Kneading in Silence: A Glimpse into the Life of the Enslaved Cook Judah

Name: Kneading in Silence: A Glimpse into the Life of the Enslaved Cook Judah
Start: 2026-04-26T14:00:00-04:00
End: 2026-04-26T14:30:00-04:00
Location: 336 Belle Grove Road, Middletown, VA, United States, Virginia 22645

Schedule

Sun Apr 26 2026 at 02:00 pm to 02:30 pm

UTC-04:00

Location

336 Belle Grove Road, Middletown, VA, United States, Virginia 22645 | Middletown, VA

This 30-minute presentation discusses the life of Judah, a woman enslaved at Belle Grove Plantation who was the Hite family’s cook. Rare primary source documents reveal insights about her and her family’s life.
The program takes place in the winter kitchen of the Belle Grove Manor House (enter under the front porch).
This program is free of charge, though donations are appreciated. Regular admission applies to tour the Manor House before the program (at 1:15) or immediately after the program (at 2:30). Purchase admission to tour the Manor House in the Welcome Center upon arrival.
The program will be presented by Belle Grove Plantation docent Scott Terndrup on these dates:
Sunday, April 26, 2 p.m.
Sunday, June 28, 2 p.m.
Sunday, August 23, 2 p.m.
Sunday, October 25, 2 p.m.
This compelling program, which has been offered since 2016, inspired an historical novel by Dr. Brian C. Johnson, Send Judah First: The Erased Life of an Enslaved Soul published in August 2019 by Hidden Shelf Publishing House. It is available on Amazon. The cover art (show here) by Megan Whitfield is a pastel rendering of what Judah may have looked like.