People, Locations, Episodes

Abdul Rahman Ibrahima Sori, African Prince, born.

*The birth of Abdul Rahman Ibrahima Sori is celebrated on this date in 1762. He was a Black African royal and American slave. Abdul Rahman Ibrahima was a Torodbe Fulani Muslim prince from Guinea, West Africa. He was the son of Ibrahima Sori and a Moorish wife. Abdul Rahman studied in a madrasah, speaking several African languages and Arabic. […]

Somerset v. Stewart is Ruled

*On this date in 1772, Somerset v Stewart was ruled.  This was a British judgment of the Court of King’s Bench on labor law and human rights.   It held that chattel slavery was unsupported by the common law in England and Wales, although the position elsewhere in the British Empire was left ambiguous.  James Somerset, an enslaved African, was purchased by Charles Stewart or Stewart, a Customs officer when he was in Boston, Province of Massachusetts […]

The American Declaration of Independence is Adopted

On this date in 1776, the Declaration of Independence was adopted. This document affected Blacks in two significant ways distinct from other U.S. citizens:

Vermont Abolishes American Slavery

On this date in 1777, Vermont abolished slavery.

Vermont was an independent sovereign country that year and did not join the United States of America until 1791.

Vermont was the first country in the modern era to abolish slavery.

James Tallmadge, Abolitionist born

*James Tallmadge, Jr. was born on this date 1778. He was a White American politician and abolitionist.

Born in Stanford, Dutchess County, New York, he graduated from Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island in 1798, and was secretary to Governor George Clinton from 1798 to 1800. He studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1802, after which he practiced in Poughkeepsie and in New York City. He served in the War of 1812 and commanded a company of home guards in defense of New York.

Opothleyahola, Native American Chief, and Slave Owner born

*The birth of Opothleyahola is affirmed on this date in c. 1778. He was a Native American, Muscogee Creek Indian chief, noted orator, and slave owner. Also known as Opothle Yohola, he was from Florida, a Speaker of the Upper Creek Council, and supported traditional culture. Although known as a diplomatic chief and Red Stick […]

The First Rhode Island Infantry is Formed

On this date in 1778, the Black, elite First Rhode Island regiment defeated three assaults by British troops at the battle of Rhode Island (Newport).

The First Rhode Island regiment was the first all-Black unit in America. Most Continental regiments were integrated except this northern regiment.

Micanopy, Seminole Chief born

*Micanopy’s birth is celebrated on this date in c. 1780. He was an ally of African slaves and the leading chief of the Seminoles during the Second Seminole War. His name was derived from the Hitchiti terms Miko (chief) and naba (above), meaning “high chief” or the like. Micanopy was born near present-day St. Augustine, Florida, sometime around 1780. He […]

Jean-Baptiste Riché, Soldier and Politician born

*Jean-Baptiste Riché’s birth is celebrated on this date in 1780. He was a Black Haitian, a career officer, and a politician. Riché was born free, the son of a prominent free Black man of the same name in the North Province of Saint-Domingue (the French colony that later became Haiti). His father was a sergeant […]

John C. Calhoun, Segregationist born

*John C. Calhoun was born on this date in 1782. He was a white-American statesman from the Democratic party. John Caldwell Calhoun was born in Abbeville District, South Carolina, the fourth child of Patrick Calhoun and Martha C. Caldwell. Patrick’s father, also named Patrick Calhoun, had joined the Scotch-Irish immigration movement from County Donegal to southwestern Pennsylvania. After his grandfather’s […]

Faustin Soulouque, Military Officer and Politician born

*Faustin Soulouque was born on this date in 1782. He was a Black Haitian politician and military commander. Faustin-Élie Soulouque was born in Petit-Goâve, a small town in the French colony of Saint-Domingue, to a slave mother, Marie-Catherine Soulouque. She was a Creole of ethnic Mandinka descent. Soulouque was freed because of a 1793 emancipation decree that […]

Vicente Guerrero, Soldier, and Politician born

*Vicente Guerrero was born on this date in 1783.  He was an Afro Mexican soldier, politician, and abolitionist.  From Tixtla, Mexico Vicente Ramón Guerrero Saldana was the son of Juan Pedro Guerrero and María Guadalupe Saldaño.  Guerrero began his military career in 1810 when he joined the independence movement against Spain under José María Morelos. […]

Saint Barthélemy, Swedish Colony is Formed

*On this date, in 1784, the Swedish colony of Saint Barthélemy was formed. This was a Swedish colonial property during the Middle Passage and existed for nearly a century.   Following problems experienced by early French settlers, Saint Barthélemy was successfully colonized by French mariners in 1763. Attracted by the island’s prosperity during the American Revolutionary War, Gustav […]

Domingo Sosa, Soldier born

*Domingo Sosa’s birth is celebrated on this date in 1784. He was an Afro Argentine soldier who became an army colonel and participated in the Wars of Independence and the Argentine Civil War. Born a slave in Buenos Aries, Argentina, with no formal education, he learned to read and write. His parents were Agustín Sosa, […]

Moeshoeshoe I, African Leader born

*The birth of Moshoeshoe I is celebrated on this date, c. 1786. He was a Black South African leader. Moshoeshoe I was born at Menkhoaneng in northern Lesotho, South Africa, under Lepoqo. His name’s literal translation is Dispute, which originated from accusations of witchcraft against a man in Mekhoaneng around the time of his birth. […]