A brief early history of Africans in America for Mr. P’s Class.
Most African-Americans can trace their heritage to West Africa. European traders would purchase slaves from village chiefs. The slaves would be put on a ship for what was known as The Middle Passage (the trip across the Atlantic). The goal was to get as many slaves as possible on a ship – to maximize profits. In the West, the first stop would be in the Caribbean, where slaves would be traded for rum, molasses, and sugar. Next, the ship would go to North America to sell the goods from the Caribbean. Slaves would also be sold.
While we are focusing on African-Americans in this lesson, it is important to understand how many Africans were enslaved around the world. Millions of East and Northern Africans were also stolen by Muslims from the Arab world.
The first known sale of slaves in North America occurred in 1619 in what is now Virginia. Others believe that the arrival of the first slaves was actually in the early 1500’s.
There was slavery in all thirteen colonies, and later in all thirteen states. Between 1650 and 1900, at least 28 million Africans were taken from central and western Africa as slaves. Following the Revolutionary War, northern states began to abolish slavery. 1629 - Massachusetts was the first colony in New England to have slaves. 1780 - Pennsylvania became the first state to abolish slavery. 1783 – Massachusetts Courts abolished slavery. 1833 - Great Britain outlawed slavery
Religious beliefs and the idea of independence led Northern states to get rid of slavery. Northern slaves generally worked as nannies, or household servants. Most Northern slave-owners only had one slave. By 1800, the country was divided between “Slave States” (south) and “Free States” (north).
Slavery almost disappeared in the 1790’s It was a flawed economic system. Paying workers proved to be more effective. 1. People work HARDER when they are paid for what they do. Therefore, the owners SELL more goods, and make more MONEY! 2. Slave-owners had to provide food, clothing and shelter. 3. Guards, or “overseers” are expensive.
In the south, slaves were used for farm labor. Like in the north, it was uneconomical. Slaves would grow rice, tobacco, and other crops. Cotton was very difficult to grow, and expensive to buy. In 1792, Only the islands of South Carolina produced much cotton. There are two types of cotton: LONG-STAPLE COTTON (few seeds, grown only in South Carolina) SHORT-STAPLE COTTON (plentiful in North America, but LOADED with seeds). It would take a slave all day to de-seed a ten-pound bag.
In 1793, an ABOLITIONIST (European-American opposed to slavery) named Eli Whitney invented the COTTON GIN. The Cotton Gin removed the seeds from Short-Staple Cotton. Whitney was hoping that his invention would spur other inventions that would replace slaves with machines. The opposite happened… Because cotton could be grown/de-seeded so easily, the price went down. The demand went up. Many southern farms converted from conventional crops to cotton. 1793 - 180,000 lbs of cotton sold. 1795 – 6,000,000 lbs. of cotton sold There were not enough people willing to pick cotton for pay. Any thought of freeing slaves in the south disappeared.
1819 – The United States made taking slaves from Africa illegal. But, Slavery continued in the United States. 1839 - A Spanish slave ship, The Amistad, in violation of U.S. and Spanish laws, sailed across the Atlantic Ocean. The 53 slaves REVOLTED (began a rebellion) captured the crew, and took control of the ship. It landed off the coast of New Haven, CT. The Spaniards sued for the release of “their prisoners” to continue their journey to the Caribbean, where they could be sold. Abolitionist lawyers sued for the release of the slaves. The leader of the slaves was Cinque, who taught himself to speak English. The Amistad case goes to the U.S. Supreme Court in 1840. March, 1841 – The Supreme Court declares the Africans free. Ministers help raise funds, and in 1842 The “Mendi Mission” is complete, and the Africans return home.
Gabriel Prosser, a slave from Richmond, Virginia had stockpiled hundreds of weapons, and recruited hundreds of slaves to revolt. 1800 - Prosser was betrayed by a few followers, and the militia captured and EXECUTED (killed) him.
