360° Video
Excavations at the Rutherford B.H. Yates Museum Backyard (with narration by Professor Robert Marcom, MA, RPA. Anthropology, HCC)
The brick-paved streets of Fourth Ward, also known as Freedmen's Town, provide the backdrop for this archaeological excavation. It was called Freedmen's Town in 1865 when freed slaves moved to the flooded out land that no one else wanted. Students excavated the remains of this 100-year -old house. During this journey, students will be transported closer to the world of the educators, doctors, businessmen, carpenters, and blacksmiths who built the Fourth Ward community, which today is the nation's only remaining post-Civil War historic district developed by freed slaves.
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Wilson and Andrews Streets (with narration by Professor Robert Marcom, MA, RPA. Anthropology, HCC)
Houston's National Register Historic District of Freedmen's Town 4th Ward had the largest cluster of historic homes, historic churches, and brick streets, all built by freed men after Emancipation in 1865.
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Rutherford BH Yates Museum (RBHY)
Built in 1912, this charming house sits in the historic Freedmen's Town neighborhood Houston's Fourth Ward. The house serves as a small museum dedicated to Rutherford B.H. Yates, who graduated from Bishop College in Marshall with a printing degree and later went on to teach at the Houston Academy. Along with his brother, Paul, he founded the Yates Printing Company in 1922, and the business continued its operations until 1978. The Rutherford B.H. Yates Museum is dedicated to preserving the history of both the Yates family and African American printing, and it includes a number of artifacts found on the grounds. In 1998 the printing museum house was the first residential structure in Freedmen’s Town to receive an official Texas Historical Marker. The house also has a National Register listing and city of Houston protected landmark designation. The museum hosts an annual Juneteenth celebration and also sponsors special events during African American History Month (February).
This is a 360° panoramic video— use your mouse to move into the video.