African Americans in the New Nation: 1783–1820 Chapter 5

Enslaved Women at Work This watercolor painting by Benjamin Henry Latrobe portrays enslaved women at work near Fredericksburg, Virginia in They are clearing a field with heavy hoes under the careful supervision of a white overseer. SOURCE: The Granger Collection

Escaping to the North Thousands of African Americans won their own freedom by escaping to the North before the Civil War.

The Abolition of Slavery in the North

“Cuffe near him... grasps his hand.” This engraving originally appeared in Boston in 1793, with the caption, “Cuffe near him... grasps his hand.” It suggests the progress African Americans had made in the North but also the contempt in which many white northerners held them. The object of the picture is to ridicule Massachusetts governor John Hancock for participating in a black celebration. Source: The Library Company of Philadelphia

Emancipation and Slavery in the Early Republic Map 5–1. Emancipation and Slavery in the Early Republic This map indicates the abolition policies adopted by the states of the Northeast between 1777 and 1804, the antislavery impact of the Northwest Ordinance of 1787, and the extent of slavery in the South during the early republic.

Slave Populations in the Mid-Atlantic States, 1790–1860

Pepper-Pot, a Scene in the Philadelphia Market The title of this 1811 painting by German-American artist John Lewis Krimmel is Pepper-Pot, a Scene in the Philadelphia Market. Slavery still existed in Pennsylvania when Krimmel recorded this scene. It is likely, however, that the black woman who is selling pepper-pot (a type of stew) was free. Source: Philadelphia Museum of Art: Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Edward B. Leisenring, Jr. in honor of the 125th anniversary of the museum, Sumpter Priddy III, Inc.

Distribution of the Southern Slave Population, 1800–1860. Figure 5–1. Distribution of the Southern Slave Population, 1800–1860. The demand for slaves in the cotton-growing deep South produced a major shift in the distribution of the slave population.

Prince Hall This late-eighteenth-century portrait of Prince Hall (1735?–1807) dressed as a gentleman places him among masonic symbols. A former slave, a skilled craftsman and entrepreneur, an abolitionist, and an advocate of black education, Hall is best remembered as the founder of the African Lodge of North America, popularly known as the Prince Hall Masons.

Philadelphia’s Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church This drawing portrays Philadelphia’s Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church as it appeared in It had been built in 1793 under the direction of Richard Allen, the first bishop of the AME denomination, and had been “rebuilt” in Source: The Library Company of Philadelphia

Raphaelle Peale Raphaelle Peale, the son of famous Philadelphia portraitist Charles Wilson Peale, completed this oil portrait of the Reverend Absalom Jones (1746–1818) in Reverend Jones is shown in his ecclesiastical robes holding a Bible in his hand.

Toussaint Louverture Toussaint Louverture (1744–1803) led the black rebellion in the French colony of St. Domingue on the Caribbean island of Hispaniola that led to the creation of the independent black republic of Haiti in Louverture became an inspiration for black rebels in the United States. Source: Stock Montage, Inc./Historical Pictures Collection

War of 1812 Map 5–2. War of 1812 As during the War for Independence, African Americans fought on both sides during the War of Some joined the British army that burned Washington, D.C. Others helped the United States win control of Lake Erie in 1813 and stop the British invasion of Louisiana at the Battle of New Orleans in 1815.

The Battle of Put-in Bay The Battle of Put-in Bay, fought on Lake Erie in September 1813, was a notable American victory during the War of This postcard suggests the prevalance of black sailors among American commander Oliver Hazard Perry’s crew.

The Missouri Compromise of Map 5–3. The Missouri Compromise of Under the Missouri Compromise, Missouri entered the Union as a slave state, Maine entered as a free state, and Congress banned slavery in the huge unorganized portion of the old Louisiana Territory north of the 36° 30´ line of latitude.