Denmark Vesey, a carpenter and former slave who had purchased his own freedom, vowed to help fellow Africans still in slavery. 1822 – Vesey began to organize a revolt of nearly ALL of the slaves in Charleston, South Carolina. Like Prosser, he was betrayed by several of his own men, and was executed. In 1831, a Virginia slave named Nat Turner led a slave rebellion against the Travis family, his “owners”. Turner’s army grew to about 45, killing slave-owners and their families in Southampton County, VA. Word spread about the rebellion, and a militia formed to capture the slaves. In all, 55 men, women, and children were killed by Turner’s army. Months later, Turner was captured, TRIED (given a trial), and hung. A mob skinned his body.
Slave-owners fought back with the Slave Codes of the 1800’s. Slaves were NOT permitted: 1) To read or write. 2) To attend church with whites. 3) To gather in large groups. 4) To have paying jobs on the side, or own property. 5) To marry of their own choice. In secret, slaves continued to learn to read and communicate.
The Slave Codes infuriated Abolitionists in the North, led by newspaper publisher William Lloyd Garrison of Massachusetts. Garrison’s newspaper, “The Liberator”, would influence the views and actions of many in the north.
Northerners were split three ways in the 1830’s: 30% Pro-Slavery (did not see anything wrong with slavery). 30% Abolitionist (violently against slavery, and willing to fight to end it). Saw Africans as equal. 40% Anti-Slavery (personally against slavery, but did not believe it is the Federal government’s job to outlaw it).
The north, except for abolitionists, were nearly as racist as the south. Large numbers of recent immigrants from Europe made up the majority of the Pro-slavery group in the North.
Less than 1 out of 4 people in the south owned a single slave. Less than 1 out of 25 owned more than 20 slaves. Two types of slaves: 1) Field hands 2) House Slaves
Slaves could no longer be brought from Africa, but they were still bought and sold everywhere in the south. Husbands and wives, parents and children were frequently separated by owners who traded slaves. White southerners tried to portray slavery as BENIGN (kind). The south would refer to slavery as “OUR PECULIAR INSTITUTION” ("unique to us-you wouldn’t understand how well it works for everyone here”).
The abuse suffered by slaves caused revolts, but also caused many to FLEE (escape) to the north or to Canada. They were aided by many white abolitionists. Thousands would escape using the UNDERGROUND RAILROAD, a series of tunnels, secret trails through the woods, caves, and safe-houses strung throughout the south leading to the north. Harriet Tubman was a guide on the railroad, freeing over 300 slaves herself.
Fredrick Douglass was an escaped slave. He taught himself to read and write, and published his autobiography in 1845. In his younger years, Douglass was very active in helping fellow slaves escape. Later, he became a top Abolitionist speaker, and was invited to meet President Lincoln at the White House.
In 1850 the FUGITIVE SLAVE LAW was passed by Congress. The Fugitive Slave Law said that slaves were property. Bounty hunters were hired to track down escaped slaves in Northern cities. Runaway slaves were no longer safe in the North. Even free blacks were captured. 1847 – A slave named Dred Scott was traveling with his “master” in Illinois, a FREE STATE (state where slavery was illegal). His master died, and Scott sued for freedom. The Court ruled that whether free or not, Scott had no right to sue in court, AS HE WAS A BLACK MAN, AND NOT A CITIZEN. Scott was returned to slavery, and to his master’s children.
Northern Abolitionists, who were now most of the population in the north, became furious. REASONS:
Fugitive Slave Act.
Dred Scott decision.
The 1852 book Uncle Tom’s Cabin written by Harriet Beecher Stowe. It sold 2 million copies by 1857, and inspired many to demand the end of slavery.
