City bridge to be renamed after writer and abolitionist Olaudah Equiano

A riverside bridge in Cambridge is to get a new name to commemorate a local man who was a leader in the anti-slavery movement.

The bridge formerly known as Riverside Bridge has been renamed after writer and abolitionist Olaudah Equiano (1745-1797) who was enslaved as a child and after purchasing his freedom, was an active leader in the anti-slave trade movement.

As part of Black History Month, there will be an unveiling of the new plaque and an information board, which are being paid for by the county council, at the bridge on October 31. The Mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Dr Nik Johnson and other councillors will attend.

Cambridgeshire County Council has been working with local community groups Circles of Change and the Cambridge African Network to rename the bridge in the aim that more people will learn about Equiano and his place in history.

Equiano’s connection to the area is that he married and settled in Cambridgeshire and raised two daughters. His oldest Anna Maria Vassa is buried and commemorated by a plaque at St Andrew’s Church, Chesterton.

Cllr Neil Shailer, vice chair of the Highways and Transport Committee, said: “It was a real privilege to be able to help facilitate this grass roots community project which remembers Olaudah Equiano who played an important part in British History. It is uplifting to remember our cultural heritage and it also gives us a sense of unity.”

The Mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Dr Nik Johnson added: “I was delighted to be asked to take part in the unveiling of the new name for the bridge. It’s important that future generations are aware of this history and the part that Equiano played in it, and how it links to our communities now.”

Isaac Ayamba, chair of Cambridge African Network, said: “The story of Olaudah Equiano’s struggles, determination and success in his personal life and his work in influencing British abolitionists is pioneering and inspirational to the current generation. More than 200 years since his death, his dreams and aspirations for equality still live on.”