Mary Ann Shadd
Encyclopedia
Mary Ann Shadd Cary was born to Abraham and Harriett Shadd, both free-born blacks, in Wilmington, Delaware
. She was the oldest in her family of 13 children. Her father, a shoemaker, was a key figure in the Underground Railroad
and a subscription agent for William Lloyd Garrison
's abolitionist newspaper, The Liberator.
When she was ten, Mary Ann and her family moved from their home in Delaware to West Chester, Pennsylvania
, so the children could get an education at a Quaker-run school where she was educated for the next six years before moving back to Wilmington.
In 1840, Shadd returned to West Chester and established a school for black children. She also taught in Norristown, Pennsylvania
and New York City
.
in the United States
threatened to return free northern blacks and escaped slaves
to bondage, Shadd and her brother Isaac moved to Canada and settled in Windsor, Ontario. In Windsor, she founded a racially integrated school with the support of the American Missionary Association
. Shadd's support for racial integration embroiled her in a public dispute with Henry Bibb
, the established leader in the black community in Canada. Bibb's newspaper, The Voice of the Fugitive, attacked Shadd's ideas and character, leading Shadd to found The Provincial Freeman newspaper in 1853, along with Samuel Ringgold Ward
. The paper quickly folded, but Shadd and Ward revived it a year later from an office in King Street, Toronto. The paper continued to be published until 1859 promoting temperance, moral reform, civil rights and black self-help while attacking the racial discrimination blacks faced within North America. It was one of the longest published black newspapers until the Civil War.
Shadd believed that separate churches, schools and communities for blacks would ultimately undermine the search for freedom. She campaigned for equality and integration for black people, making public speeches and addressing issues of abolition and other reforms. Eventually, many of her family members, including her father and sisters, joined her in Canada.
In 1856, she married Thomas F. Cary, a barber
from Toronto who was involved with the newspaper. They had two children, Sarah and Linton, and lived in Chatham, Ontario
, where she continued to work on her newspaper and teach school. In 1858, John Brown
held a secret "convention" at the home of her brother Isaac. In 1861, she published Voice from Harper's Ferry, a tribute to Brown's unsuccessful raid.
After her husband died in 1860, Shadd Cary and her children returned to the United States. During the Civil War
, she served as a recruiting officer to enlist black volunteers for the Union Army
in the state of Indiana
. After the Civil War, she taught in black schools in Wilmington, before moving to Washington, D.C.
, where she taught in public schools and attended Howard University School of Law
. She graduated as a lawyer in 1883, becoming only the second black woman in the United States to earn a law degree. She wrote for the newspapers National Era and The People's Advocate.
Shadd Cary joined the National Woman Suffrage Association, working alongside Susan B. Anthony
and Elizabeth Cady Stanton
for women's suffrage
, testifying before the Judiciary Committee of the House of Representatives
and becoming the first black woman to cast a vote in a national election.
She died in Washington, D.C. on June 5, 1893. Shadd's former residence
in the U Street Corridor
was declared a National Historic Landmark
in 1976. In 1987 she was designated a Women's History Month
Honoree by the National Women's History Project
.
Wilmington, Delaware
Wilmington is the largest city in the state of Delaware, United States, and is located at the confluence of the Christina River and Brandywine Creek, near where the Christina flows into the Delaware River. It is the county seat of New Castle County and one of the major cities in the Delaware Valley...
. She was the oldest in her family of 13 children. Her father, a shoemaker, was a key figure in the Underground Railroad
Underground Railroad
The Underground Railroad was an informal network of secret routes and safe houses used by 19th-century black slaves in the United States to escape to free states and Canada with the aid of abolitionists and allies who were sympathetic to their cause. The term is also applied to the abolitionists,...
and a subscription agent for William Lloyd Garrison
William Lloyd Garrison
William Lloyd Garrison was a prominent American abolitionist, journalist, and social reformer. He is best known as the editor of the abolitionist newspaper The Liberator, and as one of the founders of the American Anti-Slavery Society, he promoted "immediate emancipation" of slaves in the United...
's abolitionist newspaper, The Liberator.
When she was ten, Mary Ann and her family moved from their home in Delaware to West Chester, Pennsylvania
West Chester, Pennsylvania
The Borough of West Chester is the county seat of Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 18,461 at the 2010 census.Valley Forge, the Brandywine Battlefield, Longwood Gardens, Marsh Creek State Park, and other historical attractions are near West Chester...
, so the children could get an education at a Quaker-run school where she was educated for the next six years before moving back to Wilmington.
In 1840, Shadd returned to West Chester and established a school for black children. She also taught in Norristown, Pennsylvania
Norristown, Pennsylvania
Norristown is a municipality in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, northwest of the city limits of Philadelphia, on the Schuylkill River. The population was 34,324 as of the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Montgomery County...
and New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
.
Social activism
When the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850Fugitive Slave Law of 1850
The Fugitive Slave Law or Fugitive Slave Act was passed by the United States Congress on September 18, 1850, as part of the Compromise of 1850 between Southern slave holding interests and Northern Free-Soilers. This was one of the most controversial acts of the 1850 compromise and heightened...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
threatened to return free northern blacks and escaped slaves
Slavery
Slavery is a system under which people are treated as property to be bought and sold, and are forced to work. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to demand compensation...
to bondage, Shadd and her brother Isaac moved to Canada and settled in Windsor, Ontario. In Windsor, she founded a racially integrated school with the support of the American Missionary Association
American Missionary Association
The American Missionary Association was a Protestant-based abolitionist group founded on September 3, 1846 in Albany, New York. The main purpose of this organization was to abolish slavery, to educate African Americans, to promote racial equality, and to promote Christian values...
