Buzz
In the early years of America, black people faced unimaginable hardships. The majority endured grueling lives of servitude and labor under the harsh rule of oppressive plantation owners. Yet, some resilient African Americans managed to defy these conditions and went on to lead remarkable lives, amassing wealth and prestige that other colonists could only dream of.
These remarkable individuals, through a combination of perseverance and fortuitous circumstances, overcame the entrenched system of slavery and succeeded despite overwhelming obstacles. Their stories stand as a powerful reminder of human resilience and the unyielding desire to thrive.
10. Paul Cuffee
Born in 1759, Paul Cuffee was a remarkable sea captain and entrepreneur. His father, Cuffee Slocum, had been a freed slave, and his mother, Ruth Moses, was a Native American. Raised in Massachusetts, Paul was the youngest of ten children.
Despite lacking formal schooling, Paul learned arithmetic and navigation with the help of a family friend. He also taught himself to read and write, working various jobs as a farmer, carpenter, and fisherman.
In 1776, Paul's relentless effort allowed him to purchase a 116-acre farm in Dartmouth, Massachusetts. He went on to build a thriving shipping business and founded the first racially integrated school in Westport, Massachusetts.
Cuffee is also recognized as the first free African American to visit the White House and meet with a sitting president. A politically active man, he advocated for the creation of a prosperous colony in Africa for black people. Upon his death in 1817, Cuffee's estate was valued at nearly $20,000, equivalent to about $500,000 today.
9. Anthony Johnson
Anthony Johnson was an African man who migrated from Angola to America in the early 1600s, at a time when both black and white people worked as indentured servants rather than slaves. Like many immigrants of the era, Johnson entered into a labor contract with the promise of land upon fulfilling his service.
After gaining his freedom, Johnson acquired 250 acres of land and established a prosperous tobacco farm. He became one of the first African property owners in the 13 colonies and employed five indentured servants, four of whom were white.
John Casor, an African servant employed by Johnson, eventually requested to be freed from his servitude. However, after a court ruled that his servitude was permanent, Johnson became legally recognized as the first slave owner.
This was the first instance in which a servant was condemned to lifelong servitude without having committed any crime. Unfortunately, this decision set a legal precedent that contributed to the spread of legalized slavery.
8. William Ellison Jr.
William Ellison Jr. was born in 1790 as April Ellison, the son of black slaves owned by a white plantation owner named William Ellison. At that time, it was common practice to name the children of slaves after the month in which they were born.
At the age of 12, Ellison Jr. became an apprentice to William McCreight, a gin builder, who taught him the craft of building and repairing cotton gins. During his time as an apprentice, Ellison also learned to read, write, perform arithmetic, and keep accounts. He further trained as a carpenter, machinist, and blacksmith.
Ellison worked in McCreight’s gin shop until he turned 26, at which point he had acquired all the necessary skills to become a successful independent professional. He gained his freedom legally in 1817 and relocated to Sumter County, South Carolina, where he ran a prosperous gin shop.
Ellison owned a 900-acre cotton plantation, a $58,000 estate, and 37 slaves, according to the 1850 census. Widely respected for his expertise, he earned a distinguished reputation as a black man with the same social standing as whites.
7. Antoine Dubuclet
Born in 1810 in Louisiana to free black parents, Antoine Dubuclet’s father was a planter who owned 406 acres of land and 70 slaves. When his father passed away at the age of 54 in 1828, Antoine inherited his estate and married a wealthy black woman. Together, their combined assets were valued at around $95,000, making Dubuclet one of the wealthiest planters of his time.
Following the Civil War, the Southern plantation economy was in severe decline, prompting Dubuclet to shift his focus to politics. In 1868, he was elected Louisiana’s state treasurer, tasked with resolving the state's financial crisis. Dubuclet was praised by both Democrats and Republicans for his leadership and served multiple terms in office.
6. Robert Gordon
Robert Gordon, a former slave, purchased his freedom in 1846. The following year, he entered the coal business by investing $15,000 in a coal yard in Cincinnati. His venture faced intense competition from white coal dealers who attempted to drive him out by cutting their prices.
Instead of lowering his prices, Gordon took a different approach: he began stockpiling coal. He then hired biracial men who could pass for white to purchase the cheaper coal from his competitors. When freezing weather prevented competitors from delivering coal via waterways, Gordon’s stockpile flourished while his rivals’ supplies dwindled.
