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Jonathan Daniels Trail

This entry includes a walking tour! Take the tour.

Introduction

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This walking trail is a beautiful stone dust trail located alongside Ashuelot River in Keene, New Hampshire. The trail starts at the intersection of the Chesire Rail Trail and Island street in downtown Keene. The north end of the trail intersects the Apple Way trail. The trail is an opportunity for the visitors to explore both the nature and the history of Keene. The trail is named after Jonathan Daniels, a civil rights activist from Keene. Stops along the trail will help educate visitors about Jonathan Daniel's important life events. The City of Keene Parks & Recreation maintains the trail.

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Backstory and Context

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Jonathan Daniels trail honors the work of Jonathan Myrick Daniels (1939-1965), a civil rights activist, and an Episcopal Seminarian. He died in 1965 while shielding a 17-years old Black civil rights activist Ruby Sales.

Keene-born Jonathan decided to leave New England in the half-century when he responded to Martin Luther King Jr.'s call for active participation of clergymen in Selma, Alabama. He become involved in the civil rights movement and assisted with voter's registration efforts in the South. Jonathan refused to allow the privilege of his race, education, status, and articulate nature to make him a person of more value than those with which he interacted.

The trail carries both historical and environmental value. It aims to educate the visitors about Jonathan's life.

Sources

About Jonathan Daniels, Jonathan Daniels Center for Social Responsibility. Accessed July 12th 2020. https://jonathandanielscenter.org/about-jonathan-daniels/.

Jonathan Daniels Trail, TrailLink. Accessed July 10th 2020. https://www.traillink.com/trail/jonathan-daniels-trail/.

JONATHAN DANIELS TRAIL, Trail Finder. Accessed July 12th 2020. https://www.trailfinder.info/trails/trail/jonathan-daniels-trail.

Jonathan Daniels, Civil Rights Hero, Virginia Military Institute. Accessed July 28th 2020. https://www.vmi.edu/archives/genealogy-biography-alumni/featured-historical-biographies/jonathan-daniels-civil-rights-hero/.

Additional Information