Lorin Driggs - Biddy Mason: Becoming a Leader

0covercover.xhtmlBiddy Mason Becoming a Leader Lorin Driggscover1page0001page0001.xhtml22page0002page0002.xhtml33page0003page0003.xhtml44page0004page0004.xhtmlTable of Contents A Courageous Life 4 Mason's Life in Mississippi 6 The Free State of California 10 Freedom and Beyond 16 Honoring Mason 22 The Heart of Los Angeles 26 Stage It! 28 Glossary 30 Index 31 Your Turn! 3255page0005page0005.xhtmlA Courageous Life Farewell farewell : Behind I leave the whips and chains, Before me spreads sweet Freedom's plains. Excerpt from "The Flying Slave" These lines are from a song about a slave's dream of freedom. Biddy Mason could have sung this song. She also dreamed about being free. Mason was born in 1818. Her first name was Bridget. Everyone called her Biddy. She was born in either Georgia or Mississippi. No one knows for sure. Mason was born into slavery. Her owner gave her as a gift to another man. He lived in Mississippi. She worked on his plantation until she was 30 years old. In 1848, she started a journey that would change her life. When it began, she was an enslaved person in Mississippi. When it ended, she was a free wealthy woman in Los Angeles, California. This book tells the true story of Biddy Mason's amazing life. a Mississippi plantation house from the 1800s66page0006page0006.xhtml Slavery and the Law In 1808, a new law was passed. It banned bringing enslaved people into the Un ited States. But it was still legal to own t hem. That didn't change until 1865. That was when the Thirteenth Amendment (shown r ight) passed. This outlawed slavery. Half Were Not Free In the 1850 census, people in each state were counted. Both free and enslaved people were counted. Mississippi had over 600, 000 people. Half of them were enslaved.77page0007page0007.xhtmlMason's Life in Mississippi What was Mason's life like as an enslaved person in Mississippi? Every day was planned for her. She could not decide when to get up or go to sleep. Going to school or having a paying job were not options for her. She could not move to another place. Mason had to do what she was told by Robert Smith, who owned her. Mr. Smith could not stop her from using her intelligence. Mason learned nursing skills. She learned from older women, who had learned from women before them. Mason used her skills to take care of sick people. When it was time for a baby to be born on the plantation, Mason helped. Whenever someone needed nursing care, Mason was there. In 1848, Mason's life changed. Smith decided to leave Mississippi. He had joined the Mormon Church, and many Mormons were moving to Utah. Sharing the Knowledge In some states, it was against the law for enslaved people to learn to read and write. It was also against the law for anybody to teach them. Slaveholders worried that teaching slaves would lead to a revolt. But many enslaved people found ways to learn. They relied on family and other enslaved people for knowledge.88page0008page0008.xhtml