Africatown USA

[QueEx]

Congress banned the importation of slaves in 1808, but an initial population of close to 400,000 enslaved Africans funnelled into the nation grew to nearly four million by 1860.

The schooner Clotilda (often misspelled Clotilde) was the last known U.S. slave ship to bring captives from Africa to the United States, arriving at Mobile Bay, in autumn of 1859 or July 9, 1860, with 110 African men, women, and children. See, the Clotilda (slave ship) - Wikipedia

Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Clotilda_(slave_ship)

U.S. involvement in the Atlantic slave trade had been banned by Congress through the Act Prohibiting Importation of Slaves enacted on March 2, 1807 (effective January 1, 1808), but the practice continued illegally, especially through slave traders based in New York in the 1850s and early 1860. In the case of the Clotilda, the voyage's sponsors were based in the South and planned to buy Africans in Whydah, Dahomey.[1][2] After the voyage, the ship was burned and scuttled in Mobile Bay in an attempt to destroy the evidence.

After the Civil War, Cudjo Kazoola Lewis[1] and thirty-one other formerly enslaved people founded Africatown on the north side of Mobile, Alabama. They were joined by other continental Africans and formed a community that continued to practice many of their West African traditions and Yoruba language for decades.

A spokesman for the community, Cudjo Lewis lived until 1935 and was one of the last survivors from the Clotilda. Redoshi, another captive on the Clotilda, was sold to a planter in Dallas County, Alabama, where she became known also as Sally Smith. She married, had a daughter, and lived to 1937 in Bogue Chitto. She was long thought to have been the last survivor of the Clotilda.[5] Research published in 2020 indicated that another survivor, Matilda McCrear, lived until 1940.[6]

Some 100 descendants of the enslaved people carried by the Clotilda still live in Africatown, and others are around the country. After World War II, the neighborhood was absorbed by the city of Mobile. A memorial bust of Lewis was placed in front of the historic Union Missionary Baptist Church.[2] The Africatown historic district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2012. In May 2019, the Alabama Historical Commission announced that remnants of a ship found along the Mobile River, near 12 Mile Island and just north of the Mobile Bay delta, [and the remnants] were confirmed as the Clotilda.[7] The wreck site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2021.[8]

​

 

[QueEx]

 

[QueEx]

Clotilda: America’s Last Slave Ship; ​

and the Community of Africatown​

The Clotilda was a two-masted wooden ship owned by steamboat captain and shipbuilder Timothy Meaher. Meaher wagered another wealthy white man that he could bring a cargo of enslaved Africans aboard a ship into Mobile despite the 1807 Act Prohibiting the Importation of Slaves. In the autumn of 1860 Captain William Foster departed for West Africa and successfully smuggled 110 enslaved Africans from Dahomey into Mobile, with one person perishing during the Middle Passage. Africatown was founded by descendants of some of the enslaved people aboard the Clotilda, and it was the home to some of the last survivors of the transatlantic slave trade in the United States. The slavers burned the ship in Mobile Bay, where it was lost to history in the muddy waters of the bay until May 22, 2019, when the Alabama Historical Commission and partners announced that the wreck had been located.

In 2018, the National Museum of African American History and Culture joined the effort to locate the Clotilda through the Slave Wrecks Project. The museum and SWP participated in support of the Alabama Historical Commission in archaeological work and in designing a way to involve the community of Africatown in the process of preserving the memory of the Clotilda and the legacy of slavery and freedom in Alabama. Many of the residents of Africatown are descendants of the Africans who were trafficked to Alabama on the Clotilda and have preserved the memory of its history. The museum continues to work directly with the descendant community in Africatown and develops educational, preservation, and outreach opportunities with the community.
Read More
Learn more about the discovery of the Clotilda at Smithsonian Magazine or on our blog.
slide 1 of 5

Kamau Sadiki documents a shipwreck eventually determined not to be the Clotilda, 2018. Photo by Alabama Historical Commission

Kamau Sadiki documents a shipwreck eventually determined not to be the Clotilda, 2018. Photo by Alabama Historical Commission