. Shadd's support for racial integration embroiled her in a public dispute with Henry Bibb
Henry Bibb
Henry Walton Bibb was an author and abolitionist who was born a slave. After escaping from slavery to Canada, he returned to the US and lectured against slavery. Migrating to Canada, he founded a newspaper Voice of the Fugitive.-Biography:...
, the established leader in the black community in Canada. Bibb's newspaper, The Voice of the Fugitive, attacked Shadd's ideas and character, leading Shadd to found The Provincial Freeman newspaper in 1853, along with Samuel Ringgold Ward
Samuel Ringgold Ward
Samuel Ringgold Ward was an African American who escaped enslavement to become an abolitionist, newspaper editor and Congregational minister....
. The paper quickly folded, but Shadd and Ward revived it a year later from an office in King Street, Toronto. The paper continued to be published until 1859 promoting temperance, moral reform, civil rights and black self-help while attacking the racial discrimination blacks faced within North America. It was one of the longest published black newspapers until the Civil War.
Shadd believed that separate churches, schools and communities for blacks would ultimately undermine the search for freedom. She campaigned for equality and integration for black people, making public speeches and addressing issues of abolition and other reforms. Eventually, many of her family members, including her father and sisters, joined her in Canada.
In 1856, she married Thomas F. Cary, a barber
Barber
A barber is someone whose occupation is to cut any type of hair, and to shave or trim the beards of men. The place of work of a barber is generally called a barbershop....
from Toronto who was involved with the newspaper. They had two children, Sarah and Linton, and lived in Chatham, Ontario
Chatham, Ontario
Chatham is the largest community in the municipality of Chatham-Kent, Ontario. Formerly serving as the seat of Kent County, the governments of the former city of Chatham, the county of Kent, and its townships were merged into one entity known as the Municipality of Chatham-Kent in 1998.Located on...
, where she continued to work on her newspaper and teach school. In 1858, John Brown
John Brown (abolitionist)
John Brown was an American revolutionary abolitionist, who in the 1850s advocated and practiced armed insurrection as a means to abolish slavery in the United States. He led the Pottawatomie Massacre during which five men were killed, in 1856 in Bleeding Kansas, and made his name in the...
held a secret "convention" at the home of her brother Isaac. In 1861, she published Voice from Harper's Ferry, a tribute to Brown's unsuccessful raid.
Civil War and postbellum activism
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
, she served as a recruiting officer to enlist black volunteers for the Union Army
Union Army
The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...
in the state of Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
. After the Civil War, she taught in black schools in Wilmington, before moving to Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, where she taught in public schools and attended Howard University School of Law
Howard University School of Law
Howard University School of Law is one of the professional graduate schools of Howard University. Located in Washington, D.C., it is one the oldest law schools in the country and the oldest historically black college or university law school in the United States...
. She graduated as a lawyer in 1883, becoming only the second black woman in the United States to earn a law degree. She wrote for the newspapers National Era and The People's Advocate.
Shadd Cary joined the National Woman Suffrage Association, working alongside Susan B. Anthony
Susan B. Anthony
Susan Brownell Anthony was a prominent American civil rights leader who played a pivotal role in the 19th century women's rights movement to introduce women's suffrage into the United States. She was co-founder of the first Women's Temperance Movement with Elizabeth Cady Stanton as President...
and Elizabeth Cady Stanton
Elizabeth Cady Stanton
Elizabeth Cady Stanton was an American social activist, abolitionist, and leading figure of the early woman's movement...
for women's suffrage
Women's suffrage
Women's suffrage or woman suffrage is the right of women to vote and to run for office. The expression is also used for the economic and political reform movement aimed at extending these rights to women and without any restrictions or qualifications such as property ownership, payment of tax, or...
, testifying before the Judiciary Committee of the House of Representatives
United States House Committee on the Judiciary
The U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary, also called the House Judiciary Committee, is a standing committee of the United States House of Representatives. It is charged with overseeing the administration of justice within the federal courts, administrative agencies and Federal law enforcement...
and becoming the first black woman to cast a vote in a national election.
She died in Washington, D.C. on June 5, 1893. Shadd's former residence
Mary Ann Shadd Cary House
The Mary Ann Shadd Cary House is a historic residence located at 1421 W Street, Northwest in Washington, D.C. From 1881 to 1885, it was the home of Mary Ann Shadd Cary, a writer and abolitionist who was one of the first African American female journalists in North America, and who became one of...
in the U Street Corridor
U Street Corridor
The U Street Corridor is a commercial and residential neighborhood in Northwest Washington, D.C with many shops, restaurants, nightclubs, art galleries, and music venues along a nine-block stretch of U Street. It extends from 9th Street on the east to 18th Street and Florida Avenue on the west...
was declared a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
in 1976. In 1987 she was designated a Women's History Month
Women's History Month
Women's History Month is an annual declared month worldwide that highlights contributions of women to events in history and contemporary society. March has been set aside as this month in the United Kingdom and in the United States...
Honoree by the National Women's History Project
National Women's History Project
The National Women's History Project is a non-profit organization dedicated to honoring and preserving women's history. Based out of Santa Rosa, California since 1980, it was started by women's history activists Molly Murphy MacGregor, Mary Ruthsdotter, Maria Cuevas, Paula Hammett and Bette...
.
See also
- African American historyAfrican American historyAfrican-American history is the portion of American history that specifically discusses the African American or Black American ethnic group in the United States. Most African Americans are the descendants of captive Africans held in the United States from 1619 to 1865...
- African American literatureAfrican American literatureAfrican-American literature is the body of literature produced in the United States by writers of African descent. The genre traces its origins to the works of such late 18th century writers as Phillis Wheatley and Olaudah Equiano, reaching early high points with slave narratives and the Harlem...
- List of African American writers