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Black Founders

Included below are accounts and resources honoring the service and actions Black Founders.

 

As the Flag presented to the Black Bucks by John Hancock portrays, "Black Founders" were the men and women who also aligned in the goal of obtaining independence from England's "trail of abuses" as the Declaration of Independence proclaimed and included "all men are created equal."

 

As Frederick Douglass  stated: "What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?" -By Frederick Douglass - ...I have said that the Declaration of Independence is the ring-bolt to the chain of your nation's destiny; so, indeed, I regard it. The principles contained in that instrument are saving principles. Stand by those principles, be true to them on all occasions, in all places, against all foes, and at whatever cost. (See "Patriots of Color" synopsis by George Quintal Jr.)   

 

See also:

Early Black Preachers in America

The Truth About America's Founders & Slavery 

Democrat Racism: The True History of Slavery & Hindering Black Civil Rights

 Dr. Benjamin Rush, helped launch one of America’s most successful Black denominations today.


 

“Negroes in the American Army of the Revolution” by George H. Moore

 

It has been estimated that at least 5,000 black soldiers fought on the patriot side during the Revolutionary War. The exact number will never be known because eighteenth century muster rolls usually did not indicate race. Careful comparisons between muster rolls and church, census, and other records have recently helped identify many black soldiers. Additionally, various eyewitness accounts provide some indication of the level of African Americans’ participation during the war. 

Baron von Closen, a member of Rochambeau’s French army at Yorktown, wrote in July 1781, “A quarter of them [the American army] are Negroes, merry, confident and sturdy.” The use of African Americans as soldiers, whether freemen or slaves, was avoided by Congress and General Washington early in the war. The prospect of armed slave revolts proved more threatening to white society than British redcoats. General Washington allowed the enlistment of free blacks with “prior military experience” in January 1776, and extended the enlistment terms to all free blacks in January 1777 in order to help fill the depleted ranks of the Continental Army.

 


 

 

Forgotton Patriots – African American and American Indian - About 1,700 African Amerian and American Indian men have been identified in this study as being among the nearly 68,000 soldiers Massachusetts supplied to the army during the Revolution. General Artemus Ward, George Washington’s predecessor as Commander-in-Chief, issued the first general order of the Continental Army in the spring of 1775. That order required that a descriptive return, including “complexion,” be made of all men in the army. Although it was not always followed to the letter, the order has made the task of identifying minority participants in the Revolution less difficult. The Massachusetts Minutemen who were organized as a result of the Committee of Safety’s October action responded quickly to the Lexington Alarm on April 19, 1775. Among them was Prince Estabrook, an African American from Lexington, who was wounded in that first battle of the Revolution. 


     Black Founders Reprinted with permission from The Founders, Religion and Government (Facebook) For many years the actions of black men, women, and children in our nation's founding has been largely ignored. The enslavement of black Americans was prominent, not their contributions. We read about those slaves who joined the British Army to gain their freedom. But what of the thousands of blacks who served this country in her hour of need? Their deeds were no less important than those of their white neighbors. They fought and died on the battlefields. They road the countryside as couriers. They held office. The wrote in support of independence. The led their communities.

 


 

 

"Patriots of Color" - Brief summaries of "Patriots of Color," (with permission) from Copyrighted "Volumes 1 & 2" of the extensive "Patriot Chronicles" series compiled and written by: George Quintal Jr.

Continental Army  - Many "Patriots of Color," including Blacks and Indians, served as soldiers in the American Revolution. The number is between 12,000 and 15,000. Some were slaves fighting for the promise of freedom. Others were free fighting for their country's liberty. By 1779, 15% of the Continental Army were "Patriots of Color." These men fought in the very first Battles of Lexington and Concord all the way to the final major battle at Yorktown. They saw action in every major engagement including Ticonderoga, Monmouth, and Princeton. They suffered at Valley Forge and crossed the Delaware with Washington. Every colony except South Carolina and Georgia sent black men with the white men to fight.

In addition to the integrated units, there were also three all Black units that served: the Rhode Island First regiment, who fought with distinction at Newport, Monmouth and Yorktown; the Black Bucks of America, a Massachusetts regiment whose banner is still on display at the Massachusetts Historical Society; and the Volunteer Chasseurs, a regiment from Haiti brought over by our French allies. The latter unit took the ideas of liberty back to Haiti with them. Those ideas were used to overthrow their French masters and create the second republic in the Americas. 

The service of "Patriots of Color" rendered to the United States of America must not be forgotten, but remain as an essential part of America's heritage and history.


Early Black Preachers: John Marrant, George Liele, Andrew Bryan, David George, Richard Allen, & Harry Hosier (By American Minute with Bill Federer