This clever business strategy helped Robert Gordon win the “coal war” and earned him the respect of white coal dealers.
5. Samuel T. Wilcox
Samuel Wilcox was an accomplished black entrepreneur in Cincinnati. In 1850, he entered the grocery business, opening a luxury grocery store that was unprecedented in scale for its time in America.
He focused on offering only top-tier goods, such as premium hams, dried fruit, sugar, and soaps. His clientele mainly consisted of wealthy, high-society individuals. Starting with an initial investment of $25,000, he generated annual sales ranging from $100,000 to $140,000, which would be about $4.2 million today.
However, Wilcox's business eventually declined due to his lack of attention to his company and a penchant for living extravagantly. At the time of his passing, his estate was valued at approximately $60,000.
4. William Alexander Leidesdorff Jr.
William Alexander Leidesdorff Jr. was a mixed-race individual who achieved remarkable success. His father was a Danish sugar plantation owner, and his mother was an American of Spanish and African ancestry.
In 1841, Leidesdorff Jr. arrived in California aboard the 106-ton schooner Julia Ann. He quickly set up a range of business ventures, including a prosperous shipyard, a lumberyard, and a ship chandlery. He also served as San Francisco’s treasurer and built the city’s very first hotel.
Leidesdorff Jr. is recognized as the first African American millionaire in the United States. By 1856, his estate was valued at $1.4 million, which would be more than $20 million in today’s currency.
3. Bridget Mason
Bridget Mason, also known as “Biddy,” was a black woman born into slavery who eventually gained her freedom with the assistance of her white son-in-law, Charles Owens. She had three daughters, all fathered by her enslaver, Robert Smith.
After embracing Mormonism, Smith and his wife journeyed to Utah by wagon, while Bridget was forced to follow on foot. A church leader encouraged Smith to free his slaves, but Smith resisted. However, the church leader did manage to convince Smith to move to California, a state Smith likely didn’t know was a free state when it joined the Union.
Bridget Mason gained her freedom in 1856 and worked as a nurse in Los Angeles. Over time, she saved enough money to purchase two estates, becoming one of the first African American women to own property in the city.
Over the years, she continued to purchase and manage more land. She rented out some of this property for commercial use and sold portions of it. As Los Angeles expanded, so did the value of her real estate.
In 1872, she provided the funds to establish the city’s first black church. By the end of the 19th century, Mason had accumulated a fortune of $300,000, making her the wealthiest black woman in Los Angeles at the time.
2. Amanda America Dickson
Amanda's father, a white plantation owner from Georgia, fathered her with a 12-year-old slave girl. Raised by her white grandmother, Amanda enjoyed a strong, close bond with her, living a life far from the harsh conditions faced by her maternal relatives.
She was educated in reading, writing, and piano, shielded from the difficult realities her cousins had to endure. After her father's death in 1885, she inherited a substantial portion of his estate, including 17,000 acres of land, which caused tension with her white relatives.
Amanda’s inheritance, including vast lands, led to resentment from her disinherited white relatives. Her life story stands as a testament to overcoming adversity, as she rose to wealth and prominence despite the challenges of her early years.
Amanda eventually left the plantation and relocated to an integrated, prosperous neighborhood in Augusta, Georgia. She enrolled at Atlanta University, married her white cousin Charles Eubanks, and later wed Nathan Toomer, a fellow biracial man from an upper-class background. Amanda passed away on June 11, 1893, due to neurasthenia (nervous exhaustion).
1. James Forten
James Forten was a distinguished free black man born in Philadelphia on September 2, 1766. At just 15 years old, he joined the Continental Navy and later survived capture by the British during their seizure of the Royal Louis, a ship where he served as a crew member.
Following this experience, he began an apprenticeship as a sailmaker. He later invented a sailmaking device that brought him substantial wealth. By the 1830s, his net worth was estimated at $100,000, which would be about $2.5 million in today's currency.
Forten emerged as a prominent figure in the black community, advocating strongly for the abolition of slavery. He refused to engage in business with slave-trading ships and invested his wealth in antislavery causes. Additionally, he played a key role in recruiting 2,500 black volunteers to defend Philadelphia during the War of 1812.
