Eliza Seymour Lee (1800–1874), was an American pastry chef and restaurateur.Amrita Chakrabarti Myers,
Forging Freedom: Black Women and the Pursuit of Liberty in Antebellum Charleston
' She was the daughter of the famous pastry chef

Sally Seymour Sally Seymour (died 3 April 1824), was an African Americans, African American pastry chef and restaurateur. Seymour built up an elite culinary business in Charleston, South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina and was one of a few African American ...

. In 1823, she married the free colored tailor John Lee (d. 1851). She inherited her mother's business and property, including a bakery and slave labor, in 1824, and expanded it to eventually managing four restaurants in Charleston, South Carolina: ''The Mansion House'' on Broad Street (1840–1845), ''Lee House'' (1845–1848),

Ann Deas Ann Deas (''fl.'' 1847) was an American hotelier. She was the owner and manager of the famous elite hotel ''Mansion House Hotel'' in Charleston, South Carolina between 1834 and 1847. She was the daughter of Abigail Deas Jones and the stepdaughter ...

' ''Jones Hotel'' (1848–1850) and ''Moultrie House'' on

Sullivan’s Island Sullivan's Island is a town and island in Charleston County, South Carolina, United States, at the entrance to Charleston Harbor, with a population of 1,791 at the 2010 census. The town is part of the Charleston metropolitan area, and is conside ...

(1850–1851). She was one of the most successful businesswomen in Charleston alongside her rival Théonie Rivière Mignot. As her mother before her, she was often hired to cater to the private functions hosted by the private societies of the Charleston planter aristocracy, most notably the annual banquet of the South Carolina Jockey Club during race week. Her success was uncommon for a free coloured woman in Prewar South. She retired in 1861.

References

{{Expand Swedish, Eliza Seymour Lee, date=June 2019 1874 deaths 1800 births 19th-century American businesswomen 19th-century American businesspeople Pastry chefs African-American businesspeople American bakers Black slave owners in the United States American hoteliers Free people of color 19th-century African-American women Businesspeople from Charleston, South Carolina American women slave owners American slave owners

See also

References