NMAAHC curator of slavery Mary Elliott meets with Africatown community members in 2018. Photo by Slave Wrecks Project

NMAAHC curator of slavery Mary Elliott meets with Africatown community members in 2018. Photo by Slave Wrecks Project

NMAAHC curator Mary Elliott and DWP instructor Kamau Sadiki meet with an Africatown descendant.Photo by Slave Wrecks Project
prevnext

It was an honor to engage with the residents of Africatown, many of whom are descendants of the captive Africans who were forced onto the Clotilda and into enslavement. While we can find artifacts and archival records, the human connection to the history helps us engage with this American story in a compelling way. The legacies of slavery are still apparent in the community. But the spirit of resistance among the African men, women and children who arrived on the Clotilda lives on in the descendant community.
Mary N. Elliott
Curator of American Slavery at the NMAAHC and leader of the community engagement activities for SWP

What the Discovery of the Last American Slave Ship Means to Descendants | National Geographic
National Geographic Society
Share this page
National Museum of African American History & Culture1400 Constitution Ave NW,
Washington, DC 20560
Share your email for updatesSubmit
Email powered by Blackbaud Privacy | Terms of Use
Become a Member Make a Donation

• Twitter
• Facebook
• Instagram
• YouTube
• Privacy
• Terms of Use

 

[QueEx]

The Clotilda,' Last Known Slave Ship to Arrive in the U.S., Is Found​

The discovery carries intense personal meaning for an Alabama community of descendants of the ship’s survivors

Allison Keyes
Museum Correspondent
May 22, 2019

The schooner Clotilda (often misspelled Clotilde) was the last known U.S. slave ship to bring captives from Africa to the United States, arriving at Mobile Bay, in autumn of 1859 or July 9, 1860, with 110 African men, women, and children. See, the Clotilda (slave ship) - Wikipedia

Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Clotilda_(slave_ship)

U.S. involvement in the Atlantic slave trade had been banned by Congress through the Act Prohibiting Importation of Slaves enacted on March 2, 1807 (effective January 1, 1808), but the practice continued illegally, especially through slave traders based in New York in the 1850s and early 1860. In the case of the Clotilda, the voyage's sponsors were based in the South and planned to buy Africans in Whydah, Dahomey.[1][2] After the voyage, the ship was burned and scuttled in Mobile Bay in an attempt to destroy the evidence.

After the Civil War, Cudjo Kazoola Lewis[1] and thirty-one other formerly enslaved people founded Africatown on the north side of Mobile, Alabama. They were joined by other continental Africans and formed a community that continued to practice many of their West African traditions and Yoruba language for decades.

A spokesman for the community, Cudjo Lewis lived until 1935 and was one of the last survivors from the Clotilda. Redoshi, another captive on the Clotilda, was sold to a planter in Dallas County, Alabama, where she became known also as Sally Smith. She married, had a daughter, and lived to 1937 in Bogue Chitto. She was long thought to have been the last survivor of the Clotilda.[5] Research published in 2020 indicated that another survivor, Matilda McCrear, lived until 1940.[6]

Some 100 descendants of the enslaved people carried by the Clotilda still live in Africatown, and others are around the country. After World War II, the neighborhood was absorbed by the city of Mobile. A memorial bust of Lewis was placed in front of the historic Union Missionary Baptist Church.[2] The Africatown historic district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2012. In May 2019, the Alabama Historical Commission announced that remnants of a ship found along the Mobile River, near 12 Mile Island and just north of the Mobile Bay delta, [and the remnants] were confirmed as the Clotilda.[7] The wreck site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2021.[8]

​

 

[QueEx]

Africatown, Site of Last US Slave Shipment, Sues Over Pollution​

Hundreds of the largely Black residents are suing now-shuttered paper plant claiming it released toxic chemicals linked to cancer

Africatown, Site of Last US Slave Shipment, Sues Over Pollution

Hundreds of the largely Black residents are suing now-shuttered paper plant claiming it released toxic chemicals linked to cancer

www.earthisland.org

.

