William Gustavus Allen (c. 1820 – 1 May 1888) was an
African-American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...
academic
An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary education, secondary or tertiary education, tertiary higher education, higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membershi ...
,
intellectual
An intellectual is a person who engages in critical thinking, research, and reflection about the reality of society, and who proposes solutions for the normative problems of society. Coming from the world of culture, either as a creator or a ...
, and lecturer. For a time he co-edited ''The National Watchman,'' an abolitionist newspaper. While studying law in Boston he lectured widely on abolition, equality, and integration. He was then appointed a professor of
rhetoric
Rhetoric () is the art of persuasion, which along with grammar and logic (or dialectic), is one of the three ancient arts of discourse. Rhetoric aims to study the techniques writers or speakers utilize to inform, persuade, or motivate parti ...
and Greek at
New-York Central College
New York Central College, commonly called New York Central College, McGrawville, and simply Central College, was the first college in the United States founded on the principle that all qualified students were welcome. It was thus an abolitionist ...
, the second African-American college professor in the United States.
[ (The first was his predecessor at Central College, Charles L. Reason.) He saw himself as an academic and intellectual.][
]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 ...
described him as "a gentleman, a scholar, and a Christian. He is an ornament to society."
Meeting and falling in love with a white student, Mary King, the couple married in secret in 1853. This was one of the first legal marriages between a "colored" man and a Caucasian woman to take place in the United States. They immediately left the country, never to return, because of the violent prejudice against their relationship. While for a time he continued to lecture in both England and Ireland, and wrote an autobiographical account including his marriage, which sold well, he and his family eventually fell into obscurity and near-poverty.
Biography
Early life
Allen was born free around 1820 in Urbana, Virginia,[ to a free mixed-race mother and a ]Welsh American
Welsh Americans ( cy, Americanwyr Cymreig) are an American ethnic group whose ancestry originates wholly or partly in Wales. In the 2008 U.S. Census community survey, an estimated 1.98 million Americans had Welsh ancestry, 0.6% of the total U.S ...
father, both of whom died early in Allen's life. As he himself noted, he was a quadroon
In the colonial societies of the Americas and Australia, a quadroon or quarteron was a person with one quarter African/ Aboriginal and three quarters European ancestry.
Similar classifications were octoroon for one-eighth black (Latin root ''octo ...
: his ancestry was 75% white and 25% black. He was light skinned, and he rejected the label of "negro"; nevertheless, under Virginia law he was black ("colored"). Allen was adopted by a free black couple who owned "a flourishing business" at Fort Monroe
Fort Monroe, managed by partnership between the Fort Monroe Authority for the Commonwealth of Virginia, the National Park Service as the Fort Monroe National Monument, and the City of Hampton, is a former military installation in Hampton, Virgi ...
, Virginia.[ Reprinted in ''The American Prejudice Against Color: William G. Allen, Mary King, Louisa May Alcott''.]
Allen was raised by his birth parents in Norfolk, where he attended a school for African-American children for two years. The school was closed down due as part of the reaction to Nat Turner's slave rebellion of 1831. There was no school for colored children in Fort Monroe, but he received some informal education from Federal soldiers, including some French and German. He had access to libraries and was to some degree self-educated, but took advantage of the few educational opportunities available to a black boy.[ A teacher recommended him to ]Gerrit Smith
Gerrit Smith (March 6, 1797 – December 28, 1874), also spelled Gerritt Smith, was a leading American social reformer, abolitionist, businessman, public intellectual, and philanthropist. Married to Ann Carroll Fitzhugh, Smith was a candidat ...
, a wealthy abolitionist
Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the movement to end slavery. In Western Europe and the Americas, abolitionism was a historic movement that sought to end the Atlantic slave trade and liberate the enslaved people.
The British ...
and philanthropist
Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the Public good (economics), public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private goo ...
, whose help, along with that of Lewis Tappan
Lewis Tappan (May 23, 1788 – June 21, 1873) was a New York abolitionist who worked to achieve freedom for the enslaved Africans aboard the '' Amistad''. Tappan was also among the founders of the American Missionary Association in 1846, which ...
,[ made it possible for Allen to attend the ]Oneida Institute
The Oneida Institute was a short-lived (1827–1843) but highly influential school that was a national leader in the emerging Abolitionism in the United States, abolitionist movement. It was the most radical school in the country, the first at w ...
. Oneida was the first college in the country that accepted African Americans as a matter of policy; it was a hotbed of abolitionism.
College and career
At Oneida, like most college students at the time, William received what in the 20th century would be called ministerial training: Hebrew
Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...
, Biblical Greek
Koine Greek (; Koine el, ἡ κοινὴ διάλεκτος, hē koinè diálektos, the common dialect; ), also known as Hellenistic Greek, common Attic, the Alexandrian dialect, Biblical Greek or New Testament Greek, was the common supra-reg ...
