If These Stones Could Talk
African American Presence in the Hopewell Valley, Sourland Mountain, and Surrounding Regions of New Jersey
by Elaine Buck and Beverly Mills



Congratulations to Beverly Mills and Elaine Buck for winning the 2019 New Jersey Studies Academic Alliance (NJSAA) Author Award in the non-fiction popular category.
Congratulations to Beverly Mills and Elaine Buck for winning the Eric Hoffer Award honorable mention for reference.

About If These Stones Could Talk
Cemeteries have stories to tell, voices to unearth–and lessons from the past that we can draw upon to better shape the future. If These Stones Could Talk brings fresh light to a forgotten corner of American history that begins in a small cemetery in central New Jersey. Authors of If These Stones Could Talk Elaine Buck and Beverly Mills started their journey through the past as two middle aged African American women with busy but quiet lives. Lifelong friends, they were both board members of the Stoutsburg Cemetery Association, a cemetery that is nestled in New Jersey’s Sourland Mountain region. The Stoutsburg Cemetery was purchased by three Black men in the early 19th century as a location to bury Blacks with honor and dignity in the early 19th century. When Buck and Mills got an unexpected call for help, what began as a search through the woods for gravestone markers soon had them rummaging through land deeds and making relentless calls to state officials, archeologists and reporters. Their foray into historic preservation work convinced Buck and Mills that they had a lot more work left to do to connect African American history to local and national history books—within which they still felt largely absent from the most visible narratives in United States history. If These Stones Could Talk includes chapter titles such as “The African American Founding Families of the Sourland Region,” “Trapped in the Purgatory of History,” “Pioneers of Liberty: Local African American Military History” and “Queen Hester’s Home Remedies and Recipes” among many others. In warm but unflinching voices Buck and Mills offer readers a unique window into our past which connects us directly with the present. These stories, including dozens of oral histories, consecrate the collected lives of a minority Black community in a predominantly White region, a pattern of community that reflects a larger, deeply important but typically overlooked national story in small towns all over the United States.