 

[QueEx]

​

​ Cudjo Lewis (1835 - 1935) Last full-blooded African to come to America on the Clotilde in 1859 Courtesy: University of South Alabama Archives, Erik Overbey Collection​ AfricaTown, USA​ AfricaTown is the site in Mobile, Alabama, along the Gulf Coast where the last cargo of Africans landed in 1860. Their landing marked the last recorded attempt to import Africans to the United States for the purpose of slavery. The history of AfricaTown, USA, originated in Ghana, West Africa, near the present city of Tamale in 1859. The tribes of Africa were engaged in civil war, and the prevailing tribes sold the members of the conquered tribes into slavery. The village of the Tarkbar tribe near the city of Tamale was raided by Dahomey warriors, and the survivors of the raid were taken to Whydah, now the People's Republic of Benin, and put up for sale. The captured tribesmen were sold for $100 each at Whydah. They were taken to the United States on board the schooner Clotilde, under the command of Maine Capt. William Foster. Foster had been hired by Capt. Timothy Meaher, a wealthy Mobile shipper and shipyard owner, who had built the schooner Clotilde in Mobile in 1856. As secessionist fever was spreading through Alabama in the 1850s, there was much talk of reopening the African slave trade, which had been outlawed since 1808. It was in this setting that Meaher and Foster planned the Trans-Atlantic voyage of the Clotilde for the purpose of bringing an illegal cargo of slaves back to Mobile. By the time the Clotilde arrived in Mobile, federal authorities, having heard about the illegal scheme, were on the lookout for it. Captain Foster entered Mobile Harbor on the night of July 9, 1860. He transferred his slave cargo to a riverboat and sent them up into the canebrake to hide them. He then burned his schooner and sunk it. The Africans were distributed to those having an interest in the Clotilde expedition, with 32 settling on the Meaher property at Magazine Point, three miles north of Mobile. This formed the nucleus of what came to be known, and still is known, as AfricaTown. Cudjoe Lewis was among that group. In a federal court case in 1861, US v. Byrnes Meaher, Timonthy Meaher, and John Dabey, the three were charged with importing 103 natives of Africa for the purpose of slavery in the United States on the schooner Clotilde. The case was dismissed because the Federal Court could not prove the involvement of Timothy Meaher in this plot, but there was a strong implication that the case was dismissed because of the beginning of the Civil War. After the Civil War, the original group of intended slaves was joined by a number of their fellow tribesmen. For decades they continued speaking their native tongue, had disputes arbitrated by their tribal chieftain, Charlie Poteete, and had their illnesses treated by the African doctor, Jabez. Up until World War II, AfricaTown remained a rather distinct community in Mobile County. AfricaTown is unique in that it represents a group of Africans who were forcefully removed from their homeland, sold into slavery, and then formed their own, largely self-governing community, all the while maintaining a strong sense of African cultural heritage. This sense of heritage and sense of community continues to thrive today, more than 140 years after the landing of the Clotilde in Mobile Bay. Cudjo Lewis (Kazoola), the last living descendant of AfricaTown, left us his account of the war between the tribes in West Africa, the selling of Africans to be brought to Mobile on the Clotilde, and their voyage to AfricaTown. When the original group of settlers dwindled because due to death, the remaining AfricaTowners would gather on Sundays after church at one of their homes to discuss the group's welfare. Of the remaining number, Lewis was the best known, perhaps because he lived the longest (d. 1934) and was the most ebullient and talkative of all, giving interviews to the many writers who focused their work on AfricaTown during the early 1900s. The AfricaTown Community Mobilization Project was formed in February 1997 with the purpose of establishing an AfricaTown Historical District, and encouraging the historical restoration and development of the site. The Local Legacy project includes 16 pages of text, 11 color photographs, a map of the AfricaTown district, newspaper articles, information on the AfricaTown Mobilization Project, and a videotape, "AfricaTown, USA," made by a local news station. Originally submitted by: Sonny Callahan, Representative (1st District). cudjoe lewis - Recherche Google https://memory.loc.gov/diglib/legacies/loc.afc.afc-legacies.200002671/#:~:text=AfricaTown%20is%20the%20site%20in,for%20the%20purpose%20of%20slavery. .

