About

Part of the Virginia Quilt Museum's project Stitching Together History: 250 Quilts Commemorating the Commonwealth of Virginia this webinar will focus on the topic, We the People.

Kiana Wilkerson will speak about genealogy and how it can be used to tell and uplift untold histories of the enslaved population of a historic site. Learn more about genealogy’s impact on learning more about the enslaved people at Menokin, the Menokin Foundation’s Descendant Initiative, and its growing Descendant Collective.

Kiana is the Descendant Research Associate for the Menokin Foundation. In this position, she researches the history of the enslaved people who lived and labored at Menokin, the local black community of Richmond County, and the wider Northern Neck area. She also engages with present-day descendants of the enslaved people and plans events, such as Descendants’ Day, Virtual Descendants’ Celebration, and genealogy workshops. She works closely with the Menokin Descendant Engagement Team and the growing Descendant Collective.

Kiana graduated from the College of William and Mary with a BA in History and Anthropology in 2018 and from Virginia Tech with an MA in History and a certificate in Public History in 2022. She also has experience in archaeology, archiving, cataloging, and processing.

This webinar will be recorded and shared on the VQM YouTube Channel.