Elizabeth (c. 1766 – June 11 1866) was an African-American Methodist minister and former slave. She orated a popular slave narrative about her life, titled Memoir of Old Elizabeth, A Colored Woman, which primarily discussed her faith.[1]

In 1766, Elizabeth was born into slavery in Maryland. At the age of 30, Elizabeth purchased her freedom. At the age of 42, she began giving sermons in Baltimore, Maryland; often to multiracial congregations.[2] The popularity of her unusual ministry led her to make travels to Virginia, Michigan, Canada, and Pennsylvania. Following her harassment by authorities in Maryland and Virginia, Elizabeth resided in Michigan for four years where she assisted in the founding of a schoolhouse for Black orphans. Her travels brought her in connection with the Quaker community.

Elizabeth never married, had no children, and never took a surname. In her later years, she fell ill from a severe gangrene infection of her legs. While receiving care from Quakers in Pennsylvania at the age of 97, Elizabeth orated her slave narrative. Memoir of Old Elizabeth, A Colored Woman was published in 1863. Elizabeth died of gangrene on June 11, 1866. Her memoir was republished in 1889 under the title Elizabeth, A Colored Minister of the Gospel, Born in Slavery.

References

  1. ↑ "Elizabeth". Enslaved: Peoples of the Historical Slave Trade. Retrieved 2023-10-31.
  2. ↑ Busby, Margaret, ed. (1992). Daughters of Africa. Amistad (HarperCollins). p. 22.

Further reading

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