 

[QueEx]

 

[QueEx]

Africatown Heritage House opening:​

Public events, festivities to know about​

Published: July 6, 2023​

Lorna Gail Woods, a leader of the community descended from survivors of the slave ship Clotilda's final voyage, carries a wreath during a ceremony on July 9, 2022, marking the anniversary of the ship's arrival. The 2023 Landing ceremony will take place on the morning of Saturday, July 8, 2023. Lawrence Specker | LSpecker@AL.com


By Lawrence Specker | lspecker@al.com

If you were hoping to get into the Africatown Heritage House on opening day, you’re out of luck: Every available tour has been booked up. But the weekend brings several other opportunities to get in on the celebrations.

The opening of the Heritage House on Saturday promises to be a watershed moment for a community seeking to capitalize on growing interest in its unique story. The facility will provide a much-needed point of entry for visitors, which hasn’t had one since Hurricane Katrina damaged an old welcome center in 2005.

Millions of dollars in funding have been committed to a new Welcome Center, but it’s still in the process of being designed. Meanwhile the Heritage House will provide the first public display of materials from the slave ship Clotilda.

The Africatown Heritage House as pictured on
Thursday, January 26, 2023, in Mobile, Ala.
(John Sharp/jsharp@al.com).


The Heritage House website, Clotilda.com, describes its Clotilda exhibition as a 2,500-square-foot display that addresses the final voyage of the slave ship Clotilda, its survivors and the community they founded:

“‘Clotilda: The Exhibition’ will cover the story of the Clotilda with a special focus on the people of the story – their individuality, their perseverance, and the extraordinary community they established. The exhibition tells the story of the 110 remarkable men, women and children, from their West African beginnings, to their enslavement, to their settlement of Africatown, and finally the discovery of the sunken schooner, all through a combination of interpretive text panels, documents, and artifacts. The pieces of the Clotilda that have been recovered from the site of the wreck will be on display in the exhibition, on loan from the Alabama Historical Commission. The exhibition has been curated, developed, and designed in conjunction with the local community and the wider descendent community, and in consultation with experts around the country.”​

Speaking at a recent meeting of the Africatown community group CHESS, Heritage House director Jessica Fairley said that the museum’s opening exhibition features audio narration. To ensure that an audio device is available for every visitor, the timed tours allow 25 people to enter every 20 minutes. Fairley said that once people are inside, they’re welcome to stay as long as they want.

After Saturday’s events the Heritage House will begin regular operations. The facility will be open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday. Advance reservations are recommended; timed tickets can be reserved at clotilda.com/visit-us. As of Thursday, July 6, it appeared that tickets were available throughout the week of July 11-15.

Admission is free for residents of Mobile County, though donations are encouraged. Regular admission prices are $15 for adults; $9 for seniors, active and retired military personnel and students over 18; $8 for children ages 6-18; free for children 5 and younger; and free for members of the History Museum of Mobile.​

​

While the tour schedule for Saturday is booked up, other public events coincide with the opening. Details follow.

Opening weekend highlights:​

9 a.m. Friday, July 7: A building dedication for the Africatown Heritage House will take place in the Memorial Garden outside the facility at 2465 Winbush St. The hourlong program will feature remarks from dignitaries including Mobile County District 1 Commissioner Merceria Ludgood; Lisa D. Jones, executive director of the Alabama Historical Commission; state Sen. Vivian Davis Figures; state Rep. Adline Clarke; Mobile County Commission president Connie Hudson; Mobile Mayor Sandy Stimpson; Mobile City Councilman William Carroll; Altevese Rosario, vice president of the Clotilda Descendants Association; History Museum of Mobile Director Meg McCrummen Fowler; and pastors from each of the three historic Africatown churches. The event also will feature a performance by the African Cultural Alliance of Egbe Oya.

