William Cooper Nell. the Colored Patriots of the American Revolution
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
William Cooper Nell. The Colored Patriots of the American ... http://docsouth.unc.edu/neh/nell/nell.html About | Collections | Authors | Titles | Subjects | Geographic | K-12 | Facebook | Buy DocSouth Books The Colored Patriots of the American Revolution, With Sketches of Several Distinguished Colored Persons: To Which Is Added a Brief Survey of the Condition And Prospects of Colored Americans: Electronic Edition. Nell, William Cooper Funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities supported the electronic publication of this title. Text scanned (OCR) by Fiona Mills and Sarah Reuning Images scanned by Fiona Mills and Sarah Reuning Text encoded by Carlene Hempel and Natalia Smith First edition, 1999 ca. 800K Academic Affairs Library, UNC-CH University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 1999. © This work is the property of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. It may be used freely by individuals for research, teaching and personal use as long as this statement of availability is included in the text. Call number E 269 N3 N4 (Winston-Salem State University) The electronic edition is a part of the UNC-CH digitization project, Documenting the American South. All footnotes are moved to the end of paragraphs in which the reference occurs. Any hyphens occurring in line breaks have been removed, and the trailing part of a word has been joined to the preceding line. All quotation marks, em dashes and ampersand have been transcribed as entity references. All double right and left quotation marks are encoded as " and " respectively. All single right and left quotation marks are encoded as ' and ' respectively. All em dashes are encoded as -- Indentation in lines has not been preserved. Running titles have not been preserved. Spell-check and verification made against printed text using Author/Editor (SoftQuad) and Microsoft Word spell check programs. Library of Congress Subject Headings, 21st edition, 1998 LC Subject Headings: African Americans. African Americans -- Biography. Slaves -- United States -- Biography. African American soldiers -- History -- 18th century. African American soldiers -- Biography. United States -- History -- Revolution, 1775-1783 -- Participation, African Americans. United States -- History -- Revolution, 1775-1783 -- African American troops. African Americans -- Civil rights -- History -- 18th century. African Americans -- Civil rights -- History -- 19th century. Attucks, Crispus, d. 1770. 1999-10-12, Celine Noel and Wanda Gunther revised TEIHeader and created catalog record for the electronic edition. 1 sur 125 22/10/2015 19:10 William Cooper Nell. The Colored Patriots of the American ... http://docsouth.unc.edu/neh/nell/nell.html 1999-05-30, Natalia Smith, project manager, finished TEI-conformant encoding and final proofing. 1999-05-28, Carlene Hempel finished TEI/SGML encoding 1999-05-14, Fiona Mills and Sarah Reuning finished scanning (OCR) and proofing. Crispus Attucks, the First Martyr of the American Revolution, King (now State) Street, Boston, March 5th, 1770. Page 16. 2 sur 125 22/10/2015 19:10 William Cooper Nell. The Colored Patriots of the American ... http://docsouth.unc.edu/neh/nell/nell.html 3 sur 125 22/10/2015 19:10 William Cooper Nell. The Colored Patriots of the American ... http://docsouth.unc.edu/neh/nell/nell.html THE COLORED PATRIOTS OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION, WITH SKETCHES OF SEVERAL DISTINGUISHED COLORED PERSONS: TO WHICH IS ADDED A BRIEF SURVEY OF THE Condition and Prospects of Colored Americans. By WM. C. NELL. WITH AN INTRODUCTION BY HARRIET BEECHER STOWE. BOSTON: PUBLISHED BY ROBERT F. WALLCUT. 1855. Page verso Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year eighteen hundred and fifty-five, By WILLIAM C. NELL, In the Clerk's office of the District Court for the District of Massachusetts. BOSTON: J. B. YERRINTON AND SON, PRINTERS. 4 sur 125 22/10/2015 19:10 William Cooper Nell. The Colored Patriots of the American ... http://docsouth.unc.edu/neh/nell/nell.html Page 3 CONTENTS. INTRODUCTION, by Harriet Beecher Stowe . 5 Introduction to pamphlet edition, by Wendell Phillips . 7 Preface, by the Author . 9 CHAPTER I. MASSACHUSETTS. Crispus Attucks-- Colored Americans on Bunker Hill--Seymour Burr-- Jeremy Jonah--A Brave Colored Artillerist--Governor Hancock's Flag--Big Dick--Primus Hall--James and Hosea Easton--Job Lewis--Jack Grove--Bosson Wright--Colonial Reminiscences--Mum Bett-- Phillis Wheatley--Paul Cuffe--Marshpee-- Indians--Action of the Constitutional Convention in regard to Colored Citizens--Facts indicating improvement . 13-118 CHAPTER II. NEW HAMPSHIRE. Jude Hall--Legislative Postponement of Emancipation--Last Slave in New Hampshire-- Senator Morrill's Tribute to a Colored Citizen . 119-121 CHAPTER III. VERMONT. Seven hundred British soldiers escorted by a Colored Patriot--Lemuel Haynes-- Judge Harrington's Anti-Fugitive-Slave-Law Decision . 