About the Authors: Beverly Mills and Elaine Buck
Elaine Buck and Beverly Mills are the founders of Friday Truehart Consultants, named after the original slave brought to Hopewell, New Jersey at the age of thirteen by his master Oliver Hart. Buck and Mills work closely with K-12 educators from school systems interested in including African American history in their lesson plans and curriculum. They are founding members of the Stoutsburg Sourland African American Museum and serve on its Advisory Board. Buck and Mills have been Trustees of the Stoutsburg Cemetery Association for the past thirty-five years. They are both members of the National Council of Negro Women and the Sankofa Collaborative, a resource that will ensure that material and resources relating to African American history will be readily accessible statewide to a broader and more diverse audience. Through decades of research, Buck and Mills have become more than statewide educators on a mission to open up a healthy investigation into the history of race beginning in their home state. They have also become bridge builders, engaging leaders in the boardrooms of museums and schools throughout Central New Jersey. Their goal is to engage readers, educate students and impact curriculum development not only in New Jersey but across the United States. Bucks and Mills have created lesson plans for schools, museums and historic sites among other venues. Beverly Mills is the first African American woman to hold the elected position as Councilwoman, Pennington Borough, and Elaine Buck is Church Clerk for the Second Calvary Baptist Church of Hopewell.
About What People Are Saying About If These Stones Could Talk
From James M. McPherson
Organized around the stories of men and women buried in the African-American Stoutsburg cemetery near Hopewell, New Jersey, this extraordinary book narrates the history of black communities in the Hopewell Valley and Sourland Mountains over a period of...
From Kirkus
A debut history book focuses on a New Jersey cemetery while exploring the whole spectrum of the black experience in the region. Buck and Mills both have deep familial ties to the Stoutsburg Cemetery near Hopewell, New Jersey. They have jointly served as...
From Mercer Me
Locals Buck and Mills Author “If These Stones Could Talk” Wild River Books announces the publication of If These Stones Could Talk by local authors Elaine Buck and Beverly Mills on November 7, 2018. There will be a formal invitation-only launch at the...
From Cynthia Assini
If These Stones Could Talk uncovers important history of African Americans in the Sourland region while deeply inspiring readers through describing the authors’ active citizenship. The page-turning prose that describes the authors’ historical detective...
From Bonnie Watson Coleman
Humanity is prone to the unfortunate habit of forgetting, avoiding and altogether rewriting history, particularly when it falls into uncomfortable territory. Yet history offers clarity for the present and allows us to plot a course for the future — and it does so with...
From Peter Moock
Having grown up in the part of New Jersey about which If These Stones Could Talk is written, I became aware of this research project quite early on in its development. I realized that an honest and thorough unveiling of this slice of American history...
From Marion T. Lane
Since the founding of our country, the recorders of history have not accurately transcribed the African American experience. Much of the African American history has been deleted, misconstrued and / or misinterpreted. Elaine Buck and Beverly Mills have...
From Dr. Linda Caldwell Epps
All of us raised in the culture that is the USA are infused with weight of the African diaspora is in our DNA. Black and white, male and female, northern or southern reared, we were surrounded by the air of capitalism and the disenfranchisement of people...
From Dr. Jill Ogline Titus
If These Stones Could Talk offers a remarkable account of centuries of African American life in central New Jersey, highlighting themes of dignity, resilience, family, and faith. Authors Elaine Buck and Beverly Mills begin the book by posing the question...
Author Events
Bank of America – June 17
June 17th at 2:00 PM Bank of America (more information will be provided)
D&R Greenway – May 11
May 11th at the 35th Anniversary of the D&R Greenway 5:00 PM – 7:00 PM–
We are proud to announce that on May 11, 2019 on the 30th anniversary of the D&R Greenway Land Trust, LLC. John & Elaine Buck and Beverly Mills will be the proud recipients of the D&R Land Stewardship Award for raising awareness about diverse communities on the land where the museum is located. We would be delighted if you could join us at this event by purchasing tickets at www.drgreenway.org
Mount Rose Distillery – April 27
April 27th Mount Rose Distillery, Pennington-Rocky Hill Road, Pennington, NJ 08534 at 2:00 PM
The Gatherings – April 9
April 9th Presentation for “The Gatherings” 1:00 (location to be provided)
William Trent House – March 30
March 30th William Trent House, Trenton, NJ 1:00 PM
Franklin Township Library – March 18
March 18th Franklin Township Library, 7:00 PM
http://franklintwp.org
Location: Community Room A-B, 485 DeMott Lane, Somerset NJ 08873
Hunterdon County Historical Society – March 10
March 10 – Presentation and book signing for the Hunterdon County Historical Society at 2:00 PM (it will be held at the Flemington Presbyterian Church, 10 East Main Street, Flemington, New Jersey 08822).
Hunterdon County 300th – Feb. 26
February 26 – Presentation and book signing for the Hunterdon County 300th, at the Hunterdon County Library, 314 State Rt. 12, Flemington. NJ (7:00 PM)
4th Annual Gospel Brunch, Stoutsburg Sourland African American Museum – Feb. 23
February 23 – 4th Annual Gospel Brunch hosted by the Stoutsburg Sourland African American Museum at the Hopewell Presbyterian Church, 80 West Broad Street Hopewell, NJ 08525 (11:00 AM – 2:00 PM)
Educational Testing Service – Feb. 21
February 21 – Presentation and book signing at Educational Testing Service, 666 Rosedale Road, Princeton, NJ 08540 (12:00 PM)
New Jersey State Library – Feb. 19
February 19 – Presentation and book signing at the New Jersey State Library, 185 West State Street, Trenton, NJ 08608 (12:00 PM)
Jack & Jill, Mercer County Chapter – Feb. 17
February 17 – Presentation and book signing at Barnes and Noble, Market Fair, 3535 US 1, Princeton, NJ 08540 – hosted Mercer County Chapter of Jack & Jill
Time: 12:00 PM
Hunterdon County Anti-Racism Coalition – Feb. 8
February 8 Presentation and book signing at the Hunterdon County Ant-Racism Coalition, United Way Building, 20 Fulper Road, Flemington, NJ
Time: 7:00 PM
Hopewell Library Event held at Hopewell Theater – Feb. 6
February 6 – Presentation and book signing at the Hopewell Theater hosted by the Hopewell Library – 5 South Greenwood Avenue, Hopewell, NJ 08525
Event time: 7:00 PM
Engage Your Audience with Difficult Topics in African American History” — Sankofa Collaborative – Jan. 25
January 25 – Engage Your Audience with Difficult Topics in African American History” –hosted by the Sankofa Collaborative for museums, historic sties, libraries and other cultural institutions
“Stepping Stones” on WDVR FM Penn-Jersey Educational Radio – Jan. 22
January 22 – “Stepping Stones” on WDVR FM Penn-Jersey Educational Radio (interview with host Hilary Murray)
Interview time: 5:00 PM
Grit and Polish Salon, Princeton NJ – January 21
January 21 Presentation and book signing at Grit and Polish Salon, 160 Witherspoon Street, Princeton, NJ 08542
Event Hours: 1:00 PM – 3:00 PM
Mercer County Library (Hopewell) – January 15
January 15 – Presentation and book signing at the Mercer County Library (Hopewell Branch) 245 Pennington-Titusville Road, Pennington, NJ 08534
Presentation begins at 6:00 PM
D&R Greenway Event
What: If These Stones Could Talk Presentation and Book Signing
When: December 11, 2018,
Where: Johnson Education Center, 1 Preservation Place, Princeton, NJ 08540
RSVP: Please RSVP to rsvp@drgreenway.org or call 609-924-4646
Reception will begin at 6:00 PM
Presentation 6:30-7:30 PM
Light refreshments will be served.
This event is sponsored by the Sourland Conservancy and D&R Greenway Land Trust
For more information: http://drgreenway.org/events/talk-and-book-signing-if-these-stones-could-talk/
Here is a link to SC’s Facebook event https://www.facebook.com/events/327131144694787/
See announcement in the Community News



All Saints Church, Nov. 19th
What: A “Proud Heritage” Presentation and Book Signing
When: November 19, 2018, 1:00 PM
Where: All Saints Church, Princeton, New Jersey
Launch II – Nov. 17
What: Launch II
When: November 17th, 1:00 – 4:00 PM
Where: Hopewell Bistro, 15 E Broad St, Hopewell, NJ 08525
With Special If These Stones Could Talk Menu
Cost: FREE – All Welcome
Trinity Church, Nov. 13th
What: “A Proud Heritage” Presentation and Book signing
When: Tuesday, November 13, 2018, 6:00 PM
Where: Trinity Church, Rocky Hill, New Jersey
Grand Launch Event, Nov. 7th
What: Launch of If These Stones Could Talk
When: November 7th, 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM
Where: Grounds for Sculpture, 80 Sculptors Way, Hamilton Township, NJ 08619
Directions and Parking: http://www.groundsforsculpture.org/Visit/Hours-Directions-and-Parking
Cost: FREE -Invitation Only


