In 1917, at the San Juan Basin Inter-school track meet at the La Plata County Fairgrounds, Durango team captain Justin Barnett was the race favorite. Barnett, seen at right in this photograph, was racing on a sprained ankle and regrettably, did not win. The Barnett family was one of the few Black families in Durango. George, formerly enslaved, arrived in Durango in 1881 on a railroad crew and chose to stay. His wife, Jennie, arrived in Farmington via covered wagon in 1887. They married in 1889 and had 11 children, seven of whom survived to adulthood. Their eldest son, Willie, was a boxer; their daughter, Julia, left us an oral history; and Justin went on to serve in World War I and later worked as a pressman for The Durango Herald. To learn more about the Black community in Durango, join the Colorado Black Equity Study team for a community learning session at noon April 11 in Skyhawk Station Room 118 on the Fort Lewis College campus. There is no charge for this event, but registration is required. Visit https://tinyurl.com/3w4xjuwd for more information. – Ed Horvat for Animas Museum, edhorvat@animasmuseum.org
In 1917, at the San Juan Basin Inter-school track meet at the La Plata County Fairgrounds, Durango team captain Justin Barnett was the race favorite. Barnett, seen at right in this photograph, was racing on a sprained ankle and regrettably, did not win. The Barnett family was one of the few Black families in Durango. George, formerly enslaved, arrived in Durango in 1881 on a railroad crew and chose to stay. His wife, Jennie, arrived in Farmington via covered wagon in 1887. They married in 1889 and had 11 children, seven of whom survived to adulthood. Their eldest son, Willie, was a boxer; their daughter, Julia, left us an oral history; and Justin went on to serve in World War I and later worked as a pressman for The Durango Herald. To learn more about the Black community in Durango, join the Colorado Black Equity Study team for a community learning session at noon April 11 in Skyhawk Station Room 118 on the Fort Lewis College campus. There is no charge for this event, but registration is required. Visit https://tinyurl.com/3w4xjuwd for more information. – Ed Horvat for Animas Museum, [email protected]