Northville Mayor Brian Turnbull and a Schoolcraft College historian will explore the city's ties to the Underground Railroad on Thursday, Sept. 3, at 7 p.m. at the Northville District Library.
The presentation, "Slavery, the Underground Railroad, and Northville's Role," pairs Turnbull with Errin T. Stegich, an assistant adjunct professor of history at Schoolcraft College. The two will cover slavery in America and focus on Northville's part in the network that moved freedom seekers north, according to the library's fall newsletter.
The local connection runs deep. In a February 2026 column in the Northvillian on Northville's Black History Month observance, Turnbull wrote that estimates suggest close to 40,000 people passed through Northville on their way to Canada before the mid-1800s. He identified several local stations: the Ambler Hotel, now the Great White Buffalo Brewing Company at Main and Center; the Starkweather Farm on 7 Mile west of Beck; Meads Mill near 6 Mile and Northville Road; and the Wagon Wheel Hotel on Northville Road.
"I am extremely proud of all Northvillians … who have treated all in society with equality, integrity, respect, and with the highest degree of ethics," Turnbull wrote in that column. "The Ville is truly a special place."
The talk takes place in the Carlo Meeting Room at 212 W. Cady St. Registration opened Aug. 3.
Sargent-inspired exhibition on view at Art House
Nearby, the Northville Art House opened "Inspired by Sargent" on Tuesday, Sept. 1. The exhibition runs through Sept. 26 at 215 W. Cady St.
Fifteen Metro Detroit artists from Mary Step's De La Vie Studio created the works after Step designed live-model sessions based on paintings by John Singer Sargent (1856–1925), according to the Art House's exhibition page. Step recreated poses, costumes and atmosphere using fabrics, props and backdrops. Artists painted directly from observation during weekly two-and-a-half-hour sessions that began in January 2024.
The idea grew from Step's visit to the 2023 "Fashioned by Sargent" exhibition at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Each Sargent painting served as a starting point. Artists picked the elements that struck them most — a gesture, a color, a composition — and worked from there, according to the Art House.
A public reception is set for Friday, Sept. 11, from 5 to 8 p.m. The Art House is also hosting a related book club discussion of "I am Madame X" by Gioia Diliberto on Wednesday, Sept. 9, from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m., co-hosted with the Northville District Library. An all-day workshop led by instructor Amy Foster follows Sept. 12, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Most works in the show are for sale.
The Art House is also showing an Emerging Artist exhibition featuring Jenny Rose, on view through Sept. 26.
