Beman Middle School Molly Aunger 13 Red Glen Road Middletown, CT June 19, 2019
Who were the Beman’s, and what was their importance in Middletown? Three generations of the Beman family were instrumental in the anti-slavery movement from the Revolutionary through the Civil Wars. The Beman’s path from slavery to freedom was difficult, but they became influential leaders in the in the abolitionist, suffrage and temperance movements nationwide. Their presence can still be seen as you drive past the triangular neighborhood of Cross, Vine and Knowles Avenue, which has become known as the “Beman Triangle”- a pre-Civil War neighborhood which may be the first in Connecticut and the country created by a free black man for other black homeowners. Background of slavery in Connecticut Photo reproduction of lithograph portrait. Wesleyan University Slavery in Connecticut dated back to the mid-1600s. By the American Revolution, Connecticut had more enslaved Rev. Jehiel Beman Africans than any other state in New England. In 1784 Connecticut passed an act of Gradual Abolition. It stated that those children born into slavery after March 1, 1784 would be freed by the time they turned 25. As a result, slavery in the state was practiced until 1848. The Beman Middletown, being the deepest port along the Connecticut River, was home to many travelling sea captains, merchants, and traders. Merchants amassed large amounts of capital by provisioning white Caribbean settlers Family with supplies such as cattle, beef, wheat, onions, potatoes, salted shad and codfish. Middletown also played a role in the exchange of human slaves. By 1770 there were documented slave dealers on Main Street. and Middletown
A Beman Family Timeline Caesar Beman – Born into slavery in Colchester, CT. Caesar agrees to serve in the Revolutionary War (Fifth Connecticut Regiment) to gain his freedom. Family lore is that Caesar chose not to take use surname of his former master when filling out the rolls for enlistment. Instead, he chose his own name, because he wanted to “be a man” – hence Beman. Caesar was the first of the family to bear this name, later he and his wife Sarah gave birth to Jehiel, who is their only son. Jehiel Beman – After growing up in Colchester, Jehiel moves his family to Middletown, where in 1830 he becomes pastor of the first African American church in Middletown (Cross Street Church - one of the earliest black churches in Connecticut and the first in Middletown). He builds a house across the street from the church and works in town as both a shoemaker and minister. Jehiel is active in the abolitionist movement and uses his pulpit to encourage social, political, and economic advancement of the town’s African American community. He also gets deeply involved in the temperance movement, and forms a group in town who promote abstinence, and also debate ways for African Americans to make political gains in the community. Jehiel was also a founding member of the Image courtesy of Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Yale University Middletown Anti-Slavery Society in 1834. Rev. Amos Beman Leverett Beman – The oldest son of Jehiel, Leverett works alongside his father in their shoemaker shop on William Street. He has a vision to build a neighborhood where Middletown’s African Americans could live as Beman Family responsible citizens. In 1847, he purchased and subdivided a 5 acre plot into 11 lots for the express purpose of selling it to fellow African American families in town to purchase. This is the first known type of “planned” community for African Americans. From Slavery to Freed Amos Beman – The second son of Jehiel, Amos enrolled in Oneida Institute in upstate New York, and in 1841 he Men was appointed pastor of New Haven’s Temple Street African Church, where he served for almost twenty years. Amos was active in New Haven during the Amistad trials and worked with nationally known abolitionists and civil rights leaders, including Reverend James W. C. Pennington, Simeon Jocelyn, Lewis Tappan, Charles Ray, and Henry Highland Garnet.
Nancy Beman – Jehiel’s wife, Nancy helped found Middletown's Colored Female Anti-Slavery Society in 1834, one of the first in the country. She served as the group’s president. The group’s goal is to improve the conditions of both free and enslaved African Americans Clarissa Beman – Leverett’s first wife, she served as the Secretary of the Middletown Colored Female Anti-Slavery Society. Additionally, Clarissa petitioned against and boycotted goods that were produced by slave labor. It is also highly likely that both Nancy and Clarissa Beman aided fugitive slaves as Middletown is one of the Underground Railroad’s stops. Image courtesy of Library of Congress Unidentified African-American woman in the Civil War era Beman Family Women Image courtesy of The Liberator , 1854
Then Now Image courtesy of The Middletown Press Beman Triangle & Today Image courtesy of Frederick W. Beers. “Part of the City of Middletown” map (34) in County Image courtesy of Google Maps atlas of Middlesex, Connecticut Middletown collection, Special Collections & Archives, Wesleyan University ● Leverett Beman decided to aid African Americans living in Middletown to purchase their own homes. At the (Vine, Cross and time there were about 200 African American families (all free) living in town. Knowles Avenue) ● In 1847 he submitted his plan to the City of Middletown. The city approved the plan. Leverett began selling those lots. Leverett divided the triangle shaped property into 11 lots. ● Some of the original houses are still standing. Today, most of the properties are owned by Wesleyan University. ● In 2003, Wesleyan University’s Anthropology Department and Archaeology Program began a project to excavate the site to uncover important information on this thriving African American community. ● Cross Street Church will soon be celebrating its 200th anniversary.
Housley, Kathleen (1992) " Yours for the Oppressed": The Life of Jehiel C. Beman. The Journal of Negro History. Volume 77. No. 1 (Winter, 1992). Nasta, Jesse (2007) “ Their Own Guardians and Protectors: African American Community in Middletown, Connecticut, 1822-1860 ” Wesleyan University. Van Buskirk, Judith L. (2017) Standing in Their Own Light: African American Patriots in the American Revolution. University of Oklahoma Press. Warner, Liz (2009) “African American Connecticut Explored, A Family of Reformers: The Middletown Bemans” Connecticut Explored . Winter 2009-2010 Edition. Rpt. in African American Connecticut Explored . Ed. by Normen, Elizabeth J. (2014) Wesleyan University Press Welch, Vicki S. (2006) And They Were Related, Too. A Study of Eleven Generations of One American Family. Xlibris Corporation Beman Triangle Archaeological Research - http://beman-triangle.research.wesleyan.edu Cross Street A.M.E. Zion Church: Struggle, Jubilee, Vision - http://crossstreetchurch.site.wesleyan.edu/ Image courtesy of Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Yale University “Learning Through Places. Neighborhood Subdivision: The Beman Triangle, Middletown” https://whereilivect.org/learning-through-places-the-beman-triangle-in-middletown/ Sources Images: Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Yale University The Liberator , circa 1854. Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Division The Middletown Press Special Collections & Archives, Wesleyan University
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