, theology, and philosophy, with small amounts of science, algebra, and public speaking (declamation
Declamation (from the Latin: ''declamatio'') is an artistic form of public speaking. It is a dramatic oration designed to express through articulation, emphasis and gesture the full sense of the text being conveyed.
History
In Ancient Rome, decla ...
). During the summer of 1841 he "taught in a school for fugitive slaves
In the United States, fugitive slaves or runaway slaves were terms used in the 18th and 19th century to describe people who fled slavery. The term also refers to the federal Fugitive Slave Acts of 1793 and 1850. Such people are also called free ...
in Canada"[ (see Hiram Wilson).
Allen had fond memories of Oneida,] from which he graduated in 1844. He settled in Troy, New York
Troy is a city in the U.S. state of New York and the county seat of Rensselaer County. The city is located on the western edge of Rensselaer County and on the eastern bank of the Hudson River. Troy has close ties to the nearby cities of Albany a ...
, where he was active in a black suffrage organization. Together with Henry Highland Garnet
Henry Highland Garnet (December 23, 1815 – February 13, 1882) was an African-American abolitionist, minister, educator and orator. Having escaped as a child from slavery in Maryland with his family, he grew up in New York City. He was educat ...
, also an Oneida alumnus
Alumni (singular: alumnus (masculine) or alumna (feminine)) are former students of a school, college, or university who have either attended or graduated in some fashion from the institution. The feminine plural alumnae is sometimes used for grou ...
, he edited and published the abolitionist newspaper ''National Watchman'', in which "the selections and editorials show that he llenis a man of sense, education, and good temper". No surviving copies of the newspaper are known.[ When it ceased publication in 1847, Allen moved to Boston, studying under and working as a clerk for the abolitionist lawyer ]Ellis Gray Loring
Ellis Gray Loring (April 14, 1803 – May 24, 1858) was an American attorney, abolitionist, and philanthropist from Boston. He co-founded the New England Anti-Slavery Society, provided legal advice to abolitionists, harbored fugitive slaves in ...
.
In Boston, Allen became well known as a lecturer (see below).
In 1850 Allen, who had begun to enjoy fame as a lecturer (see below), was appointed professor of Greek
Greek may refer to:
Greece
Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe:
*Greeks, an ethnic group.
*Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family.
**Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
and Rhetoric
Rhetoric () is the art of persuasion, which along with grammar and logic (or dialectic), is one of the three ancient arts of discourse. Rhetoric aims to study the techniques writers or speakers utilize to inform, persuade, or motivate parti ...
at New-York Central College
New York Central College, commonly called New York Central College, McGrawville, and simply Central College, was the first college in the United States founded on the principle that all qualified students were welcome. It was thus an abolitionist ...
(NYCC) in McGraw, New York
McGraw is a village in Cortland County, New York, United States. The population was 972 as of the 2020 census. The village is named after Samuel McGraw and is in the eastern part of the town of Cortlandville, east of the city of Cortland.
Hi ...
. (In 1853 he described himself as professor of "the Greek and German languages, and of Rhetoric and Belles-lettres
is a category of writing, originally meaning beautiful or fine writing. In the modern narrow sense, it is a label for literary works that do not fall into the major categories such as fiction, poetry, or drama. The phrase is sometimes used pejora ...
".[) Since his predecessor Charles L. Reason had departed earlier in 1852, he was in 1852 and 1853 "the only acting colored Professor in any college in the United States", in ]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 ...
' words.
Allen voted (for Franklin Pierce
Franklin Pierce (November 23, 1804October 8, 1869) was the 14th president of the United States, serving from 1853 to 1857. He was a northern Democrat who believed that the abolitionist movement was a fundamental threat to the nation's unity ...
) in the 1852 United States presidential election
The 1852 United States presidential election was the 17th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 2, 1852. Democrat Franklin Pierce defeated Whig nominee General Winfield Scott.
Incumbent Whig President Millard Fillmore ha ...
, since poll workers thought he was white.
Marriage to Mary King
Before the Civil War
A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country).
The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
, sexual union between white male and black female, usually forced, was common. (See Children of the plantation
"Children of the plantation" is a euphemism and term used that refers to ancestry tracing back to the time of slavery in the United States in which the offspring was born to Female slavery in the United States, black African female slaves (eithe ...
, Sally Hemings
Sarah "Sally" Hemings ( 1773 – 1835) was an enslaved woman with one-quarter African ancestry owned by president of the United States Thomas Jefferson, one of many he inherited from his father-in-law, John Wayles.
Hemings's mother Elizabet ...
, and Lydia Hamilton Smith
Lydia Hamilton Smith (February 14, 1813 – February 14, 1884) was the long-time housekeeper of Thaddeus Stevens and a prominent black businesswoman after his death.
Early life
Lydia Hamilton was born at Russell Tavern near Gettysburg in Adams ...
