Free & Not A Slave: The Legacy of Margaret Tulip is a multi-media installation that invites visitors to engage with historic questions about Black history and women’s history through the lens of the arts. Margaret Tulip was an 18th century Lexingtonian with Black and Indigenous ancestry who lived before, during and after the Battle of Lexington. She was a woman, mother, and grandmother who experienced periods of enslavement as a child and adult, followed by legally attaining her freedom, then was “unjustly taken” and re-enslaved by a community member from a prominent family. Margaret pursued her freedom in the courts, lost in the first round, appealed, and won. As LexSeeHer works to make women visible, they are collaborating with LexArt and Lexington Historical Society during Black History Month to launch a year-long exploration of Margaret Tulip's life, her community and her legacy. Works on display include “A Dress For Margaret”, the interactive “Tied To Her Apron Strings”, “I, Too, Am A Child”, “Depositions: For And Against”, “Desk Set”, “Silhouettes” and 2021 Women’s Visibility Banners honoring Sylvia Ferrell-Jones, Leona Martin, and Mary Elizabeth Bibb as well as other African American Lexingtonian women.

Co-Curators: Amelia Worthy, Celeste Freeman, Jessie Steigerwald

Collaborators: LexSeeHer, LexArt, Lexington Historical Society

Contributors: LexSeeHer’s Research Team members & Textile Team