Christian Reconstruction: The American Missionary Association and Southern Blacks, 1861-1890

1. A Grand Field for Missionary Labor

A Grand Field for Missionary Labor ! ~ HE ROAR of Confederate cannons shelling Fort Sumter had ~ ~ hardly faded when the American Missionary Association exulted that the war would open "one of the grandest fields for missionary labor" the world had ever known. By June of 1861 the association proposed to do its part in the "circulation of spelling books" among escaping slaves, and in September of that year it sent its first missionary to Virginia.1 Shortly after the commencement of hostilities slaves had begun fleeing to Federal lines. Since emancipation was not yet a war aim, puzzled commanders often returned escaped slaves to their masters until on May 23 General Benjamin F. Butler at Fortress Monroe, Virginia, declared three such slaves contrabands of war and set them to work on Union entrenchments at Hampton.2 News of Butler's decision spread quickly through the black "grapevine," and on May 26 eight more "Virginia Volunteers" arrived. The next day fortyseven , including babies and frail elderly women, straggled into Butler 's backyard. Soon the trickle became a flood.3 Lewis Tappan, treasurer of the AMA, had avidly followed newspaper accounts of the increasing number of contrabands at Fortress Monroe.4 On August 8 he wrote commending Butler for his treatment of the fugitives and asking his advice about bringing the "self-emancipated " blacks to the free states where they could find employment. If they could be removed and given jobs, Tappan suggested, the commander would be relieved of great "care and anxiety." Butler replied that the "contrabands" were better off in Virginia, but that if people wished to show sympathy they could send clothing. Tappan, who feared that the fugitives might be remanded to slavery if they remained in the South, questioned Butler's right to "control the movement of colored people, bond or free." He further objected to the army working contrabands without pay, and added that philanthropic people 3 4 CHRISTIAN RECONSTRUCTION would gladly send relief if they could be assured that the government would not allow the escapees to be returned. Three days later Tappan again corresponded with Butler, asking whether "an intelligent, discreet and good man . . . would have facilities at . . . Fortress Monroe to distribute useful publications, preach to the 'contrabands,' converse with them, ascertain their physical & other necessities and be the medium of distributing clothing etc." Although Butler informed Tappan that the fugitives were being well cared for and that their religious needs were being met, the AMA sent the Reverend Lewis C. Lockwood to Virginia to investigate the condition of contrabands.5 Lockwood, who arrived in Hampton on 3 September 1861, was a providential choice as the association's first missionary to contrabands. His sensitivity toward and acceptance of blacks, combined with his remarkable energy and endurance, made him unusual among the missionaries . His expense accounts were often inaccurate, he was unsystematic , and, much to the association's dismay, he sometimes used tobacco for his asthma, but he filled an indispensable role during the thirteen months he remained in Virginia. Lockwood discovered that Hampton blacks were "uniquely prepared" to take advantage of his assistance. Many had been skilled craftsmen, fishermen, and foremen on nearby farms. They had "a great thirst for knowledge" and were anxious for schools. Lockwood gave books to those who could read and organized several Sabbath schools, including one in ex-President John Tyler's house. He immediately began advising blacks, marrying those who had "taken up with each other," and planning the construction ofa school and church at Fortress Monroe. But perhaps his most important action was to start a day school at Hampton on 17 September 1861 and to employ the remarkable Mrs. Mary Peake as teacher.6 Mary Peake had been born Mary Smith Kelsey in Norfolk, Virginia, in 1823, the daughter of a free black mother and a white European father. At six she was sent to Alexandria, where she attended "a select colored school" for ten years. Upon her return to Norfolk she became active in a black Baptist church and founded the Daughters of Zion to aid the poor and ill. She also spent much of her time secretly teaching slaves. In 1851 she married an "intelligent and pious" former slave, Thomas Peake. She was teaching in Hampton when the Confederates burned the town on 7 August 1861.7 Mrs. Peake conducted her AMA school with a strong religious em- [3.19.56.45] Project MUSE (2024...