.) Sexual contact between black male and white female existed but was much less common; in slave states
In the United States before 1865, a slave state was a state in which slavery and the internal or domestic slave trade were legal, while a free state was one in which they were not. Between 1812 and 1850, it was considered by the slave states ...
it was considered to always be rape—the white woman could never have consented—and resulted in the black man's immediate execution. While less serious relations were tolerated in some parts, and Massachusetts (only) had repealed its ban on interracial marriage in 1843, actual marriage between black and white was so unusual it was reported in the newspaper. (African Americans
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
were not U.S. citizens and were generally believed to be genetically inferior to whites.) Zephaniah Kingsley
Zephaniah Kingsley Jr. (December 4, 1765 – September 14, 1843) was a Quaker, born in England, who moved as a child with his family to South Carolina, and became a planter, slave trader, and merchant. He built four plantations in the Spanish co ...
, married outside the U.S. to an African woman he had purchased as a slave in Cuba, had to leave Florida after it became a U.S. territory in 1821. It was not until 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 ...
's marriage to Helen Pitts in 1884 that a married white–black couple could live openly in Washington, D.C., without violence, although they received much vituperation.
While visiting Fulton, New York, for a series of lectures in the spring of 1851, Allen spent an evening at the home of the abolitionist Reverend Lyndon King, who Allen called one of "earth's noble spirits". Here Allen met King's daughter Mary, who was beginning a term at New-York Central College. They quickly formed a relationship, which Allen described as "much more significant than that of teacher and pupil."[ In January 1853 the two became engaged.][ Her father "at once gave his consent", and her sister "warmly approved". Her brothers, of whom there were many, and Mary's stepmother were bitterly opposed.][ Rev. King felt himself obliged to bar Allen from the household, but he still drove Mary to meet Allen's arrival by train.][
One supportive couple, the Porters, who had also been students at Central College,][ lived in nearby Phillipsville. While Allen and Mary were visiting, a mob of 600 formed around the Porters' house, seeking to ]lynch
Lynch may refer to:
Places Australia
* Lynch Island, South Orkney Islands, Antarctica
* Lynch Point, Marie Byrd Land, Antarctica
* Lynch's Crater, Queensland, Australia
England
* River Lynch, Hertfordshire
* The Lynch, an island in the River ...
him.[ A group within the mob, hoping to calm the anger, negotiated with Allen, King, and the Porters. King was escorted to her parents' house. Allen, after being escorted to the village hotel, was able with difficulty to escape for Syracuse, where he stayed at the Globe Hotel for around a week; Mary took several days to elude her parents, and secretly met with Allen at a trusted friend's house.]
Mary traveled to Pennsylvania, telling her parents she intended to teach school there, and wrote letters to Allen stating she intended to join him. By arrangement, they married in New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
on March 30, 1853, and immediately left for Boston, where they sailed to Liverpool, England
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...
, never to return. The episode was reported in many newspapers, along with derogatory remarks on the pair, especially Allen.
Porter lost his teaching job;[ "the schoolmaster got his walking papers on Monday, for harboring the ']nigger
In the English language, the word ''nigger'' is an ethnic slur used against black people, especially African Americans. Starting in the late 1990s, references to ''nigger'' have been progressively replaced by the euphemism , notably in cases ...
'." He lost his next job "when it was discovered that he was 'the Phillipsville School-Master'". Central College hired him.[
According to a resolution passed in February, 1853, at a state convention of the Liberty Party in ]Syracuse, New York
Syracuse ( ) is a City (New York), city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, Onondaga County, New York, United States. It is the fifth-most populous city in the state of New York following New York City, Buffalo, New York, Buffa ...
, "the recent outrage upon that accomplished and worthy man, Prof. Wm. G. Allen, and the general acquiescence, not to say general rejoicing, in this outrage, are among the fearful evidences that, on the subject of Slavery, the deeply corrupted heart of the American people is past cure."
Exile in England and Ireland
Allen found in England an "absence of prejudice against color. Here the colored man feels himself among friends, and not among enemies". He and his wife were "happy" there. They attended the great anti-slavery meeting in Exeter Hall
Exeter Hall was a large public meeting place on the north side of the Strand in central London, opposite where the Savoy Hotel now stands. From 1831 until 1907 Exeter Hall was the venue for many great gatherings by promoters of human bettermen ...
, at which Harriet Beecher Stowe
Harriet Elisabeth Beecher Stowe (; June 14, 1811 – July 1, 1896) was an American author and abolitionist. She came from the religious Beecher family and became best known for her novel ''Uncle Tom's Cabin'' (1852), which depicts the harsh ...
and her husband Calvin Stowe spoke. A clipping of 1854 shows him lecturing to an anti-slavery meeting in Manchester
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...
