African Americans on Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket. - Review - book review

African Americans on Martha's Vineyard & Nantucket

by Robert C. and Karen E. Hayden Select Publications, 1999, $25.00 ISBN 0-963- 56822-1

Much has been written about the African American presence on Cape Cod's offshore islands. Some writers have insisted on the social--and all too often social--climbing--aspects, while others have recounted the extraordinary history of one of the country's longest surviving black summer communities.

In the present volume the authors, Robert C. Hayden and daughter Karen E. Hayden, take an encyclopedic approach. They have divided their "history of ordinary and extraordinary people" of these islands into 11 categories ranging from "Community Development and People" to "Sports and Recreation." These categories serve as chapter headings for the listing of over 300 entries about organizations that define the communities and people who are their mainstays. The listings are of varying lengths and cover everything from the island's first enslaved African Americans to members of the Polar Bears, a contemporary, early morning swimming group that prides itself on enduring the icy winter waters of the Atlantic.

Unfortunately, the use of listings becomes confusing. While the entries and categories are fascinating, they become difficult to follow and lead to much duplication. Author Dorothy West, for example, has listings under the headings of "Community Development and People" and "Creative Arts." An index offers help to researchers, but the ordinary reader and casual browser would probably benefit from a more linear approach.

Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket have always vied for attention with Nantucket usually losing the battle. The historic rivalry between the two islands is nowhere more apparent than in the book's division of space. Here, as usual, the Vineyard section garners more than two-thirds of the text and spends a great deal of time on people and places there. The Nantucket section, however, wins readers by placing more emphasis on that island's illustrious past. Both parts combined contain a wealth of African American history and give a fascinating portrayal of an African American community by the sea that is often minimized.

Jessica Harris is a journalist who frequents the Cape Cod islands.

COPYRIGHT 2000 Cox, Matthews & Associates
COPYRIGHT 2000 Gale Group