 2025. That would mark 225 years since Oliver bought his freedom.
Stay connected to local, national, and breaking news: Download the WFMY News 2 app.
►Text the word APP to 336-379-5775
MORE WAYS TO GET WFMY NEWS 2
Subscribe to our daily newsletter, Let’s Get 2 It!
Download the WFMY News 2 APP from your Apple or Google Play store.
ADD THE WFMY+ APP TO YOUR STREAMING DEVICE
ROKU: Add the channel from the ROKU store or search for WFMY.
Amazon Fire TV: Search for WFMY to find the free app to add to your account. You can also add the app directly to your Fire TV through your Amazon account.