, with other lectures in the vicinity on "'The origin, past history, and literature of the African race'; 'The probable destiny of the African race', &c. &c." A letter from Lord Shaftesbury
Earl of Shaftesbury is a title in the Peerage of England. It was created in 1672 for Anthony Ashley-Cooper, 1st Baron Ashley, a prominent politician in the Cabal then dominating the policies of King Charles II. He had already succeeded his fa ...
said he "sympathises most heartily with Professor Allen, and sincerely wishes him success in his undertaking. It will give Lord Shaftesbury great pleasure to assist in any way that he can a gentleman of the coloured race, who is a hundred times wiser, and better, than his white oppressors."
They traveled across the United Kingdom, moving to Dublin in 1856, where they had four children. In 1860, they moved back to England. He attempted to make a living through his lectures, but the couple was often close to poverty. In 1863, Allen became director of the New Caledonian Trading School in Islington
Islington () is a district in the north of Greater London, England, and part of the London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's High Street to Highbury Fields, encompassing the ar ...
, a school for the poor, the first African-American to direct an English school. However, in five years, finances and the "racism of his competitors" forced him out. Mary started a small school for girls, which failed.[ In 1871 they were living in Islington with six children; William's profession is listed as Professor of Music.] By 1878, they were living in a boarding house in West London, where they survived largely on the charity of friends, especially Gerrit Smith
Gerrit Smith (March 6, 1797 – December 28, 1874), also spelled Gerritt Smith, was a leading American social reformer, abolitionist, businessman, public intellectual, and philanthropist. Married to Ann Carroll Fitzhugh, Smith was a candidat ...
.
William died at St Mary's Hospital, London
St Mary's Hospital is an NHS hospital in Paddington, in the City of Westminster, London, founded in 1845. Since the UK's first academic health science centre was created in 2008, it has been operated by Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, wh ...
on May 1, 1888. His death certificate gives his occupation as teacher of languages, and lists nephritis
Nephritis is inflammation of the kidneys and may involve the glomeruli, tubules, or interstitial tissue surrounding the glomeruli and tubules. It is one of several different types of nephropathy.
Types
* Glomerulonephritis is inflammation of th ...
and enlarged prostate
Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), also called prostate enlargement, is a noncancerous increase in size of the prostate gland. Symptoms may include frequent urination, trouble starting to urinate, weak stream, inability to urinate, or loss o ...
as the causes of death.
The relationship between Allen and Mary King was the basis of Louisa May Alcott
Louisa May Alcott (; November 29, 1832March 6, 1888) was an American novelist, short story writer, and poet best known as the author of the novel ''Little Women'' (1868) and its sequels ''Little Men'' (1871) and ''Jo's Boys'' (1886). Raised in ...
's 1863 story ''M.L''.
Allen's thought
Allen was arguably the most learned African American of his day. He was well read, including Greek and Latin classics. He was capable of comparing Demosthenes
Demosthenes (; el, Δημοσθένης, translit=Dēmosthénēs; ; 384 – 12 October 322 BC) was a Greek statesman and orator in ancient Athens. His orations constitute a significant expression of contemporary Athenian intellectual prow ...
and Cicero
Marcus Tullius Cicero ( ; ; 3 January 106 BC – 7 December 43 BC) was a Roman statesman, lawyer, scholar, philosopher, and academic skeptic, who tried to uphold optimate principles during the political crises that led to the estab ...
at length, as he does in "Orators and oratory". Allen ''taught'' Greek, at a time when knowledge of classical Greek
Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic peri ...
was the pinnacle of a humanistic education
Humanistic education (also called person-centered education) is an approach to education based on the work of humanistic psychologists, most notably Abraham Maslow and Carl Rogers. Rogers is regarded as the founder of humanistic psychology and ...
. He also taught German, the leading scholarly language at the time, and he read French. As put by Wm. Lloyd Garrison, discussing his lectures, Allen had a "cultivated mind", as well as "true refinement of manners".
Allen as lecturer
Allen's primary vehicle for presenring his views was lectures. Numerous newspaper articles concur that he was an eloquent speaker.[ He excelled as a lecturer, at a time when ]lecture
A lecture (from Latin ''lēctūra'' “reading” ) is an oral presentation intended to present information or teach people about a particular subject, for example by a university or college teacher. Lectures are used to convey critical inform ...
s were much more important than today (2020). "The lecture was one which would have done honor to the mind of the historian Bancroft, while the gentle and modest demeanor of the speaker, together with the gracefulness of his elocution and ready command of language, gave to the performance an additional interest," said the ''Essex County Freeman''.[ Reprinted from the ''Essex County Freeman''.] The Syracuse ''Daily Standard
''The Daily Standard'' was a newspaper published in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia from 1912 to 1936. The newspaper was closely affiliated with the Australian Labor Party (Queensland Branch).
The newspaper was published from its first edition o ...
'' called him "a colored gentleman, of brilliant talents, and education", and said that his lecture "was one of the best ever delivered in this city". In sum,
That an African American was capable of such learning and eloquency filled his listeners with pleasant surprise (but no hostility). "One individual who had never been known to express any favorable feeling for the colored man and his cause, on leaving the lecture room the other evening confessed that the impression made on him by the subject as presented had given him new and exalted opinions of the class hitherto deemed so inferior."[
When based in Boston (1847–1850), at ]New-York Central College
New York Central College, commonly called New York Central College, McGrawville, and simply Central College, was the first college in the United States founded on the principle that all qualified students were welcome. It was thus an abolitionist ...
