John William Dunjee (also John Dungy or John Dungee) (1833 – April 19, 1903) was an American missionary, educator,

Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only ( believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compe ...

minister, publisher, agent of

Storer College Storer College was a historically black college in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, that operated from 1867 to 1955. A national icon for Black Americans, in the town where the 'end of American slavery began', as Frederick Douglass famously put i ...

and founder of Baptist churches across the United States.

Early life and education

John William Dungy was born into enslavement in New Kent County/ Charles City County, Virginia, in 1833 to the Ferrell family. His family asserted that President

John Tyler John Tyler (March 29, 1790 – January 18, 1862) was the tenth president of the United States, serving from 1841 to 1845, after briefly holding office as the tenth vice president in 1841. He was elected vice president on the 1840 Whig tick ...

was his father and Dungy's mother was a slave. John William's absentee owners, the Ferrell family heirs, hired him out to former Virginia governor

John Munford Gregory John Munford Gregory (July 8, 1804April 9, 1884) was a US political figure and Acting Governor of Virginia from 1842 to 1843. Biography Gregory was born in Virginia on July 8, 1804, and was a member of the Virginia state House of Delegates fr ...

, and while working for Gregory in the winter of 1859 inside the family's house, Dungy learned that the Ferrells were going to take him to Alabama shortly. He then decided to make his escape to freedom in Canada through the

Underground railroad The Underground Railroad was a network of clandestine routes and safe houses established in the United States during the early- to mid-19th century. It was used by enslaved African Americans primarily to escape into free states and Canada. ...

with the help of

William Still William Still (October 7, 1821 – July 14, 1902) was an African-American abolitionist based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was a conductor on the Underground Railroad, businessman, writer, historian and civil rights activist. Before the Ameri ...

(who later published an account of Dunjee's escape) and others, landing in the port of Philadelphia in February. Dungy arrived on the 15th of that month in

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: People * Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname ** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland ** Lord Hamilt ...

Canada West The Province of Canada (or the United Province of Canada or the United Canadas) was a British colony in North America from 1841 to 1867. Its formation reflected recommendations made by John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham, in the Report on the ...

, where he stayed for several years, worked as a

barber A barber is a person whose occupation is mainly to cut, dress, groom, style and shave men's and boys' hair or beards. A barber's place of work is known as a "barbershop" or a "barber's". Barbershops are also places of social interaction and publi ...

, and studied at night. He returned to the United States at the conclusion of the Civil War, revisiting Richmond. He then studied at Oberlin College in Ohio, where he changed his name to "Dunjee" when he was informed about the "correct" spelling. William Still's daughter, Dr.

Caroline Still Anderson Caroline Still Anderson (November 1, 1848 – June 1 or 2, 1919) was an American physician, educator, and activist. She was a pioneering physician in the Philadelphia African-American community and one of the first Black women to become a physic ...

, also studied at Oberlin during this period. Dunjee left Oberlin to seek cheaper tuition and better educational opportunities in Maine. From 1866 to 1868 John Dungy studied at

Bates College Bates College () is a private liberal arts college in Lewiston, Maine. Anchored by the Historic Quad, the campus of Bates totals with a small urban campus which includes 33 Victorian Houses as some of the dormitories. It maintains of nature p ...

(also known as the Maine State Seminary) in

Lewiston, Maine Lewiston (; ; officially the City of Lewiston, Maine) is the second largest city in Maine and the most central city in Androscoggin County. The city lies halfway between Augusta, the state's capital, and Portland, the state's most populous ci ...

, where he lived in Parker Hall with other former slaves, Alexander Sanders and Hamilton Keyes (later a student and incorporator of Storer College and member of the Storer Singers in 1873). Due to the connection of Bates and the Freewill Baptists with founding

in West Virginia, Dungy moved to West Virginia to pursue missionary work and recruitment efforts through Storer.

Career

John Dunjee Dungy former slave Storer College employee and student at Oberlin College and Bates College

Dunjee also played a particularly prominent role in supporting

as an agent for the school, a Freewill Baptist College for African Americans in

Harpers Ferry, West Virginia Harpers Ferry is a historic town in Jefferson County, West Virginia. It is located in the lower Shenandoah Valley. The population was 285 at the 2020 census. Situated at the confluence of the Potomac and Shenandoah rivers, where the U.S. st ...

, the abolitionist, who helped facilitate Dunjee's escape from slavery, also served as a trustee of Storer. After his work at Storer, Dunjee next became a minister with the Baptist Home Missionary Society. He traveled throughout the country from

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the Can ...

to the South to the Midwest preaching and starting new Baptist churches for African Americans in mainly rural areas. Dunjee was also an involved supporter of many other African-American educational institutions, such as

Spelman College Spelman College is a private, historically black, women's liberal arts college in Atlanta, Georgia. It is part of the Atlanta University Center academic consortium in Atlanta. Founded in 1881 as the Atlanta Baptist Female Seminary, Spelman rece ...

, Shaw College, Hampton College, and

Langston University Langston University (LU) is a public land-grant historically black university in Langston, Oklahoma. It is the only historically black college in the state. Though located in a rural setting east of Guthrie, Langston also serves an urban mis ...

. His friends included such well-known figures as

Frederick 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 ...

. Additionally, Dunjee founded the ''Harper's Ferry Messenger'' in 1882 and served as business manager. His children

Drusilla Dunjee Houston Drusilla Dunjee Houston (née Drusilla Dunjee; January 20, 1876 - February 8, 1941) was an American writer, historian, educator, journalist, musician, and screenwriter from West Virginia. Biography Drusilla Dunjee Houston, born January 20, 1876, ...

, a historian, and Roscoe Dunjee later contributed to the ''Messenger'' and were editors of the ''Black Dispatch'' in Oklahoma.

Personal life

While in Canada, Dunjee married Lydia Ann Taylor. Together, they had 2 children. *

(February 20, 1876 – February 8, 1941), who became a writer. * Roscoe Dunjee (June 21, 1883 – March 1, 1965), who became a civil rights activist and journalist.

References

*Timothy Larson
''Faith by Their Works''
Bates College Thesis, Chapter 2 (2005).

External links

*" ttps://www.sunjournal.com/2020/07/04/how-john-dunjee-escaped-slavery-and-came-to-bates-college-in-1866/ How John Dunjee escaped slavery and came to Bates College in 1866 - Steve Collins, Sun Journal
"Arrival from Richmond - John William Dungy"
"Still's Underground Rail Road Records. With a Life of the Author" by William Still, pp. 541–47 (published in 1886).
"Storer College Postcard(photos)"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dunjee, John 1833 births 1903 deaths 19th-century American slaves Bates College alumni Oberlin College alumni African-American writers Barbers Activists for African-American civil rights Baptists from Virginia Writers from Virginia People from Charles City County, Virginia People from New Kent County, Virginia 19th-century American writers 19th-century Baptists 20th-century African-American people

Early life and education

Career

Personal life

See also

References

External links