Sojourner's Place

ain't i a woman? a sojourner's salute to old elizabeth  

Posted by SjP in

Sojourner's Place is proud to present this series entitled: Ain't I a Woman? A Sojourner's Salute. Each post will present an African-American woman whose greatness and impact was or is largely overlooked by the history books or media. I hope you will find this series to be enlightening, educational, and inspirational in celebration of the lives of African-American women who made and are making a difference.



Old Elizabeth 1766-1863


Born a slave in 1766 in Maryland, her parents were also slaves. Her father could read, and read to her frequently from the Bible, but Elizabeth remained illiterate.

At age eleven, Elizabeth was sold to a new owner who lived some miles from her family; Elizabeth was lashed for returning to visit her mother, and it was after this that she received a spiritual call to become an evangelist.

After a short time reunited with her mother, Elizabeth was sold again. Her religious visions continued. A fourth owner freed her in her 30s; he did not believe in slavery for life.

At the age of 42, in Baltimore, Elizabeth began a career as a religious evangelist, preaching though she was discouraged from doing so, especially by men who did not believe that women were permitted by the Bible to be preachers. She traveled to Virginia, and as far as Canada. She often had a warmer reception by Quakers than by others.

At the age of 80, Elizabeth moved to Michigan, and during her four years there, founded an orphanage for black children, getting around opposition by staffing it with white teachers. At 87, she moved to Philadelphia where, in 1863, she published an autobiographical account,
Memoir of Old Elizabeth, A Coloured Woman. It was republished after her death by Quakers, retitled as Elizabeth, A Colored Minister of the Gospel, Born in Slavery. Source

Obliged to you for hearing me,
and now old SjP ain't got nothin' more to say...
~~~ ~~~ ~~~
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This entry was posted at Wednesday, April 08, 2009 and is filed under . You can follow any responses to this entry through the .

1 sojourners hollin' back

Inspirational! Thanks for this series.

April 9, 2009 at 9:00 PM
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