(1850–1853), and in England and Ireland (1853–), nearly the whole of which he visited,[ he was a frequent speaker, making small trips to the venues where he was to speak. Allen did not publish his lectures—they may not have been written out—and only one, "Orators and Oratory", is preserved completely, having been published in ''Frederick Douglass' Paper''. However, from newspaper reports and his pamphlets, key points in his lectures can be identified.
]
Allen's pamphlets
Allen evidently preferred to speak, to be in front of a group, than to write, by definition a solitary occupation. Printing, using hand-set type, human-powered presses, and rag paper
Rag, rags, RAG or The Rag may refer to:
Common uses
* Rag, a piece of old cloth
* Rags, tattered clothes
* Rag (newspaper), a publication engaging in tabloid journalism
* Rag paper, or cotton paper
Arts and entertainment Film
* ''Rags'' (1915 ...
, was relatively expensive. There was not much of a book industry in the antebellum
Antebellum, Latin for "before war", may refer to:
United States history
* Antebellum South, the pre-American Civil War period in the Southern United States
** Antebellum Georgia
** Antebellum South Carolina
** Antebellum Virginia
* Antebellum ar ...
United States. Lecturing was actually a cost-effective way to transmit ideas, reaching groups rather than individual readers. Lecturing had a hidden benefit for Allen, that of letting society see that an African American could be well educated and well spoken. His appointment as professor at Central College is due in part to his lectures.
All of Allen's pamphlets were self-published and intended to be sold at his lectures to earn whatever he could by that route, besides being sent out to potential lecture venues. In chronological order, they are:
* ''The African race : an essay for the times'' (Boston, 1848). Of this pamphlet of 20 pages only two copies are known. It states that it the "article is from the ''Christian Examiner''."
* ''Wheatley, Banneker and Horton. With selections from the poetical works of Wheatley and Horton, and the letter of Washington to Wheatley, and of Jefferson to Banneker'' (Boston, 1849). Reprinted in 1970 by Books for Libraries Press, . Studies Phyllis Wheatley
Phillis Wheatley Peters, also spelled Phyllis and Wheatly ( – December 5, 1784) was an American author who is considered the first African-American author of a published book of poetry. Gates, Henry Louis, ''Trials of Phillis Wheatley: Ameri ...
, Benjamin Banneker
Benjamin Banneker (November 9, 1731October 19, 1806) was an African-American naturalist, mathematician, astronomer and almanac author. He was a landowner who also worked as a surveyor and farmer.
Born in Baltimore County, Maryland, to a fr ...
, and George Moses Horton
George Moses Horton (1798–after 1867), was an African-American poet from North Carolina who was enslaved till the Emancipation Proclamation reached North Carolina (1865). Horton is the first African-American author to be published after th ...
, adding that "we regard Horton as decidedly the superior genius" (p. 7). In addition to the poems and the letters from Washington and Jefferson, he includes "sketches" of the authors "written by white persons distinguished for character and standing" (p. 7).
** "Introduction", by Allen (pp. 3–7).
** "Phillis Wheatley", a slightly abbreviated and edited version of the text found in the Boston, 1837 edition of Wheatley's poetry (pp. 9–20)
** Letter of George Washington (p. 20)
** Poems of Phillis Wheatley (pp. 21–27)
** "Benjamin Banneker", by John H. B. Latrobe (pp. 28–31), a slightly abbreviated version of a paper read before the Maryland Historical Society
The Maryland Center for History and Culture (MCHC), formerly the Maryland Historical Society (MdHS), . founded on March 1, 1844, is the oldest cultural institution in the U.S. state of Maryland. The organization "collects, preserves, and inte ...
** Letter of Banneker to Thomas Jefferson (pp. 31–34)
** Reply of Jefferson to Banneker (p. 35)
** More by Latrobe? (pp. 35–38)
** Brief introduction to Horton by Allen (p. 39)
** "Explanation", taken from first publication of Horton's poetry (pp. 39–41)
** Poems of Horton (pp. 42–48)
*
*
*
Allen's topics
The African race
Allen's favorite subject was what he called "the African race". There are more reports of his lectures on this topic than on all other topics combined. He did not use the same title twice, and they ranged from "The Mental Powers and Abilities of the Colored Man" (1849, Boston) "History, literature, and destiny of the colored race" (1849, Rochester, New York), "Origen, literature and destiny of the African race" (a series of lectures, 1850, Saxonville, Massachusetts), to "The Origin, History, Characteristics, Condition, and Probable Destiny of the African Race" (1857, Liverpool, England).[
]
Origin of the African race
Allen "seemed indeed to be perfectly familiar with every branch of the human family, as far back as the days of Noah, and to possess an intimate acquaintance with all the writings extant of every historian, both ancient and modern."[ This knowledge led him to the position, avant-garde in his day, that all "races" have a common ancestor. "The human family sprung from one common progenitor; ...climate and habits are sufficient to produce all the difference in the condition of the races inhabiting the different portions of the globe."][ Reprinted from ''Banner of the Times'' (]DeRuyter, New York
DeRuyter is a Administrative divisions of New York#Town, town in Madison County, New York, Madison County, New York (state), New York, United States. The population was 1,589 at the 2010 census. The town is named after Michiel de Ruyter, Michiel ...
