People, Locations, Episodes

Elijah Marrs, Soldier, and Minister born

*The birth of Elijah Marrs is celebrated on this date in 1840. He was a Black soldier, minister, and educator. Elijah P. Marrs was born a slave in Shelby County, Kentucky, to Andrews and Frances Marrs. His father, Andrew, had been granted his freedom by his master before Elijah was born, but his mother was […]

Mary Elizabeth Bowser, Undercover Agent born

*This date in 1840 celebrates the birth of Mary Elizabeth Bowser. She was a Black undercover agent during the American Civil War.

Bowser was born a slave on a plantation near Richmond, Virginia to owner John Van Lew, a hardware businessman. Van Lew’s daughter, Elizabeth and her mother freed the slaves after his death in 1851. Mary Elizabeth stayed with the Van Lew family as a servant; the family had her educated in Philadelphia. She married William or Wilson Bowser, a free Black man, while she worked at the Van Lew home.

James M. Turner, Activist born

*This date in 1840 is celebrated as the birth date of James M. Turner, a Black Reconstruction Era politician, activist, educator, and diplomat.   James Milton Turner was born into slavery in St. Louis, Missouri. As a child, he was sold on the steps of the St. Louis US Courthouse for $50 (US$ 1,500 in […]

Christian Fleetwood, Military Officer born

Christian Fleetwood was born in this date in 1840. He was a Black army officer, editor, a musician, and a government officer.

John Hyman, Congressman born

On this date in 1840, John A. Hyman was born. He was a Black storekeeper, farmer, and politician.

Benjamin A. Boseman, Doctor and Politician born

*Benjamin A. Boseman was born on this date in 1840. He was a Black physician and politician. Benjamin Antony Boseman Jr. was born in Troy, New York, the son of Benjamin and Annaretta Boseman, the oldest of five children. In the 1860 U.S. Census, he was listed as mulatto. His father was a steward on a […]

Matthew Gaines, Minister, and Politician born

*Matthew Gaines was born on this date in 1840. He was a Black community leader, minister, and Texas State Senator. Matthew Gaines was born near Alexandria, Louisiana to a slave woman owned by the Martin Despallier family. Gaines learned to read from a white boy who smuggled in books. This boy may have been young […]

J. R. Kealoha, Soldier born

*The birth of J. R. Kealoha is celebrated on this date in 1840. He was a Native Hawaiian citizen of the Kingdom of Hawaii who became a Union Army soldier during the American Civil War. Kealoha enlisted in the 41st United States Colored Infantry, a United States Colored Troops regiment formed in Pennsylvania. Participating in the […]

Felix Battles, Soldier, and Barber born

*The birth of Felix Battles is celebrated on this date in 1840. He was a Black soldier and barber. Born enslaved on a cotton plantation near Memphis, TN, he lived his childhood near Holly Springs, MS. Between 1856 and 1860, Battles escaped his enslavers. He is in the 1860 census in Dubuque, Iowa, with three […]

Lewis Henry Douglass, Administrator born

9*Lewis Henry Douglass was born on this date in 1840. He was a Black typesetter, soldier, teacher, and administrator. He was born in New Bedford, Massachusetts, the oldest son of Frederick Douglass and his first wife, Anna Murray Douglass. He was well educated and, as a boy apprenticed, in Rochester, New York, as a typesetter for his father’s […]

Yaa Asantewaa born

*Yaa Asantewaa was born on this date in 1840.  She was an African farmer, politician, military leader, and queen mother of Ejisu in the Ashanti Empire, now part of modern-day Ghana. Born in Besease, in central Ghana, Asantewaa was the older of two children. Her brother, Afrane Panin, became the chief of Edweso, a nearby […]

The Ashworth Act is Passed

*The Ashworth Act was passed on this date in 1840. The Texas Senate passed this legislation. It made the Ashworth Family, freedmen, and formerly enslaved people in the Republic of Texas exempt from a new law stipulating that all Black Texans either leave or be enslaved. The Ashworths were Portuguese North Africans. They migrated from South Carolina, […]

Henry Morton Stanley, Colonial Administrator born

*Sir Henry Morton Stanley was born on this date in 1841.  He was a white-European (Welsh) journalist, explorer, soldier, colonial administrator, author, and politician.  Born as John Rowlands in Denbigh, Denbighshire, Wales. His mother, Elizabeth Parry was 18 years old at the time of his birth. She abandoned him as a very young baby and cut off all communication. Stanley never […]

Blanche K. Bruce, Senator born

On this date, Blanche K. Bruce was born in 1841. He was an early Black senator from Mississippi during the Reconstruction era.

The United States v. Schooner Amistad is Decided.

*On this date, 1841, United States v. Schooner Amistad, 40 U.S. (15 Pet.) 518 (1841), was decided.  This was a United States Supreme Court case resulting from the rebellion of Africans on board the Spanish schooner La Amistad in 1839.  It was an unusual freedom suit that involved international issues and parties, as well as United States law. The case was the most important court […]