Congo Square, New Orleans, Louisiana

The area now known as Congo Square, located in the Tremé neighborhood of New Orleans, emerged as an important public activity locale during the early decades of the French colonial period. Beginning around the middle of the eighteenth century, the Place des Nègres, as it … Read MoreCongo Square, New Orleans, Louisiana

Free African Society of Philadelphia (1787- ?)

In 1787, Richard Allen and Absalom Jones, prominent black ministers in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, formed the Free African Society (FAS) of Philadelphia, a mutual aid and religious organization. Allen and Jones envisioned the Society as the foundation of an interdenominational church for the city’s free black … Read MoreFree African Society of Philadelphia (1787- ?)

Cowboys of Color in South America

In the following account North Carolina State University historian Richard Slatta explores the little known history and heritage of South American cowboys of African and mixed race background. Many students of frontier societies, most notably Frederick Jackson Turner, have depicted the frontier as a place … Read MoreCowboys of Color in South America

Mother Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church [Philadelphia] (1794- )

Mother Bethel African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church, the first African Methodist Episcopal Church in the nation, was founded in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1794 by Richard Allen, a former slave.  Allen founded Mother Bethel AME after the church he had been attending, St. George’s Methodist Episcopal … Read MoreMother Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church [Philadelphia] (1794- )

Joshua Johnston (ca. 1763-1832)

Joshua Johnston, also known as Joshua Johnson, was a portraitist active in Baltimore, Maryland between 1790 and 1825, and the first African American to gain recognition as an artist. Primarily a painter of members of the slave-holding aristocracy, he was rediscovered by Baltimore genealogist and … Read MoreJoshua Johnston (ca. 1763-1832)

1st Rhode Island Regiment

The 1st Rhode Island Regiment was a Continental Army regiment during the American Revolutionary War. The 1st Rhode Island Regiment became known as the “Black Regiment” due to its allowing the recruitment of African Americans in 1778.  This decision, designed to help fill dwindling ranks … Read More1st Rhode Island Regiment

Slavery and Freedom on a Canadian Shore: Africa’s Children in Nova Scotia, 1750-2009

In the account below Nova Scotian historian Sharon Robart-Johnson describes the research and writing that culminated in her book, African’s Children: A History of Blacks in Yarmouth, Nova Scotia. Her book, the first history of Afro-Canadians in Nova Scotia, focuses on her community of Greenville, … Read MoreSlavery and Freedom on a Canadian Shore: Africa’s Children in Nova Scotia, 1750-2009