Abolitionist Biographies

…turned to Virginia and became heavily involved in politics. William was married to Mary Hodges, an Englishwoman listed in the census as white. When she died Brooklynite William E. Whiting, a well-known abolitionist in the American Anti-Slavery Society delivered her eulogy. HODGES, Willis Willis Hodges Feb. 12 1815, Princess Anne County, VA – Feb. 24, 1890, VA Entrepreneur, Grocer, Williamsburg residents. Willis Hodges followed his brother W…

Civil War & Beyond (1861 – 1867)

…. After the Emancipation Proclamation went into effect, the Union Army began allowing African American men to enlist for the first time. Despite receiving lower wages, poor supplies, and lesser chances for promotion than their white colleagues, these men demonstrated tremendous bravery to end slavery and be recognized as equal citizens of the United States. Lieutenant Peter Vogelsang. Copy photograph of a carte de visite, originally taken by unkn…

US Department of Education Resources

…and a series of public programs scheduled for the next five years. Legacy of Slavery in Maryland preserves and promotes experiences that have shaped the lives of Maryland’s African American population. From the day that Mathias de Sousa and Francisco landed in St. Mary’s County aboard the Ark and the Dove in 1634, black Marylanders have made significant contributions to both the state and nation in the political, economic, agricultur…

Crisis Decade (1850 – 1860)

…973.5.854. Brooklyn Historical Society. Teacher’s Manual Section 4: Lesson 13 A generation of Brooklyn industrialists, including the Pierrepont and Havemeyer families profited from the nation’s sweet tooth. William and Henry Pierrepont were the sons of Hezekiah Beers Pierrepont, Brooklyn’s first land developer. In 1857, the brothers opened the Pierrepont Stores (or warehouses) designed to house commodities until the taxes were paid at the Customs…

Abolitionist Brooklyn (1828 – 1849)

…. Teacher’s Manual Section 2: Lesson 9 Critics often demonized abolitionists in the press, by arguing that they promoted miscegenation, or interracial relationships, a sexual perversity in their eyes. In doing so they belittled the abolition movement which represented the first time that Americans crossed race and gender lines to work with mutual political purpose. Prints such as E. W. Clay’s “Fruits of Amalgamation” reflected the contemporary pr…

For Educators

…nary people who came from all walks of life—educators, homeowners, businessmen and women, church leaders, journalists, and writers. They created vital local, regional, and national networks of communication and solidarity that advanced their anti-slavery ideals. In that sense, they actively shaped the city’s and the nation’s history as well. This teacher’s manual provides you with a variety of creative and engaging strategies to help students thi…

A Gradual Emancipation (1783 – 1827)

…of 21 upon the death of his owner Maria Magdalene Ruble. However, he remained enslaved after she died. Harry enlisted the help of William Livingston, the Surrogate for Kings County, who wrote to the N-YMS. Founded in 1785 by Manhattan’s white elite, the N-YMS was committed to gradually ending slavery. During gradual emancipation they focused on three primary concerns in Kings County: the enslavement of free African Americans; slave sales between…

Timeline

…Americans. But when African Americans were segregated to an end gallery for which they had to pay and forced to listen to the pro-slavery sermons of its Irish pastor Alexander M’Caine, they renounced their membership. The Brooklyn AME Church became central to the lives of ordinary people. Not only a place of worship, it served as a venue for educational initiatives, political protests, and temperance meetings. They church also assisted with fugit…