|
From past to present, African Americans have shaped the economic, social, and political history of St. Louis and the nation. The city of St. Louis was built with the labor of both enslaved and free African Americans. When slavery existed in the city, some free Blacks achieved status for their families among the “Colored Aristocracy.” African American composers, musicians, and singers influenced the musical culture of the nation. And St. Louisans, from Dred and Harriet Scott to Percy Green, fought for justice and equality. St. Louis’s Black community continues to help shape the future as they work for economic, social, and political justice. Colonial St. Louis: The Lives of Free and Enslaved People Under the French and SpanishSt. Louis was founded in 1764 by French-speaking fur traders, although Spanish officials governed the land in accordance with a treaty with France. A blend of Spanish laws and France’s Code Noir (a set of laws designed to govern free and enslaved people of color) regulated interactions between diverse townspeople. These laws resulted in a different practice of slavery in St. Louis compared to slavery in the British-American colonies of the time. Although slavery was different under Spanish/French rule and British rule, it remained a cruel institution in both places. Enslaved people could be physically mistreated and were always considered second-class citizens. African Americans Heading West
Many African Americans went west, hoping to escape slavery and racism. Among the earliest was York, enslaved by William Clark, the only Black American on the Lewis & Clark Expedition. York was an essential member of the Corps of Discovery, and while away from the constraints of a segregated society he was considered an equal. His vote was included when the party chose where to build a winter settlement. Similarly, he was allowed to carry a firearm like other expedition members to hunt for game on the voyage. Upon returning from the expedition, however, York’s enslaved status was again enforced. He did not receive any monetary rewards or land grants like all other members did. Little is known about York’s later years, though sources indicate he gained his freedom sometime after 1811. During the 1840s, free blacks, including George Bush, left St. Louis for Oregon Territory, hoping to flee discrimination. Instead, Oregon’s Black Exclusion laws, passed in the 1840s and 1850s, resulted in continued oppression. The Bush family eventually settled in present-day Washington State, where the laws were not strictly enforced. In the 1870s, Blacks from former slave states, called Exodusters, fled economic exploitation and racial terrorism. May stopped in St. Louis, receiving help from African American churches before going further west. They founded historic communities in Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Nebraska. African Americans Heading West
Slavery and Freedom in St. Louis
Slavery in St. Louis under United States rule was different than in southern states where cotton was king. St. Louis was an urban area populated with diverse people. It was the third busiest port in the nation. The Mississippi riverfront teemed with steamboats importing and exporting goods of all kinds, including enslaved people. Enslaved people were sold in estate settlements on the steps of the Old Courthouse or auctioned off at slave markets in the city. In St. Louis, enslaved and free Black men worked in the city as stevedores, blacksmiths, factory laborers, barbers, boat hands, and stewards. Enslaved and free Black women worked as seamstresses, washerwomen, chambermaids, and domestics. Some enslaved people continued to earn money for their work which they used to buy their freedom. A few free families originated from the Black aristocracy of French colonial St. Louis, including the Clamorgan, Rutgers, Wilkinson, Foreman, and Lyons families. Another way to obtain freedom was through freedom suits. Over 300 slaves sued for their freedom in the St. Louis courts. The local city court gave Dred and Harriet Scott their freedom, but the state and later the federal supreme court overturned that decision, saying that people of African Descent, whether free or enslaved, were not citizens. Freedom suits sometimes took years to resolve, like the Scotts’ eleven-year battle. Other enslaved people chose a faster but riskier route to freedom by running away on the Underground Railroad, traveling north to states where slavery was illegal or continuing to Canada. A free couple, John and Mary Meachum, helped enslaved Black people escape on the Mississippi River. Meachum also founded the First African Baptist Church in St. Louis and operated a school inside the charge where he and his wife educated Black children. In 1847, St. Louis passed an ordinance making it illegal to educated people of color, enslaved or free. Meachum continued to educate his people in secret. When he died, his wife Mary continued to help slaves escape, leading to her arrest in 1855. As St. Louis’s free Black population grew, slaveholders wanted to differentiate between slave and free. By 1835 free people of color were required by law to carry a freedom license to prove their status. If they could not produce a license upon demand, they were fined and could be evicted from the state. Other Blacks decided to fight to obtain freedom. Moses Dickson, a free Black man, started a secret organization, the Knights of Liberty. Members worked to end slavery in the south. In addition to helping slaves escape on the Underground Railroad, the Knights of Liberty planned a large slave revolt throughout the south. When Dickson saw tensions between the North and South increase a few years before the Civil War, he called off the insurrection.After the Civil War’s end in 1865, chattel slavery was abolished under the 13th Amendment. However, African Americans faced continued oppression under “Jim Crow” laws passed throughout the South, including in St. Louis. More on St. Louis Slavery & Freedom
Fighting Racism at the Arch
Racial segregation and discrimination in the United States after the Civil War was called Jim Crow. Jim Crow laws denied African Americans equal access to education, employment, and housing. When construction of the Gateway Arch began in 1963, no African Americans were hired other than in unskilled labor positions. In response, Percy Green and Richard Daly, members of the Action Committee To Improve Opportunities for Negroes (ACTION) began protesting racially discriminatory hiring practices at the Arch. Passage of the Civil Rights Act on July 2, 1964 gave ACTION an opportunity to gain national media attention. Article VII of the Act made it illegal for employers to discriminate in hiring based on race, gender, nationality, or religion. On July 14, 1964, Green and Daly climbed 125 feet up the work ladder on the north leg of the Arch and stayed for over four hours. They demanded more African Americans be hired for this and other federal construction projects. Percy Green said he climbed the Arch “to explode the fact that federal funds were being used to build a national monument that was racially discriminating against Black contractors and skilled black workers.” After the protest, the National Park Service began changing its hiring practices. In 1966, the Arch hired an African American-owned plumbing firm and worked to diversity its staff. The local protest led to national change, although diversity in the workforce continues to be an issue for the National Park Service today.
St. Louis Blues and Music
During the era of slavery, voices of enslaved and free workers raised in song could be heard on the St. Louis levee. Adaptations of spirituals and work songs melded into what were called “field hollers.” This type of music used “blue notes.” Although field hollers were heard throughout the south, it was in the port cities that they became popular among diverse audiences. African American composers such as W.C. Handy wrote early version of popular blues music in St. Louis, including his St. Louis blues in 1914. Likewise, Scott Joplin wrote and performed influential ragtime music in St. Louis. Ragtime, blues, and other musical forms were later major influences on rock and roll. In 1951, another local artist, Ike Turner, created one of the first rock and roll songs, Rocket 88. By 1954, Chuck Berry fused his love of country and western with blues licks to create rock and roll songs that had worldwide influence. |
Last updated: September 10, 2025