Did you know that Anne Northup, wife of Solomon Northup (author of “Twelve Years a Slave”) lived and worked in the Morris-Jumel Mansion while awaiting her husband’s safe return from kidnapping? A free black woman and highly sought after chef, Eliza Jumel met Anne in Saratoga Springs and asked that Northup and her children join her at the Mansion as employees of the House.

Join Rafia Zafar, renowned culinary historian, in the very kitchen Anne would have worked her culinary magic in. Learn little known facts about the lives of Anne and her contemporary Malinda Russell, the author of a historic cookbook that Zafar has recently relaunched through University of Michigan Press, at this special event. Compare and contrast the lives of these two free black women who utilized their talents in the kitchen to ensure security for themselves and their families. For a true “Taste of the Past”, attendees will have the opportunity to sample historic food similar to what Anne would have made right here at MJM!