William Drew Robeson I (July 27, 1844 – May 17, 1918) was the minister of
Witherspoon Street Presbyterian Church Witherspoon Street Presbyterian Church was founded in 1839 in Princeton, New Jersey. The church was formed after the Nassau Presbyterian Church allowed 90 of the 131 former African American members to form their own church, after a fire had devast ...
in
Princeton
Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ni ...
, New Jersey from 1880 to 1901 and the father of
Paul Robeson
Paul Leroy Robeson ( ; April 9, 1898 – January 23, 1976) was an American bass-baritone concert artist, stage and film actor, professional American football, football player, and activist who became famous both for his cultural accomplish ...
. The Witherspoon Street Presbyterian Church had been built for its black members by the First Presbyterian Church of Princeton.
Biography
He was born into
slavery
Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...
as William Drew Robeson in 1844 to Benjamin Robeson (1820 – c. 1889) and Sabra (1825 – c. 1885). They were enslaved on the Roberson
plantation
A plantation is an agricultural estate, generally centered on a plantation house, meant for farming that specializes in cash crops, usually mainly planted with a single crop, with perhaps ancillary areas for vegetables for eating and so on. The ...
near Cross Road township in
Martin County, North Carolina
Martin County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 22,031. Its county seat is Williamston.
History
The county was formed in 1774 from the southeastern part of Halifax County and t ...
. He was a descendant of the Igbo people.
In 1860, when he was 15 years old, Robeson escaped slavery with his brother Ezekiel 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. ...
and they made their way to
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 ...
in the free state of Pennsylvania.
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 ...
, Robeson served in the
Union Army
During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union of the collective states. It proved essential to th ...
as a laborer, entering in 1861 at the age of 16 to join the effort to end slavery in the South.
Afterward, Robeson studied at Lincoln College (now a university), where he earned an A.B. in 1873 and Bachelor of Sacred Theology in 1876.
While a student at Lincoln University he met
Maria Louisa Bustill
Maria Louisa Bustill Robeson (November 8, 1853 – January 20, 1904) was a Quaker schoolteacher; the wife of the Reverend William Drew Robeson of Witherspoon Street Presbyterian Church in Princeton, New Jersey and the mother of Paul Robeson ...
and they married in 1878. They had seven children: Gertrude (who died young), William Drew Jr., called "Bill"; John Bunyan Reeve called "Reed"; Benjamin; Marian; and
Paul LeRoy Robeson
Paul Leroy Robeson ( ; April 9, 1898 – January 23, 1976) was an American bass-baritone concert artist, stage and film actor, professional American football, football player, and activist who became famous both for his cultural accomplish ...
(1898–1976), the youngest. Another child died at birth, but the name is not known.
In 1904 Louisa died in Princeton when Paul was six years old. Her clothes had caught fire from a coal-burning stove in a kitchen accident.
Princeton to Westfield
Robeson served as minister of the Witherspoon Street Presbyterian Church in Princeton, New Jersey from 1880 until 1901. It was built for the black members of the First Presbyterian Church of Princeton (now known as Nassau Presbyterian Church).
Robeson was ousted as minister by his church after 20 years of service. He was said to have aligned himself "on the wrong side of a church fight," having refused to bow to pressure from the "white residents of Princeton" that he cease to "speak out against social injustice." Upon his dismissal, Reverend William Drew Robeson bypassed any need "to recriminate and rebuke ... As I review the past," he said, "and think upon many scenes, my heart is filled with love." In closing his last address to his Princeton congregation, he implored them, "Do not be discouraged, do not think your past work is in vain."Duberman, Martin, ''Paul Robeson'' 1989, pp. 6–7, Boyhood
He moved to
Westfield, New Jersey
Westfield is a town in Union County, New Jersey, United States, located southwest of Manhattan. As of the 2010 United States census, the town's population was 30,316,African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church from 1907 to 1910. He led the congregation through construction of their church, completed in 1908. The younger children attended the Washington School at Elm and Orchard streets. The Robesons lived on the south side of Spring Street, where it intersects with Rahway Avenue. The street is now called Watterson Street, and the house was taken down.
Princeton Cemetery
Princeton Cemetery is located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. It is owned by the Nassau Presbyterian Church. John F. Hageman in his 1878 history of Princeton, New Jersey refers to the cemetery as "The Westminster Abbey of the United Stat ...