Skip to main content
Back to Show
PBS News Hour

The story of Granny Hayden, a Black midwife and former slave

Mary Stepp Burnette Hayden was born into slavery on a plantation in Black Mountain, North Carolina. She remained there after being freed in 1865, going on to become a midwife. In this animated feature from our partners at StoryCorps, Hayden’s granddaughter Mary Othella Burnette tells her great-granddaughter, Debora Hamilton Palmer, about their family matriarch.

Support Provided By
Season
March 13, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
57:46
March 13, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
March 12, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
57:46
March 12, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
March 11, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
57:46
March 11, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
March 10, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
57:46
March 10, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
March 9, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
56:46
March 9, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
March 6, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
57:46
March 6, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
March 5, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
57:46
March 5, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
March 4, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
57:46
March 4, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
March 3, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
57:46
March 3, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
March 2, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
57:46
March 2, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
February 27, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
57:46
February 27, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
February 26, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
57:46
February 26, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode
Active loading indicator