Africatown

[asakiyume]

Those of you who know Alabama history may already know about Africatown, but wow. The discovery of it blew my mind.

It seems that in 1860, some brothers in Mobile, Alabama, got the idea to send a ship to Africa and bring back a bunch of Africans as slaves--although importation of slaves had been illegal in all the United States for 52 years. A ship called the Clothilde brought 110 people, aged 5 to 23, secretly to Mobile Bay, but the crime was discovered, and the brothers were prosecuted--though not before several of the young people had indeed been sold as slaves. Then the Civil War came along, the case against the brothers was dropped, the slaves were emancipated, and those who had been brought to America on the Clothilde found each other again. And then?

Well, The Encyclopedia of Alabama reports that

In 1866, they established the settlement of African Town as the first town founded and continuously occupied and controlled by blacks in the United States ... The residents appointed Gumpa, a Fon relative of King Ghezo known as Peter Lee or African Peter, as their chief. They also established a judicial system for the town based on their own laws, which were administered by two judges, Jaba Shade—well versed in herbal medicine—and Ossa Keeby. They also built the first school in the area to provide their children with better opportunities. Their school teacher was a young African American woman ...

By the 1880s, African Town was home to a second generation that had never been to Africa, but had been told repeatedly by their parents that it was a land of abundance and beauty. Many of the youngsters had both an American and a West African name, knew the geography of their parents' homelands, and those who had two African parents, also spoke their indigenous languages. Many of these second-generation residents lived into the 1950s, and thus some African Americans whose origin was in the international slave trade spoke African languages well into the twentieth century

Is that not amazing?

And in a few short days I can go look at that place.

Comments

[bogwitch64.livejournal.com]

That is so amazing. Wow. You'll be posting about it, right??

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

I won't have much computer access on the trip, but I'll definitely post when I get back.

[bogwitch64.livejournal.com]

[heleninwales.livejournal.com]

I look forward to reading about it. It sounds fascinating.

[mnfaure.livejournal.com]

That is fascinating. Looking forward to your follow-up post.

[maryvictoria.livejournal.com]

So bittersweet. Proud and beautiful. Please post all about your visit!

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

I surely will!

[snakypoet]

A fascinating piece of history. You inspired me to read more about this place and these people at Wikipedia.

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

I thought it was just amazing. So cool. People growing up and speaking West African languages in the 1950s.

[sartorias.livejournal.com]

Wow!

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

Right??

[duccio.livejournal.com]

Very interesting. I think I have heard the tory of the shipment of Africans before, and how the ship was sunk to avoid prosecution, but I was unaware of the Africatown part of the story. Take some pics, and walk around to get a good sense of the place. I'll be interested to hear your thoughts and impressions.

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

Thank you--I'll do my best!

[littlemoremasks.livejournal.com]

That was a really powerful thing for you to share with me. I mean I know you shared it with other folks, but really, I needed that. You damn well better write that into asakiyumeverse.

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

It is such a powerful thing. Wonderful. I mean, the juxtapositions. When people say truth is stranger than fiction, this is the sort of thing they're talking about.

I would like to try to write it into the Asakiyumeverse, but it's so big, it deserves a story of its own. I wonder if people from the community have written about their experiences. The wikipedia page mentions one scholarly source: Diouf, Sylviane Anna. Dreams of Africa in Alabama: The Slave Ship Clotilda and the Story of the Last Africans Brought to America. New York: Oxford University Press, 2007. But I wonder if there have been any stories.

[88greenthumb.livejournal.com]

Truly amazing! Am looking forward to hearing more about your visit to the place.

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

And I am looking forward to sharing it!

[tooticky.livejournal.com]

I'll be really curious too. To hear how much is left physically, what community lives there now, as well as more stories. :)

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

I'll take pictures :-)

[deponti.livejournal.com]

Wow, waiting for your update!!

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

In a few short hours, we'll be on our way.

[mnfaure.livejournal.com]

Happy, safe trip!

[peppergrass.livejournal.com]

That IS amazing. I'd never heard of it, either. I'm so excited about your trip!

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

Thank you! It was a great trip... I hope to write about it soon...