An hour-long lecture that dissects what Pinkster was and why celebrating it expands the humanity of the enslaved and their descendants.
Learn about the historical and cultural significance of Pinkster with Lavada Nahon, the Interpreter of African American History at NYS Office of Parks Recreation and Historic Sites!
Connected to New York’s Black history is the oldest African celebration in the nation. During Pinkster celebrations, enslaved and free Africans gathered around the colony and state to rest, renew family and friendship ties, and reconnect to a European faith that had been transformed in West Central Africa. Choices made by the Black community as they moved from property to people lessened Pinkster’s importance but did not erase its historic significance.
Registration required on Eventbrite!
Lavada Nahon is the Interpreter of African American History for the Office of Parks Recreation and Historic Preservation, Bureau of Historic Sites. A position she has held since its inception in 2019. With nearly 30 years of public history experience, she focuses on New Netherland and New York, 17th through 19th centuries, specifically, the lives and cultures of Africans and their descendants, enslaved and free. As a culinary and cultural historian, she has worked for a wide variety of historic sites and organizations around the tri-state region. Her mission is to bring history to life by giving presence to the Africans and people of African descent enslaved and free, in New Netherland and New York in whatever way possible.
Join Dyckman Farmhouse for a family-friendly workshop on creating melodies inspired by our Inwood neighborhood with violinist Evelyn Petcher Brandes!
What does Inwood sound like? What music comes to mind when you think of Inwood? Join us for a musical family workshop for adults and kids ages 5-18! Participants will learn how to use flashcards, boomwhackers, and bells to create melodies and rhythms inspired by our Inwood neighborhood with local composer Evelyn Petcher Brandes and teaching artist Julie Lawrence.
Your musical ideas from this workshop will come to life in Ms. Brandes’ newest musical composition premiering this September at Dyckman Farmhouse Museum!
Any accompanying adult is considered a participant of this program. Accompanying adults and youth must reserve a ticket. Participants may be photographed during this workshop and will be asked to sign a media release form.
Dyckman Farmhouse has always been a place where people grow things in the ground: the Lenape used this area as seasonal farmland, the Dyckmans were known for planting fruit orchards, and even today our neighbors tend to our raised garden beds.
Join us on Earth Day to celebrate the past and present pollinators that have made Dyckman Farmhouse’s garden possible!
- Enjoy a pollinator-inspired puppet show starting at 4:30pm, the legendary “Hummingbird Saves the Day” with Cinta Productions returns to the Farmhouse!
- Bring paper butterflies, bees, and birds to life with stop motion animation!
- Sparrow? Pigeon? Hawk? Discover who’s who in the bird world and get fluent in birdwatching with the Urban Park Rangers!
- Create melodies and rhythms inspired by our Inwood neighborhood with local composer and teaching artist Evelyn Petcher Brandes!
- Roll up your sleeves, make wildflower seed bombs, and take your best shot around our Hessian Hut! FYI, come back to Dyckman Farmhouse Museum in a month to see your sprouts in action!
Kid- and family-friendly? Absolutely! This party was made just for you!
Registration Required? No, this is a free, drop-in program
What does Inwood sound like?
What music comes to mind when you think of Inwood?
Join us for a musical family workshop for youth and adults! Adults and kids ages 5-18 are invited to collaborate on a community composition, guided by Teaching Artist and composer Evelyn Petcher Brandes and Leadlights Ensemble violist Arthur Dibble.
Come learn how to use flashcards, boomwhackers, and bells to create melodies and rhythms inspired by our Inwood neighborhood. Your words, melodies, and ideas shared in this workshop will come to life in Ms.Brandes’ brand-new musical composition called “Inwood Haven,” premiering this September on our very own back porch!
Any accompanying adult is considered a participant of this program. Accompanying adults and youth must reserve a ticket. Participants may be photographed during this workshop and will be asked to sign a media release form.
Date: Saturday, March 21st, 2026
Time: 4PM-6PM
Cost: FREE
Registration Required? Yes, register via Eventbrite! Only 15 spots available.
Location: Dyckman Farmhouse Museum (on the corner of 204th and Broadway)
“Inwood Haven” is a project created by NYC based composer Evelyn Petcher Brandes and sponsored by the Dyckman Farmhouse Museum through a grant from New York State Council on the Arts.
Flyer Design by Dawn Kim
Inwood Library is teaming up with Dyckman Farmhouse Museum Alliance (DFMA) to bring you a free, in-person community livestream and discussion of both Talking About Race Matters lectures this March.
Talking About Race Matters (TARM) is a two-part virtual lecture series where notable scholars share their groundbreaking work on cultural history and social justice.
This month, TARM lectures will explore the cultural and political contributions of Black women musicians in America. This is “The Song of Our Freedom: Black Music in America” in celebration of Women’s History Month and the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
*After the livestream, in-person attendees will participate in a guided discussion and explore supplementary reading curated by Library staff and TARM lecturers. Small snacks will be provided.* Adults 18+
Dr. Daphne A. Brooks is William R. Kenan, Jr. Professor of Black Studies, American Studies, Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, and Music at Yale University. She is the author of Bodies in Dissent: Spectacular Performances of Race and Freedom, 1850-1910 (Durham, NC: Duke UP, 2006), winner of The Errol Hill Award for Outstanding Scholarship on African American Performance from ASTR; Jeff Buckley’s Grace (New York: Continuum, 2005) and Liner Notes for the Revolution: The Intellectual Life of Black Feminist Sound (Harvard University, February 2021).
