Audio
Tour Stop 6
Transcript
NARRATOR
This room was the front parlor of a free black woman. Here, Ma’am Anna managed the household affairs of Fort George Island and would perhaps consult with overseers or managers. One of whom was Anna and Zephaniah’s son, George. Also in this room, Anna gave instructions to her own slaves, many of whom were children. On occasion, she entertained guests as well, including her co-wives, who sat with her in this room, talking about their children… and their husband. Yet even as a wealthy, resourceful, free black woman, Anna shared a common history with her own slaves. Perhaps one of them remembered the story like this:
ENSLAVED GIRL
(MUSIC: African “lullaby,” Senegal if possible, solo voice)
I remember my mother’s voice. Sometimes I wake up in the night and think “Is she singing?” But no, she is not. Maybe it was someone else.
(Music fade out. SFX – village being attacked)
The night they came and took us away, I can still see their faces, shining and dark in the night. The fires and the screams haunt my sleep and I wake up afraid, drenched in sweat. I never saw her again…
(SFX -- village sounds fade)
Sometimes I wonder, will I forget her?
Here, I carry. (SFX – sounds of activity, walking, pots banging) I carry clean clothes up and dirty linens out. I carry breakfast, dinner and supper to the table and chamber pots to the privy. I take care of Ma’am’s children and I sing my mother’s songs to them. Whatever Ma’am says to do, you do. Makes no difference. But you must be careful; make sure nothing goes missing or gets broken. One day, a broach goes missing and you might not sleep on your back for a week. But you don’t say anything. Not here.
It won’t do to feel sorry though. My mother used to say, “It is better to walk than to curse the road.” I didn’t want to come here, but here I am. And I am a married woman and soon will have a child of my own. And one day we will be free, like Ma’am Anna or Ms. Sophy. We will have our own home and build a life for our children. But for now, I will carry the food to the house and dirty clothes to the wash. I will not be afraid.
(Music – up)
And I will always remember my mother.
NARRATOR
This story is based in part on Anna, as well as Sophy, one of the other girls purchased by Kingsley in 1806. But more importantly, it was a story shared by enslaved African women, or their mothers or grandmothers. No one became a slave without violence and misery.
The question of how Anna Madgigine Jai Kingsley, once a slave herself, could enslave others is hard for our modern minds to grapple with. She didn’t enslave other people reluctantly; instead she used her wealth and fortitude to fight for the right to do so. Indeed, in her final will, written in 1860, the year before the outbreak of the Civil War, she declared her young slaves – Polly, Joe, Elizabeth, and Julia, ages 9 to 17 – be sold and the profit given to her own children.
For some people, Anna’s personal story of capture and enslavement make them want to excuse, or at least defend, her actions. Others want to hold her to a higher standard. This paradox is hard to reconcile, and yet we also have to ask, what if her skin had been white? Or if she had been male? Would these differences affect our desire to either excuse or condemn her?
In the end, nothing negates the fact that Anna Kingsley enslaved her fellow human beings.
(MUSIC – fade out)
When you’re ready, go back outside and turn to the right. The door past the stairs leads to the kitchen. Our story continues there.
Description
North Room of the Kitchen House- Anna's Parlor
Duration
4 minutes, 37 seconds
Credit
NPS
Copyright and Usage Info