Great Barrington, Massachusetts is a perfect day or weekend trip. It’s filled with charming shops, great restaurants, and cozy cafés to explore. On our way back from town, we stumbled upon a National Historic Site and decided to stop. I always enjoy learning something new—especially about someone I don’t know anything about. That’s how we discovered W.E.B. Du Bois, a leader in the early civil rights movement.

The W.E.B. Du Bois Boyhood Homesite is a five-acre parcel in Great Barrington. It includes the ruins of the original homestead of Du Bois’s maternal family and was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1979. This land has been in Du Bois’s maternal family since the early 1800s.

Along the short wooded trail, you’ll find interpretive signs that highlight different chapters of his life and his lifelong work advocating for equal rights—not only for Black Americans, but also for the independence of African nations.

The Upper Housatonic Valley National Heritage Area continues to conduct archaeological investigations at the site to better understand the daily life of Du Bois’s ancestors. Plans are also underway to add an interpretive shelter with restrooms and expand the parking area in the future.

William Edward Burghardt Du Bois was born on February 23, 1868, in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, and lived there until 1885, when he left home to study at Fisk University. At that time, Great Barrington had a small African American community, some of whose members fought in the famous all-Black 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry Regiment.

After graduating from Fisk University, Du Bois traveled to Europe by steamship to study at what is now Humboldt University in Berlin. His time in Europe was transformative, helping him frame race perceptions in a global context. Du Bois once said, “This was the land where I first met white folk who treated me as a human being.”

He originally planned to earn his Ph.D. in Germany but, due to residency issues, returned to the U.S. and became the first African American to receive a Ph.D. from Harvard University in 1895.

Du Bois wrote about being black and the plight of black Americans in his works The Conservation of Races (1897), The Souls of Black Folk (1903), and Dusk of Dawn (1940). Unlike his peer Frederick Douglass, who emphasized integration into white society, Du Bois believed that Black Americans should embrace their African heritage while pursuing equality in the United States. In The Souls of Black Folk, he famously described Black Americans as living with “double consciousness”—two warring ideals in one body.

In 1909, Du Bois helped found the NAACP and became the editor of the NAACP’s monthly journal, The Crisis, where he wrote about racial injustice and reached over 100,000 readers by 1920. He drew attention to the horrors of lynching and pushed for federal legislation to end it. He served as editor until 1934, when he resigned due to differing views on segregation. Ten years later returned to the NAACP, taking part in the founding convention of the United Nations.

Du Bois was also a leader in the Pan-African movement—working to unite people of African descent from around the world. He brought together intellectuals from Africa, the West Indies, and the United States for a series of influential conferences.

In 1961, he became a citizen of Ghana, where he lived until his death on August 27, 1963.

If you’re interested in learning more about African American history in Massachusetts and Connecticut, the African American Heritage Trail is a great place to start your journey.

To be honest, I originally stopped at the Du Bois Homesite just looking for a bathroom. 😂But after finding this spot, I ended up spending time learning about W.E.B. Du Bois so I could share his story here. I was delighted to discover that his time in Europe as a young man was transformative for him—my own youthful trip Eurorailing was enlightening too, though in a very different way. That small connection made him feel more real to me.

There’s so much more to explore about his life and the broader civil rights movement, but I hope you’ve enjoyed this brief glimpse into his remarkable life.

Next week, I’ll be sharing a cool place to visit in New York—perfect for getting some steps in, taking in beautiful views, and learning a bit about early 1900s manufacturing.

‘til next week, happy exploring!
Kathleen

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I was curious if W.E.B. Du Bois’ books were easily available, and they are! There are several titles of his available for free by Project Gutenburg - Books by Du Bois, W. E. B. including:

I also found Dusk of Dawn on Amazon Kindle for .99.

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