THE CIVIL WAR, 1861-1865 More than 650,000 men were killed or wounded, more than ALL other American wars COMBINED! African-American soldiers fought for BOTH sides in the war, 150,000 for the north, 32,000 for the south. The Massachusetts 54th Regiment was the most famous unit of black soldiers. They were led by Col. Robert Shaw, the son of abolitionist parents. While trying to capture Ft. Buford in South Carolina, more than half of them were killed, including Col. Shaw.
In 1863, President Abraham Lincoln issued an Executive Order (a law from the President) freeing any slave, in any state in rebellion. This was called the EMANCIPATION PROCLAMATION. Despite the strength of the abolitionist movement, racism was everywhere, including in the northern states. Most northerners, though opposed to slavery, did not see blacks as equals. Many were immigrants from Europe who resented blacks because: 1) They had never been exposed to African-Americans before: fear of the unknown. 2) Blacks were competition for jobs. 3) Many had been drafted “right off the boat” to fight in the Civil War to free the slaves: resentment.
The Draft Riots in July of 1863 in New York City. An estimated 50,000 people rioted for three days. Immigrants and locals rioted to protest being drafted into the Civil War. The main target were the black neighborhoods, where hundreds were beaten and killed. Nevertheless, hundreds of thousands of white northerners died in the Civil War, the “war to free the slaves”.
With the Union victory, and the passage of the 13th Amendment, Slavery was officially over, and RECONSTRUCTION had begun. RECONSTRUCTION (the period after the Civil War when the south was rebuilt, and African-Americans gained civil rights). The 14th and 15th Amendments gave African-American men full citizenship, and the right to vote.
With their newfound power, blacks were elected to various positions of leadership in the south. Five states had a majority Black population: Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, and South Carolina. U.S. Senator Hiram Revels (Republican-Mississippi) U.S. Senator Blanche Kelso Bruce (Republican-Mississippi) Josiah Thomas Walls of Florida, J.F. Long of Georgia, James T. Rapier of Alabama, Robert DeLarge and Joseph Rainey of South Carolina, all Republicans, were elected to the U.S. House of Representatives after the Civil War. Hundreds were elected to positions in state governments as well.
Many newly freed slaves left the south permanently to rejoin family and friends who had escaped to the north years before. Others had nowhere to go, and continued working for their former masters. They became SHARECROPPERS (people who rent land in return for 50%-75% of the crops). They would rent:
Land
Tools
Housing
Slaves would enter into contracts that would tie them to the land until debt free. The system of Sharecropping, plus the resumed cotton trade allowed southern whites to rebuild from the war and to fight Reconstruction and African- American CIVIL RIGHTS (rights guaranteed to all Americans).
The Federal government’s policy of Reconstruction was hated in the south. The federal army was all over the south, making sure that:
There was no more talk of war.
Freed slaves were getting their rights.
Southerners got back to work producing goods needed by northern industries.
Northern government officials had been assigned to run southern states. White southerners called them “Carpetbaggers”, and they created resentment among people who wanted to govern themselves.
Southern states began to find ways to get around federal laws guaranteeing civil rights to blacks. Known officially as the “Black Codes” but remembered as “JIM CROW LAWS” (a series of state laws in the south that would deny blacks equal rights). The first step was the passage of laws restricting black voting.
Literacy Tests
Poll Taxes
Grandfather Clauses
Blacks were not permitted to work in any job other than AGRICULTURE (farming and ranching)…and domestic help. This guaranteed blacks would never become wealthy enough to buy political influence or equality with whites.
The Ku Klux Klan, originally a secret racist political organization of southern Democrats soon became a violent terrorist group. Any attempt by blacks to challenge the Jim Crow Laws would frequently be met with violence. Over the next 100 years the “Klan” would murder thousands of African-Americans, and terrorize hundreds of thousands of others. They were helped by racist state governments, now filled with white southerners, who would pass laws allowing RACIAL DISCRIMINATION (denying a person civil rights based on their race or religion).
Why was this allowed to happen? 1) By 1877, northern whites had grown tired of “the colored problem”. 2) Racism Jim Crow Laws would remain the law of the land for Black southerners until the early 1950’s, when the federal government finally began to act.
