Emilie "Emily" Frances Davis (February 18, 1839 – December 26, 1889) was a free African American woman living in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...

. She wrote three pocket diaries for the years 1863, 1864, and 1865 recounting her perspective on the Emancipation Proclamation, the

Battle of Gettysburg The Battle of Gettysburg () was fought July 1–3, 1863, in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, by Union and Confederate forces during the American Civil War. In the battle, Union Major General George Meade's Army of the Po ...

, and the mourning of

President Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation throu ...

. These diaries are unique in their depiction of 19th century life of urban African American women and reactions to the events of the Civil War.

Early life and education

Davis was born free in southeastern Pennsylvania in 1839. Her father, Isaac Davis, moved to Pennsylvania from Maryland in the 1820s. Contemporary sources gave no account of her mother. The family lived in Lancaster and Schuylkill counties before relocating to the Seventh Ward of Philadelphia by 1860, the first year in which the census records Emilie Davis as a resident. She was one of 13,008 free Black women (in addition to 9,177 free Black men) recorded as living in

Philadelphia County Philadelphia County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is the most populous county in Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, Philadelphia County had a population of 1,603,797. The county is the second smallest county in Pennsyl ...

in 1860. In the mid-nineteenth century, the Seventh Ward was a hub of African American political, cultural, and religious life in Philadelphia. Davis attended the

Institute for Colored Youth The Institute for Colored Youth was founded in 1837 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. It became the first high school for African-Americans in the United States, although there were schools that admitted African Americans preceding it ...

and attended several black churches. She earned a living as a domestic servant and seamstress before her marriage. She was a member of the Ladies' Union Association of Philadelphia, which raised money and collected supplies for the U.S. Colored Troops.

Writings

Emilie Davis Pocket Diary Front Cover 1863

Between 1863 and 1864, Emilie described going out for ice cream on four separate occasions, an indication of the expanding space that black Philadelphians inhabited during the Civil War. Earlier, in the summer of 1857, Charlotte Forten and a friend had been refused service at three Philadelphia ice cream parlors before they gave up. Davis wrote about notable lectures and concerts she attended. On January 25, 1865, she attended a lecture by

J. Sella Martin John Sella Martin (September 27, 1832 – August 11, 1876) escaped slavery in Alabama and became an influential abolitionist and pastor in Boston, Massachusetts. He was an activist for equality before the American Civil WarFrederick Douglass Frederick Douglass (born Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey, February 1817 or 1818 – February 20, 1895) was an American social reformer, abolitionist, orator, writer, and statesman. After escaping from slavery in Maryland, he became ...

. On February 27, 1865, she attended a lecture by

Frances Ellen Watkins Harper Frances Ellen Watkins Harper (September 24, 1825 – February 22, 1911) was an American Abolitionism in the United States, abolitionist, suffragist, poet, Temperance movement, temperance activist, teacher, public speaker, and writer. Beginning in 1 ...

. On May 11, 1964, she attended a concert by Elizabeth Taylor Greenfield. On September 14, 1865, she attended a segregated concert by Thomas Wiggins, where she was required to sit in the balcony.

Marriage and family

On December 13, 1866, Davis (her name misspelled as "Emily" on the marriage registry) married George Bustill White, a barber and civil rights activist whose father, Jacob C. White Sr., was a prominent black businessman. Emilie's brother-in-law was

Jacob C. White Jr. Jacob "Jake" C. White Jr. (1837 – November 11, 1902) was an American educator, intellectual, and civil rights activist. Born to a successful and influential businessman, White received the finest education afforded to African-Americans of the ...

, who co-founded the

Philadelphia Pythians The Philadelphia Pythians (also Pythian Base Ball Club, Pythian Baseball Club, or the "Pyths") was one of the earliest Negro league baseball clubs, founded in 1865. African-American leaders Jacob C. White Jr. and Octavius V. Catto established th ...

, a black baseball team, and who became principal of the all-black Roberts Vaux Junior High School. George White was active in the Pennsylvania Equal Rights League, a group that lobbied successfully in

Harrisburg Harrisburg is the capital city of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Dauphin County. With a population of 50,135 as of the 2021 census, Harrisburg is the 9th largest city and 15th largest municipality in Pe ...

for state support for federal civil rights amendments and at the local level for the integration of Philadelphia's streetcars in 1867. Emilie and George had six children, Jacob C. White (b. 1867), Maria, Emilie (b. 1873), George (b. 1875), Carry (b. 1877), and Julia (b. 1881). In the 1880 census, Emilie's occupation was listed as “housekeeper.” In later years, she donated money to her church and rented a pew under her own name rather than her husband's, an indication of her place in the Black middle class.

Death

She died on December 26, 1889, and was buried at

Lebanon Cemetery Lebanon Cemetery was an African-American cemetery in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania established in 1849. It was one of only two private African-American cemeteries in Philadelphia at the time. Lebanon Cemetery was condemned in 1899. The bodies were r ...

, the burial place of

Octavius Catto Octavius Valentine Catto (February 22, 1839 – October 10, 1871) was an educator, intellectual, and civil rights activist in Philadelphia. He became principal of male students at the Institute for Colored Youth, where he had also been educated ...

and other civil rights luminaries of her generation. In 1903, she was reinterred to an unmarked grave at Eden Cemetery in Collingdale, Pennsylvania when Lebanon Cemetery closed. Her husband, George White, died on June 1, 1899.

References

External links