One hundred years ago, Reverend Oscar E.Denniston renamed a small missionary in the heart of Oak Bluffs after its founder, Susan Bradley, and started the first black church on the Island. For over a half-century, the Bradley Memorial Church was the center of black heritage and culture on Martha's Vineyard. It is considered an integral piece of what made Oak Bluffs the summer gathering place for African-Americans from throughout the country. The church has been featured in documentaries and is part of the Martha's Vineyard African-American Heritage Trail. Closed for two generations and in a state of disrepair, the Bradley Memorial Church and the land around it was purchased by the IAHF in order to restore the grand building, to create a multi-use cultural space on the ground level with affordable residential units in the former Denniston family quarters above. The site also allows for two additional buildings that will house affordable residences, some of which will be affordable work/live spaces for Island artists, spurring the growth of the recently formed Arts District. A courtyard, ample off-street parking, and open space will surround this community of pedestrian-friendly galleries and home sites. All of this will be done in accordance with the Island Housing Trust's high-performance, green building standards. To accomplish this is no small task. Over $1.7 million dollars must be raised in order for this project -- which is historic both in age and magnitude - to become a reality.
Bradley Square, since its inception, has been a collaborative effort with the IAHF and the IHT and several groups working to make this a reality including the NAACP of Martha's Vineyard, the Arts District, Habitat for Humanity of Martha's Vineyard, the Oak Bluffs Historical Commission, the Oak Bluffs CPC, and the Martha's Vineyard Museum. Throughout the design process, IAHF, IHT, and the architect, Hutker Architects, have been partnering with a community based Design Committee which is composed of people from several different organizations. It truly has been a community effort, and we are very proud of where the project stands.
The NAACP of Martha's Vineyard is working with the IAHF to help raise the funds needed to restore the Bradley Memorial Church building which will also house the office for the NAACP of Martha's Vineyard. Working together to preserve this piece of Island history has been and is an exciting collaboration. Executive Director, Natalie Dickerson, (508) 696-5785 or visit www.marthasvineyardnaacp.org
Bradley Square is located in the heart of the Arts District in Oak Bluffs. This arts driven community has seen a burst in activity with new stores and galleries. It is a destination place for people to visit and get an intimate, first hand experience with Island artists. Bradley Square will help foster additional growth of this community while expanding the number of affordable housing ownership opportunities on Martha's Vineyard.
Habitat for Humanity of Martha's Vineyard will own one of the units in Bradley Square. Their involvement will help bring more of the Island community into the project through their volunteer program. Also, HFH of MV will help with a portion of the funds needed for this large project. The IAHF and HFH of MV have worked together in the past on the Twin Oaks project. Executive Director, Julie Willett (508) 696-4646 or visit www.habitatmv.org.
Inside the Bradley Memorial Church, we discovered a wealth of historical artifacts. As you can imagine, this find is very exciting for so many different people. We are lucky enough to have the opportunity to partner with the Martha's Vineyard Museum to save physical pieces from the Bradley Memorial Church. The Museum will be archiving and cataloging the artifacts found in the church before the renovation. Executive Director, Keith Gorman, (508) 627-4441 or visit www.mvmuseum.org.
Bradley Square is a valuable addition to the town of Oak Bluffs. This one project is preserving a valuable part of the Island's African American Heritage, fostering the continued growth of the Arts District, and is increasing the amount of affordable housing available to the community, and the Oak Bluffs CPC has provided a grant to help make this project possible. For more information, please visit www.ci.oak-bluffs.ma.us/pdf/ahc/Minutes10-11-07.pdf. Also, the Oak Bluffs Historical Commission has been very involved with the design process.