7 a.m. Saturday, July 8: The Africatown Plateau Pacers will hold their second annual community 5k walk. While the event is not a part of the official Heritage House program, it offers an opportunity to walk through historic Plateau and Africatown and learn about the Plateau community. The walk starts at Kidd Park, 800 East St. Registration without a T-shirt is $15, $25 or $27 with shirt. To register in advance, visit raceroster.com. Proceeds benefit the Pacers’ scholarship fund. For information, visit the Africatown Plateau Pacers page on Facebook.

8 a.m. Saturday, July 8: The Clotilda Descendants Association will hold “The Landing,” an annual ceremony commemorating the arrival of the 110 captives carried aboard the Clotilda. The ceremony will be held under the Africatown Bridge, with shuttle service available from Union Baptist Church starting at 7:30 a.m. The site of the ceremony can be found by searching for 101 Bay Bridge Road. Attendees are asked to arrive at the site by 8 a.m. in order to avoid disrupting the 8:15 a.m. ceremony.

10 a.m. Saturday, July 8: The Africatown Heritage House opens to the public. According to information release by Mobile County, “Entrance will be granted to timed ticket holders only. The exhibit will close at 5 p.m. Opening day is sold out. Absolutely no one will be admitted on July 8 without a pre-booked, timed ticket.”

11 a.m. Saturday, July 8: An Africatown Community Day celebration will be held on the grounds of the Robert L. Hope Community Center from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. The event is free and open to the public. Planned attractions include: Egungun masquerade parade and performance by the African Cultural Alliance of Egbe Oya; musical performances by the Vigor High School marching band, the Voices of Africatown Mass Choir, Symone French, and Ted Keeby & the MoJazz Band; spoken-word performances; children’s activities; food trucks; and drumming workshops by Wayne Curtis and the Mobile Area Africatown Drummers. According to information released by Mobile County, “Attendees are encouraged to bring lawn chairs. There will be limited tent seating. Umbrellas and pop-up tents are allowed, but the City of Mobile does not allow stakes in the Hope Center lawn.”

Winbush and Edwards streets will be closed to through traffic on July 8. Bus and golf cart shuttles to the Hope Center and the adjacent Heritage House will run from parking lots at several sites: First Hopewell Missionary Baptist Church at 664 Shelby Street, Yorktown Missionary Baptist Church at 851 East Street, Union Missionary Baptist Church at 506 Africatown Boulevard, Shell Bayou Elks Lodge at 456 Africatown Boulevard, the ACDC Farmers Market site at Shelby Street near Tin Top Lane and Mobile County Training School’s baseball field on McKinley Street.

According to the county, “Drivers should not block any Africatown street when parking and please respect the private property within the neighborhoods near the celebration site. There will be no parking at the Robert Hope Community Center or Africatown Heritage House or on the following streets for bus and shuttle access: Edwards St., Edwards Ave., Shelby St., Tin Top Lane, Green St., Susie Ansley St., Peter Lee St.” Parking also is “highly discouraged” at the Kidd Park swimming pool because of an event there.


More on Africatown:


Worries over Clotilda owner’s artifacts surface ahead of Africatown Heritage House opening


Africatown ancestors honored on anniversary of Clotilda’s arrival



Mobile holds first public meeting on design of Africatown Welcome Center

Africatown Heritage House opening: Public events, festivities to know about

Heritage House tours are booked up on Saturday as the facility opens, but other ceremonies and celebrations offer a chance to participate.

www.al.com

 

[QueEx]

Clotilda: The Exhibition

Clotilda: The Exhibition will cover the story of the Clotilda with a special focus on the people of the story – their individuality, their perseverance, and the extraordinary community they established. The exhibition tells the story of the 110 remarkable men, women and children, from their West...

clotilda.com

 

[FuriousStyles]

Good stuff.

 

[QueEx]

Clotilda’s cargo hold became a hellish dungeon for 108 African captives brought to Alabama in 1860, more than 50 years after importing enslaved pe...Read More
JASON TREAT AND KELSEY NOWAKOWSKI, NG STAFF. ART: THOM TENERY

 

[QueEx]

 

[QueEx]