)
In an 1850 lecture, Allen, "with one stroke of his logic, ...let the wind out of that sophistical argument put forth the last year in a pamphlet entitled, "Thoughts on Slavery", in which the nonymousauthor endeavors to prove, by the curse pronounced upon Canaan, that Southern slavery is a Bible institution sanctioned by the God of heaven!! Proceeding in his lecture, Mr. . rana tilt
Tilt may refer to:
Music
* Tilt (American band), a punk rock group, formed in 1992
* Tilt (British band), an electronic music group, formed in 1993
* Tilt (Polish band), a rock band, formed in 1979
Albums
* ''Tilt'' (Cozy Powell album), 1981
* ...
against Prof. Agassiz, who has recently made an attack upon Divine Revelation, by denying that 'God made of one blood all nations of men to dwell on all the face of the earth,' and completely unhorsing him, knocked him back into the Dark Ages to flounder on through the chaos of his own conflicting opinions with Linnæus, Buffon, Helvetius, Monboddo
James Burnett, Lord Monboddo (baptised 25 October 1714; died 26 May 1799) was a Scottish judge, scholar of linguistic evolution, philosopher and deist. He is most famous today as a founder of modern comparative historical linguistics. In 1767 ...
and Darwin—men who once advocated the same absurd theory, that the human race originated from different sources. Mr. A. also showed that the diversities among the different nations of mankind were produced by the influence which climate, hard treatment, and different kinds of food had upon the animal frame and the color of the skin."[
]
Characteristics of the African "race"
"Mr. Allen commenced with the somewhat startling assertion, that the Africans originated the arts and sciences n_Ethiopia.html" ;"title="Ethiopia.html" ;"title="n Ethiopia">n Ethiopia">Ethiopia.html" ;"title="n Ethiopia">n Ethiopiaand gave the first impulse to civilization."[
The African race, "more than any other race" appreciates "the good, the beautiful, the artistic, [and] the religious". "In musical gifts", it "is superior to other races". These traits are contrasted with those of the "Anglo-Saxon race", which are "physical force, calculating intellect, daring enterprise, and love of gain". It is "fierce, active, and warlike", combining "calculating intellect and physical force".][
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Nations require the combination of races
Allen proposed an idea radical in his day: "Nations, worthy of the name, could only be produced by a fusion of races require a mixture of races."[ Clearly he is thinking of the United States, and proposing that the black and white "races" are both needed to make America great.
]
Characteristics of the African race
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* Defends ]Horace Mann
Horace Mann (May 4, 1796August 2, 1859) was an American educational reformer, slavery abolitionist and Whig politician known for his commitment to promoting public education. In 1848, after public service as Secretary of the Massachusetts Sta ...
.
* August 27, 1850, Danvers, Massachusetts
Danvers is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, located on the Danvers River near the northeastern coast of Massachusetts. The suburb is a fairly short ride from Boston and is also in close proximity to the renowned beaches of Glo ...
: "A very able and interesting lecture was delivered last Tuesday evening, in the vestry of the Old South Church in Danvers, by Mr. Wm. G. Allen, a colored law student of Boston, on the 'Origin and History of the Africans.'"
:Mr. Allen commenced with the somewhat startling assertion, that the Africans originated the arts and sciences, and gave the first impulse to civilization. How different this idea from the notion entertained by great numbers in this country, at the present day, some of whom would endeavor to persuade themselves and others to believe that the negro is but a mere connecting link between the brute creation and the human race! But the speaker sustained his position by the most irrefragible proofs, drawn from the past history of the world, evincing a depth of research to which few men of any profession can lay claim. He seemed indeed to be perfectly familiar with every branch of the human family, as far back as the days of Noah, and to possess an intimate acquaintance with all the writings extant of every historian, both ancient and modern.