122-125 CHAPTER IV. RHODE ISLAND. Admission of Hon. Tristam Burges--Defence of Red Bank--Arrest of Major General Prescott by Prince--Colored Regiment of Rhode Island--Speech of Dr. Harris--Loyalty during the Dorr Rebellion . 126-131 CHAPTER V. CONNECTICUT. Hon. Calvin Goddard's Testimony--Captain Humphrey's Colored Company-- Fac Simile of General Washington's Certificate--Hamet, General Washington's Servant--Poor Jack--Ebenezer Hills--Latham and Freeman--Franchise of Colored Citizens--David Ruggles--Progress . 132-144 CHAPTER VI. NEW YORK. Negro Plot--Debate in the State Convention of 1821 on the Franchise of Colored Citizens--New York Colored Soldiery--Military Convention in Syracuse, 1854--Extract from a Speech of H. Garnet--Cyrus Clarke's victory at the ballot-box--J. M. Whitfield--Statistical and other facts . 145-159 CHAPTER VII. NEW JERSEY. Oliver Cromwell, Samuel Charlton--Hagar--Consistent Fourth of July Celebration . 160-165 Page 4 CHAPTER VIII. PENNSYLVANIA. James Forten--John B. Vashon--Major Jeffrey--John Johnson and John Davis--Wm. Burleigh--Conduct of Colored Philadelphians during the Pestilence--Charles Black--James Derham--The Jury-Bench and Ballot-Box--Gleanings . 166-197 CHAPTER IX. DELAWARE. Prince Whipple--The Colored Soldier at the crossing of the Delaware--Proscriptive Law . 198-200 CHAPTER X. MARYLAND. Thomas Savoy--Thomas Hollen --John Moore--Benjamin Banneker--Frances Ellen Watkins . 201-213 CHAPTER XI. VIRGINIA. The last of Braddock's Men-- Patriotic Slave Girl--Benjamin Morris--Consistency of a Revolutionary Hero--Simon Lee--Major Mitchell's Slave--Gen. Washington's desire to emancipate slaves--Hon. A. P. Upshur's Tribute to David Rich--Tribute to Washington by the Emancipated--Aged Slave of Washington--Insurrection at Southampton--Virginia Maroons in the Dismal Swamp . 214-230 CHAPTER XII. NORTH CAROLINA. David Walker--Jonathan Overton--Delph Williamson--George M. Horton . 231-235 CHAPTER XIII. SOUTH CAROLINA. Hon. Chas. Pinckney's Testimony--Capt. Williamson--Sale of a Revolutionary Soldier-- Slaves freed by the Legislature--Veteran of Fort Moultrie--Jehu Jones--Complexional Barriers--Revolt of 1738--The Black Saxons--Denmark Veazie's Insurrection in 1822--William G. Nell . 236-255 CHAPTER XIV. GEORGIA. Massacre at Blount's Fort--Monsieur De Bordeaux--Slave freed by the Legislature . 256-264 CHAPTER XV. KENTUCKY. Henry Boyd--Lewis Hayden--The heroic and generous Kentucky slave . 265-276 CHAPTER XVI. OHIO. Cleveland Meeting--Dr. Pennington --Extracts from Oration of William H. Day--Bird's-eye view of Buckeye progress . 277-285 CHAPTER XVII. LOUISIANA. Proclamation of General Jackson--Colored Veterans--Battle of Orleans--Jordan B. Noble, the Drummer--John Julius--Testimony of Hon. R. C. Winthrop--Cotton-Bale Barricade . 286-306 CHAPTER XVIII. FLORIDA. Toney Proctor . 307-309 CONDITION AND PROSPECTS OF COLORED AMERICANS . 311-381 APPENDIX . 383-396 Page 5 INTRODUCTION. THE colored race have been generally considered by their enemies, and sometimes even by their friends, as deficient in energy and courage. Their virtues have been supposed to be principally negative ones. This little collection of interesting incidents, made by a colored man, will redeem the character of the race from this misconception, and show how much injustice there may often be in a generally admitted idea. In considering the services of the Colored Patriots of the Revolution, we are to reflect upon them as far more magnanimous, because rendered to a nation which did not acknowledge them as citizens and equals, and in whose interests and prosperity they had less at stake. It was not for their own land they fought, not even for a land which had adopted them, but for a land which had enslaved them, and whose laws, even in freedom, oftener oppressed than protected. Bravery, under such circumstances, has a 5 sur 125 22/10/2015 19:10 William Cooper Nell. The Colored Patriots of the American ... http://docsouth.unc.edu/neh/nell/nell.html peculiar beauty and merit. Page 6 It is to be hoped that the reading of these sketches will give new self-respect and confidence to the race here represented. Let them emulate the noble deeds and sentiments of their ancestors, and feel that the dark skin can never be a badge of disgrace, while it has been ennobled by such examples. And their white brothers in reading may remember, that generosity, disinterested courage and bravery, are of not particular race and complexion, and that the image of the Heavenly Father may be reflected alike by all. Each record of worth in this oppressed and despised should be pondered, for it is by many such that the cruel and unjust public sentiment, which has so long proscribed them, may be reversed, and full opportunities given them to take rank among the nations of the earth. H. B. STOWE. ANDOVER, October, 1855. Page 7 INTRODUCTION TO PAMPHLET EDITION. The following pages are an effort to stem the tide of prejudice against the colored race. The white man despises the colored man, and has come to think him fit only for the menial drudgery to which the majority of the race has been so long doomed. "This prejudice was never reasoned up and will never be reasoned down." It must be lived down.