Scholars from New York University, USC, California State
Polytechnic University, Pomona and California State University, Fresno will discuss black townships in the western United States on April 26 at a one-day conference at Fresno State.

The conference, whose theme is “Beyond the City Limits,” is the first of its kind to highlight aspects of the rural African-American experience in the West, with special emphasis on the San Joaquin Valley. The event, which is free and open to the public, begins at 10 a.m. in the University Business Center in the Peters Business Building.

“This is one of the few conferences ever to explore the rural black experience in the West, and the first to focus on the San Joaquin Valley,” said Dr. Daniel Cady, director of the Central Valley Institute for Regional and Historical Studies. “From the historic founding of Allensworth to the present, the region’s African-American community has persevered with little scholarly notice.

“Fresno State and the Central Valley Institute for Regional and Historical Studies hope to bring more attention to the stories and historical contributions of the region’s African-American communities.”

The conference will feature scholarly panels in the morning and community presentations in the afternoon. Former Los Angeles Times writer Mark Arax will be among the morning panelists, focusing on the Valley’s historical black townships. In the afternoon, representatives of Col. Allensworth State Historic Park and other organizations will address the significance of the region’s best-known black community.

Steve Ptomey, a state park interpreter and former archaeologist at Allensworth Park, will talk about the community’s history, renovating some of its original buildings and what the California Department of Parks and Recreation has planned for the Allensworth centennial this year

Charles Allensworth, founding member of the Allensworth Descendants Association, will discuss his great-great-great-uncle, Col. Allen Allensworth, and how the colony represents a crucial part of African-American history and often-overlooked chapter in California and U.S. history.

“The Spirit of Allensworth,” a film highlighting the Tulare County community, will be screened by the Friends of Allensworth, a nonprofit organization that promotes educational and interpretive programs in the park and has 17 chapters throughout the U.S.

Fresno City College President Dr. Ned Doffoney will close the conference with an address at 4:30 p.m.

Those who wish to attend are asked to RSVP at
erodz2@csufresno.edu no later than Monday, April 21. For more information, call 559.278.6825 or visit
http://cvirhs.csufresno.edu/conference.htm
<http://cvirhs.csufresno.edu/conference.htm> .