People, Locations, Episodes

J.R. Clifford, News Publisher, and Lawyer born

*J.R. Clifford was born on this date in 1848.  He was a Black newspaper publisher, editor, writer, schoolteacher, lawyer, and principal.    John Robert (“J.R.”) Clifford was born in Williamsport, in what was then Hardy County, Virginia (now in Grant County), near present-day Moorefield. Clifford’s parents, Isaac and Mary Clifford, and grandparents were “free blacks” who had lived in that region of Virginia for several generations. There were […]

The Free Soil Party is Formed

This date celebrates The Free-Soil Party, a minor but influential political party in the pre-Civil War period of American history.

The party, founded in 1848, was opposed to the extension of slavery into the western territories. Representative David Wilmot of Pennsylvania in 1846 introduced into Congress his famous Wilmot Proviso, calling for the prohibition of slavery in the vast southwestern lands that had been newly acquired from Mexico.

Corvine Patterson, Politician born

*Corvine Patterson was born on this date in 1848.  He was a Black businessman and politician. He was born a slave at Roanoak in Howard Co., Missouri.  At the age of fifteen took leave of his master, going to Glasgow, where he enlisted in the 65th regiment of U. S. Colored Volunteers. He was mustered […]

John Ward, Black Seminole Scout born

*The birth of John Ward in 1847 is celebrated on this date. He was a Black Seminole scout in the U.S. Army and a Medal of Honor Recipient.

Pompey Factor, Military Scout born

*The birth of Pompey Factor in 1849 is celebrated on this date. He was a Black Seminole scout for the U.S. Army during the Indian Wars.

Thomas E. Miller, Educator, and Politician born

This date marks the birth of Thomas Ezekiel Miller in 1849. He was a Black politician and educator who was elected to the South Carolina Congress and served from 1889 to 1891.

Archibald Grimke, Journalist and Activist born

*Archibald Grimké was born on this date in 1849.  He was a Black lawyer, intellectual, journalist, and activist.   Archibald Henry Grimké was born into slavery near Charleston, South Carolina, in 1849. He was the eldest of three sons of Nancy Weston, who was also born into slavery, daughter of an enslaved black African woman […]

Madam Yoko, African Leader born

*The birth of Madame Yoko is celebrated on this date in 1849.  Madam Yoko, or Mammy Yoko, was a leader of the Mende people in Sierra Leone.   Madam Yoko, originally called Soma, was born in the Gbo Chiefdom.  She changed her name to Yoko at her Sande initiation ceremony, during which she became known […]

Ruy Barbosa, Brazilian Diplomat born

*Ruy Barbosa, also known as Rui Barbosa, was born on this date in 1849. He was a Brazilian diplomat, writer, jurist, and politician.   Rui Barbosa de Oliveira de Oliveira was born in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil. He gave his first public speech for the abolition of slavery when he was 19. For the rest of his life, he […]

John L. Waller, Lawyer, and Journalist born

*John L. Waller was born on this date in 1850.  He was a Black lawyer, politician, journalist, publisher, businessman, military leader, and diplomat.  John Lewis Waller was born into slavery in New Madrid County, Missouri. At the end of the American Civil War, he moved with his family to a farm in Tama County, Iowa. […]

Charlotte Ray, Teacher, and Attorney born

This date marks the birth of Charlotte E. Ray in 1850. She was a Black teacher and the first Black female lawyer in the United States.

Gordon ‘Whipped Peter’, Slave, and Soldier born

*The birth of Gordon “Whipped Peter” is celebrated on this date in c 1850. He was a Black slave in America who escaped and became the subject of photographs documenting the extensive scarring of his back from his overseers’ whippings. Gordon was born in Louisiana on a plantation owned by John and Bridget Lyons. He […]

The Act For The Government and Protection of Indians is Enacted

*On this date in 1850, The Act for the Government and Protection of Indians (Chapter 133, Cal. Stats.) was enacted. It was introduced by the first session of the California State Legislature and signed into law by the first Governor of California, Peter Hardeman Burnett. The legislation led to the forced servitude of many Native Americans […]

William Harrison Heard, Politician and Clergyman born

*William H. Heard was born on this date in 1850.  He was a Black clergyman and politician.  William Henry (Harrison) Heard was born a slave in Elbert County, Georgia, some three miles from the small settlement of Longstreet. His father, George, was a blacksmith and later a wheelwright and carpenter of mixed ethnicity. George was the son of an […]

Josiah Settle, Lawyer and Politician born

*Josiah Settle was born on this date in 1850. He was a Black lawyer and politician. Josiah “Joe” Thomas Settle was born into slavery in the Cumberland Mountains of East Tennessee or North Carolina to Nancy Settle. His father owned the family, also named Josiah. And at the time of his birth, his master moved […]