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George Moses Horton in Philadelphia--1866 Author(S): Reginald H 'Let us Desert this Friendless Place': George Moses Horton in Philadelphia--1866 Author(s): Reginald H. Pitts Source: The Journal of Negro History, Vol. 80, No. 4 (Autumn, 1995), pp. 145-156 Published by: Association for the Study of African American Life and History Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2717439 Accessed: 17-08-2016 21:17 UTC Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at http://about.jstor.org/terms JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected]. Association for the Study of African American Life and History is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to The Journal of Negro History This content downloaded from 171.66.208.10 on Wed, 17 Aug 2016 21:17:20 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms 'LET US DESERT THIS FRIENDLESS PLACE': GEORGE MOSES HORTON IN PHILADELPHIA-1866 By Reginald H. Pitts* George Moses Horton, the "slave poet" who wrote and published poetry in the years before and after the Civil War, was a poet of no mean ability, "a true poet, of one for whom, indeed, the writing of poetry, whatever its nature or subject, was an in- escapable accompaniment to the very act of breathing."' Horton's final years have long been shrouded in obscurity-most of the known information on his last years rests on the testimony (that of questionable validity) of one man. Although this study does not claim to solve the mystery of Horton's last years, it attempts to give some idea on how and when his life ended. The author hopes that this short study, cursory as it is, will stimulate further investigation into this area of Horton's life. Born on the William Horton plantation near Rich Square in Northampton County, North Carolina, about 1798, George Moses Horton taught himself to read from an old spelling book, a Wesley hymnal, and the Bible, while tending the plantation's live- stock. As a young slave, George Moses would go to the nearby village of Chapel Hill on Sundays to sell farm produce to the students from the University of North Caro- lina. He became a favorite among the students, who soon determined that George should give a speech, or "spout" on any topic they wished, before they would purchase fruits and vegetables from the Horton farm.2 After some time, George made the undergraduates aware of a gift he prized more highly than forensic abilities-a knack for rhyming verses. Although he could not then write, he was soon composing acrostics (someone wrote them down for his dictation) on the names of "tip-top belles of Virginia. South Carolina, and Georgia"-sisters and sweethearts of the students. His versification was so successful that he was soon charging fifty cents for a poem and seventy-five cents for a love letter, and had, on the average, "at least a dozen orders a week." From the start, George soon sent out his poetry for publications in local newspapers, and subsequently published two books of poetry while enslaved.3 Despite all this activity-along with Horton's personal ap- peals made to influential national personages that, for a number of reasons, went awry-Horton grew old in slavery. At the beginning of the Civil War, sixty-one (or -two) year old George Moses Hor- ton was the slave of Hall Horton, a tanner and farmer in Chatham County near the town of Pittsboro, a few miles from Chapel Hill. Hall Horton was also the grandson of George's first owner. During the war, George spent his time, as he had for so many * Reginald Pitts is Project Historian, John Milner Associates of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. This content downloaded from 171.66.208.10 on Wed, 17 Aug 2016 21:17:20 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms 146 JOURNAL OF NEGRO HISTORY years, between Hall Horton's farm and tannery and Chapel Hill on the campus of the University of North Carolina.4 He was in Chapel Hill when the Union Army, in the form of the 9th Michigan Cavalry, arrived in late 1864; the story of his stay with Captain William H. S. Banks and the publication of Naked Genius in 1865 have been recounted elsewhere.5 After Banks and Horton parted company, Horton started composing and compiling poems for a new work entitled The Black Poet. However, the publication of Naked Genius does not appear to have raised any hopes of success (or revenue) for Horton while he remained in North Carolina; it appears that Horton then decided to try and find backing for his new book in the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.6 Why Philadelphia? Such a contemplated journey must have appeared to have been a daunting one for someone who probably had not travelleld fifty or more miles from his home in his long life, The idea may have been planted by missionaries and educators from the North, who arrived in North Carolina soon after Appomattox. A good num- ber of these people were African-Americans, who would have been familiar both with Horton's work and his attempts to buy his way out of slavery. These educators would have been impressed by Horton and his accomplishments. It may have been one of these folks who suggested that he may have a better chance of getting The Black Poet published in Philadelphia and thus arranged for Horton's passage to the Quaker City.7 Another possibility may have been Dennis Heartt, editor and publisher of the Hills- borough (N.C.) Record, and the publisher of Horton's second book of poetry, The Po- etical Works of George Moses Horton, published in 1845. Heartt, originally a Connect- icut Yankee, had lived almost twenty years in Philadelphia before moving to North Carolina for his health. While in Philadelphia, Heartt had married a birthright Quaker, Elizabeth Shinn, and subsequently reared a family of four. After the end of the Civil War, Heartt continued publishing the Record while his two daughters, Caroline and Henrietta, ran a boardinghouse for university students at their home a few miles from Chapel Hill and Pittsboro. If Horton had kept in contact with the Heartt family, which is likely, the probability exists that the Heartt family may have provided the impetus and possibly the funds to send Horton North.8 So sixty-seven (or -eight) year old George Moses Horton said farewell to his wife, the "connubial flower/whom 'twas my fate to wed,"9 whose name may have been Martha Snipes10; his forty-six year old daughter Rhody Snipes"1; his forty-three year old son "Free" Snipes12; and assorted grandchildren and great-grandchildren-includ- ing those of the marriage of Van (or Van Buren) Bynum and Miranda Snipes, Rhody's daughter"3-and left for Philadelphia sometime late in 1865 or early in 1866. When Horton arrived in Philadelphia, he would have found a bustling metropolis, the likes of which he may never have seen before. Philadelphia was rapidly expanding toward its 1870 population of 674,022, of which 22,147 were of either full or partial African descent.14 Although small, the black population was not voiceless or without resources; they often raised their voices in protest against oppressive actions and fought hard to preserve their rights. If Horton travelled alone to Philadelphia, it is plausible that his benefactor (or benefactors) had someone meet him at the train arriv- ing in Philadelphia and then ushered him to the house where he would stay. Since the Philadelphia city directories for the period of 1865 through 1868 do not show an ad- This content downloaded from 171.66.208.10 on Wed, 17 Aug 2016 21:17:20 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms THIS FRIENDLESS PLACE 147 dress for George Moses Horton it is likely that he stayed as a guest at someone's home, or roomed in a boarding house.15 Somehow, George Moses Horton either through his benefactor, or on his own, con- tacted the Banneker Institute, "a voluntary intellectual organization" of young black male Philadelphians devoted to the development and implementation of self-help and self-improvement procedures.16 The membership was made up of young (late twenties, early thirties) free-born Philadelphia natives who were primarily graduates of the Insti- tute for Colored Youth (much later Cheyney University). Public lectures, where mem- bers or invited guests would speak on various subjects (including "math/natural sci- ences, philosophy/history, business skills, and predictably, a variety of race-related topics"17) were devised as "topics that would interest and edify the African-American population." The Institute, one of "a proliferation of young men's clubs catering to specific ethnic, religious, or other special interests," could boast at various times that the cream of Philadelphia black society composed a large number of their members.'8 Sometime that summer, George Moses Horton received an invitation from the Ban- neker Institute to appear before them on the last day of August with selections of his work and the manuscript of The Black Poet. One feels that he may have entered onto his quest with a mixture of relief and trepidation. Here was his chance to finally bring forth his talent before people of his own color, who would appreciate it more than the students of the University of North Carolina had.
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