:With one stroke of his logic, he let the wind out of that sophistical argument put forth the last year in a pamphlet entitled, "Thoughts on Slavery", in which the author endeavors to prove, by the curse pronounced upon Canaan, that Southern slavery is a Bible institution sanctioned by the God of heaven!! Proceeding in his lecture, Mr. . rana tilt
Tilt may refer to:
Music
* Tilt (American band), a punk rock group, formed in 1992
* Tilt (British band), an electronic music group, formed in 1993
* Tilt (Polish band), a rock band, formed in 1979
Albums
* ''Tilt'' (Cozy Powell album), 1981
* ...
against Prof. Agassiz, who has recently made an attack upon Divine Revelation, by denying that 'God made of one blood all nations of men to dwell on all the face of the earth,' and completely unhorsing him, knocked him back into the Dark Ages to flounder on through the chaos of his own conflicting opinions with Linnæus, Buffon, Helvetius, Monboddo
James Burnett, Lord Monboddo (baptised 25 October 1714; died 26 May 1799) was a Scottish judge, scholar of linguistic evolution, philosopher and deist. He is most famous today as a founder of modern comparative historical linguistics. In 1767 ...
and Darwin—men who once advocated the same absurd theory, that the human race originated from different sources. Mr. A. also showed that the diversities among the different nations of mankind were produced by the influence which climate, hard treatment, and different kinds of food had upon the animal frame and the color of the skin.
:The lecture was one which would have done honor to the mind of the historian Bancroft, while the gentle and modest demeanor of the speaker, together with the gracefulness of his elocution and ready command of language, gave to the performance an additional interest.[
* The newspaper called Allen's lecture it "a real intellectual treat":
]Professor Allen then proceeded with his lecture, and from the eloquence and learning which he displayed in dealing with the subject appeared to take the audience completely by surprise. He took a Scriptural view of the origin of the Ethiopian
Ethiopians are the native inhabitants of Ethiopia, as well as the global diaspora of Ethiopia. Ethiopians constitute several component ethnic groups, many of which are closely related to ethnic groups in neighboring Eritrea and other parts of ...
s, Egyptians, and other races of ancient Africa, arguing that they were descended from the four sons of Ham
Ham is pork from a leg cut of pork, cut that has been food preservation, preserved by wet or dry Curing (food preservation), curing, with or without smoking (cooking), smoking."Bacon: Bacon and Ham Curing" in ''Chambers's Encyclopædia''. Lo ...
; and showed from classic authority the high civilisation to which they had attained when Greece was yet barbarous, and before Rome arose. Herodotus
Herodotus ( ; grc, , }; BC) was an ancient Greek historian and geographer from the Greek city of Halicarnassus, part of the Persian Empire (now Bodrum, Turkey) and a later citizen of Thurii in modern Calabria ( Italy). He is known f ...
had spoken of the Ethiopians as remarkable for their stature, longevity, and physical beauty; and although in the eyes of the white man they were not remarkable for the latter quality at present, the influence of adverse circumstances and of centuries of oppression should be taken into account. There was scarcely a race, he showed, on the face of the earth, which had not declined in intellectual power and physical beauty under the same influences, and in the mediæval ages, when Englishmen were sold as slaves, they were described by their purchasers, the Irishmen and Romans, as ugly and stupid. The lecturer then dwelt more particularly upon the leading characteristics of the African race, their religious tendency, and the predominance of the moral over the intellectual in their character—the affeetionateness of their disposition, their love of humour, &c. He gave many weighty hits at Anglo-Saxon civilisation, which told well with the audience, who appeared very much delighted. He was listened to with deep attention, and loudly applauded.
* Available at the same url is an mp3
MP3 (formally MPEG-1 Audio Layer III or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III) is a coding format for digital audio developed largely by the Fraunhofer Society in Germany, with support from other digital scientists in the United States and elsewhere. Origin ...
audio file.
:According to Allen, nations are born of a combination of races.
"American Slavery, the present aspects of the anti-slavery cause, and our duty in relation thereto"
Allen delivered many lectures across England and Ireland. The above title was one of two lectures he delivered in Belfast
Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...
, Ireland, in 1855.
He "illustrated the condition of the nominally free colored American—his disabilities in the various states of the Union—also the prevalence and force of that vulgar prejudice which had been so truthfully delineated." In England and Ireland, he spoke about his barely escaping lynching, and having to exile himself, because his skin was the wrong color to marry a white young lady. "Prof. Allen, of New York, gave the audience account of the aristocracy of complexion as established by custom in America, and of the dangers he had incurred, because be had ventured to think and act for himself, without regard to such a regency."
Allen had printed in London and Dublin accounts of his near-lynching and exile, which were sold at his lectures to raise money.
America and the Americans
A topic of his lectures in Ireland: "America and the Americans".[
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"The great men of a nation are a nation's vitality"
On mid-January 1853, Allen gave a lecture "before the Literary Association of this village" (Cortland, New York
Cortland is a city and the county seat of Cortland County, New York. Known as the Crown City, Cortland is in New York's Southern Tier region. As of the 2020 census it had a population of 17,556.
The city of Cortland, near the county's western ...
). His subject was: "The great men of a nation are a nation's vitality, which he illustrated by reference to distinguished statesmen, patriots and reformers, occasionally bringing in a touch of the radicalism bolitionismpeculiar to that class of men with whom the gentleman acts, and giving the conservatism of the day some rather severe hits."[ Reprinted from the '' Cortland Democrat''.]