Rosa Parks, Malcolm X, and Martin Luther King all became household names because of their fight for African-American equality during the 1950’s and 1960’s.
African-American heroes existed long before the Civil Rights leaders of the 20th century. Here are a few who came before, and have been mostly forgotten by history.
Peter Salem, a slave from Framingham, MA fought for the Americans in the Revolutionary War. He was awarded his freedom, but died during the battle of Bunker Hill (Boston) after shooting British Major Pitcairn .
A captain in General George Washington’s army named “Prince Whipple” was a Revolutionary War hero.
Olaudah Equiano a.k.a. Gustavas Vassa: An expert seaman, In 1878, he became the first former slave to write an autobiography, The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, Or Gustavus Vassa, The African. Written by Himself. After purchasing his own freedom, he joined the early abolitionist movement. He was active in the REPATRIATION MOVEMENT (bringing slaves back to their native lands in Africa).
Phillis Wheatley, a slave from Boston, became a published poet and author in England. She authored Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral in 1773, the first book of poetry published by an African-American.
Crispus Attucks, killed during the Boston Massacre, became the first American Patriot to die in the Revolution.
Prince Hall of Boston, after gaining his freedom, ran a successful tannery, and created a “lodge” for other successful African-Americans.
George Middleton of Boston, led “the Bucks of Massachussetts”, an all-black regiment during the Revolutionary War. After the war, he was an abolitionist and organizer of black political events.
Throughout the northeast, before African-Americans could vote, they held their own elections for neighborhood, or city titles, such as “mayor” or governor”. Though unofficial, these men were important, as politicians would try to gain their influence.
Venture Smith was captured and enslaved as an eight year-old. He was a brilliant sea captain, as were many of the slaves from the Ghana & Benin region of Africa. Eventually, Smith would purchase his freedom, and own a large shipping company. He would purchase slaves to free them, and then hire them for pay.
Paul Cuffe of New Bedford, MA. was the son of a slave and a Wampanoag native. In 1800, Cuffe built several schools for African-American children throughout Eastern Massachusetts. Cuffe and other wealthy, black Newport merchants created the Free-African Union Society in 1780 who paid to re- settle slaves in Africa. They would purchase slaves, and pay for their travel back to Africa.
Newport Gardner, with Cuffe in the Free-Africa Union Society, left Africa a free boy of eleven, but was sold into slavery upon arrival. After winning the lottery, he purchased his own freedom, and used what was left to start a shipping business and begin an abolitionist society in Rhode Island. He helped create churches and schools, and moved back to Africa at age 26. Gardner, and half of his fellow passengers, became sick on the way home to Africa and died shortly after arriving.
“York”, the slave of Merriweather Lewis, was an important member of the Lewis and Clark Expedition.
Bonga Township in Minnesota is named for George Bonga, a multi-lingual trapper who became an aid to Minnesota Governor Lewis Cass.
James Beckwourth, a skilled frontiersman carved a trail through the Rockies, which is still named after him today.
Jupiter Hammon became an accomplished author in the early 1800’s. Hammon tried to convert other blacks to Christianity.
Prominent early African-American poets include:
George Moses Horton
Frances Harper
Rev. Daniel A. Payne
Harriet E. Wilson published the first novel by an African-American Woman in 1854.
Jan Earnst Matzeliger created a shoe-making machine that revolutionized the shoe industry.
Sojourner Truth was an abolitionist, and women’s Rights ADVOCATE (works for a political movement). Her autobiography was published in 1847, The Narrative of Sojourner Truth: A Northern Slave.
Benjamin Banneker was a scientific and mathematical genius. His knowledge of science and astronomy caught the attention of President Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson even hired him to help design the streets for the new Washington, DC.
There were African-American doctors, lawyers, college professors, company owners, singers, and other success stories. All while slavery existed!