With a goal of funding projects that create community connections, the Rhode Island Foundation has awarded $10,000 to the Bristol Middle Passage Port Marker Project, which has now raised about 80% of the funds needed to install a memorial to acknowledge the history of Bristol’s role in the Transatlantic human trade.

The Bristol Town Council approved the installation of the memorial in Independence Park following a rigorous public input process.

The Port Marker Project is one of 62 projects across the state that will be benefiting from the Foundation’s recent, $400,000 round of grants.

“In a time when division seems to rule, it has never been more important to support work that brings people together,” said David Cicilline, the Foundation’s president and CEO. “Our hope is that every one of these projects will strengthen the bonds that bind us together as neighbors and as Rhode Islanders.”

“At this point in American history, we feel there is a need to improve historical understanding, restore racial healing, and appreciate the diversity of our country,” said Keith Maloney, who serves on the board of the Port Marker Project and wrote the successful grant. “The design of our memorial, ‘Our Ancestors Come With Us,’ is intended to portray an African and Indigenous couple guiding their child toward an inspired future of social equity.”

“Bristol is proud of the ways our town and its citizens have contributed to the history of our country. This memorial will be an acknowledgement of the African and Indigenous people who have thrived beyond adversity and contributed to that history.”

According to the Port Marker Project, Bristol was one of the most significant centers of the Transatlantic Human Trade in the United States during the 18th and early 19th centuries. There are 100 documented African voyages that originated in Bristol that transported an estimated 30,000 kidnapped Africans to Cuba, the West Indies and the American South.

“This sculpture will be an important acknowledgement of the role of the Transatlantic Human Trade in both our town's and our nation's history,” said Maloney. “The memorial will be a significant artistic statement and will be the first of its kind to be on public property in the state of Rhode Island.”

Other East Bay recipients of RI Foundation grants include Good Neighbors and the Cape Verdean Cultural & Education Program in East Providence, The Collaborative in Warren and the Little Compton Community Center.