Orators and oratory
* "The following is an extract from an address delivered by Prof. Wm. G. Allen, of N.Y. Central College, before the Dialexian Society, of that Institution. We copy it because it is so beautifully written and truthful. The excellent oration from which we have made the extract, we shall lay in part, if not entire, before our readers. For the present, suffice it to say, Mr. Allen, though a colored man, sustains a high literary reputation, and by his learning and ability, is doing much to give character to the Institution with which he is connected."[ Reprinted from ''Banner of the Times'' (]DeRuyter, New York
DeRuyter is a Administrative divisions of New York#Town, town in Madison County, New York, Madison County, New York (state), New York, United States. The population was 1,589 at the 2010 census. The town is named after Michiel de Ruyter, Michiel ...
)
Writings
*Books and pamphlets
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**
**
** Reprinted in 1970 by Books for Libraries Press, Studies Phyllis Wheatley
Phillis Wheatley Peters, also spelled Phyllis and Wheatly ( – December 5, 1784) was an American author who is considered the first African-American author of a published book of poetry. Gates, Henry Louis, ''Trials of Phillis Wheatley: Ameri ...
, Benjamin Banneker
Benjamin Banneker (November 9, 1731October 19, 1806) was an African-American naturalist, mathematician, astronomer and almanac author. He was a landowner who also worked as a surveyor and farmer.
Born in Baltimore County, Maryland, to a fr ...
, and George Moses Horton
George Moses Horton (1798–after 1867), was an African-American poet from North Carolina who was enslaved till the Emancipation Proclamation reached North Carolina (1865). Horton is the first African-American author to be published after th ...
.
**
* Published correspondence
**
** Comments on England. Reprinted in ''Frederick Douglass' Paper
''The North Star'' was a nineteenth-century anti-slavery newspaper published from the Talman Building in Rochester, New York, by abolitionist Frederick Douglass. The paper commenced publication on December 3, 1847, and ceased as ''The North Star' ...
'', August 5, 1853.
**
** On Horace Mann
Horace Mann (May 4, 1796August 2, 1859) was an American educational reformer, slavery abolitionist and Whig politician known for his commitment to promoting public education. In 1848, after public service as Secretary of the Massachusetts Sta ...
.
** On Beriah Green
Beriah Green Jr. (March 24, 1795May 4, 1874) was an American reformer, abolitionist, temperance advocate, college professor, minister, and head of the Oneida Institute. He was "consumed totally by his abolitionist views". He has been described as ...
.
** Reprinted from the Pennsylvania Freeman
The ''National Enquirer'' was an abolitionist newspaper founded by Quaker Benjamin Lundy in 1836,Wicks, Suzanne RBenjamin Lundy. Friends Journal .
**
** On Jews and on races.
** On the Anglo-Saxon and African "nationalities".
** Includes discussion of ''Uncle Tom's Cabin
''Uncle Tom's Cabin; or, Life Among the Lowly'' is an anti-slavery novel by American author Harriet Beecher Stowe. Published in two volumes in 1852, the novel had a profound effect on attitudes toward African Americans and slavery in the U. ...
''
** On Benjamin Banneker
Benjamin Banneker (November 9, 1731October 19, 1806) was an African-American naturalist, mathematician, astronomer and almanac author. He was a landowner who also worked as a surveyor and farmer.
Born in Baltimore County, Maryland, to a fr ...
** On the Hungarian hero Lajos Kossuth
Lajos Kossuth de Udvard et Kossuthfalva (, hu, udvardi és kossuthfalvi Kossuth Lajos, sk, Ľudovít Košút, anglicised as Louis Kossuth; 19 September 1802 – 20 March 1894) was a Hungarian nobleman, lawyer, journalist, poli ...
. Reprinted in The Liberator, January 9, 1852.
** Pledges $10 as support "for the establishing of a Semi-Weekly paper published by yourself".
** Forwards "some lines written by a young lady of this Institution, upon the death of Miss Anna E. Pierce and Joseph P. Purvis, students of New York Central College".
**
Editorial note on Allen in same issue
* Manuscript
** "30 leaves, 20 of them with delicately mounted sea weed specimens with mss. descriptions, poetry, religious sentiments interspersed." Held by Cornell University Library
The Cornell University Library is the library system of Cornell University. As of 2014, it holds over 8 million printed volumes and over a million ebooks. More than 90 percent of its current 120,000 Periodical literature, periodical titles are ...
.
**
Studies of Allen
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References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Allen, William G.
1820 births
African-American abolitionists
Year of death unknown
American expatriate academics
American expatriates in the United Kingdom
American newspaper editors
19th-century African-American academics
New York Central College faculty
1888 deaths
Lecturers
Oneida Institute alumni
Recipients of aid from Gerrit Smith
People from Virginia
African-American history of New York (state)
African-American college graduates before 1865
American people of Welsh descent