Black Loyalists

by Ruth Holmes Whitehead

Winner of the 2014 Atlantic Book Award for Scholary Writing
Shortlisted for the 2014 Canadian Authors' Association Lela Common Award for Historical Writing
Shortlisted for the 2014 Dartmouth Book Award for Non-Fiction
Shortlisted for the 2014 Atlantic Book Award for Historical Writing

"Insightful, engaging, and steeped in years of research, Black Loyalists is a must read for all who care about the intersection of Canadian, American, British, and African history."
— Lawrence Hill, author of The Book of Negroes

During the American Revolution (1775–1783), the British government offered freedom to slaves who would desert their rebel masters as a way of ruining the American economy. Many Black men and women escaped to the British fleet patrolling the East Coast, or to the British armies invading the colonies from Maine to Georgia.

After the final surrender of the British to the Americans, New York City was evacuated by the British Army throughout the summer and fall of 1783. Carried away with them were a vast number of White Loyalists and their families, and over 3,000 Black Loyalists: free, indentured, apprenticed, or still enslaved. More than 2,700 Blacks came to Nova Scotia with the fleet from New York City.

"Black Loyalists" is an attempt to present hard data about the lives of Nova Scotia Black Loyalists before they escaped slavery in early South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida, and after they settled in Nova Scotia—to bring back into our awareness the context for some very brave and enterprising men and women who survived the chaos of the American Revolution, people who found a way to pass through the heart, ironically, of a War for Liberty, to liberty and human dignity.

Includes an insert of 20 historical images and documents.

Genres: History, Canada

256 pages, Hardcover

First published April 30, 2013

About the author

Ruth Holmes Whitehead is a renowned historian and ethnologist. She has worked with the Nova Scotia Museum for over 40 years, first as assistant curator in history and now as research associate.

The author of several books, including Six Mi’kmaq Stories, The Old Man Told Us, and Black Loyalists, Ruth lives in Halifax, Nova Scotia. She was awarded the prestigious Order of Nova Scotia in 2014 in recognition for her contributions to documenting the province's cultural history.

Reviews

[Yasmin · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very interesting read, a very good read. Worth recommending. To my way of thinking the room for debate is in this book and it could be seen as controversial and that is what could be called kind hearted slave masters. Did they really exist? What defines a good hearted slave master? The definition could be one that puts a roof over the head of his/her slaves, feeds them, teaches them to read and to write, makes sure the slaves are healthy, some could call that a kind hearted slave master. Can therefore that slave master be as evil or perhaps in a psychological way worse than a cruel and vile slave master? In a way I believe so. The kind hearted slave master, is still a slave master, the slaves are still slaves to be sold, bartered, laid out for any punishments or removal of family by said slave master. It has been said that the more you help your blind child the more you hurt him or her. From what I have read of slavery and the aftermath I have to say that there is no "kind hearted" slave master. A kind hearted person who had slaves would never have slaves, they would be set free if slaves came by inheritance or never bought at all. Despite records from former slaves saying how good a slave master was there was no kind hearted slave master, only benign ones, who could easily change and sell their slaves, barter them, maim them, rape them...No there is nothing too good one can ever say about slave masters whether they leave their slaves out to starve or shelter them and treat them as children. Other than that this book covers very well a detail of the Black Loyalists who were loyal but seldom saw loyalty returned to them.

[Betty · Rating 5 out of 5]

This historic non-fiction book has increased my awareness of many things I didn't know or recall, both in 1700s America and in Canada. Ruth Holmes Whitehead has done her research well, and from very good sources. She has written the book in three major parts: the Slave Trade years; the British-American skirmishes of the 18th century and finally the American Revolution; and the eventual escape to freedom in Nova Scotia, slaves and freemen alike. Many of the original slaves were a mixture of three or more races: African, Native Americans primarily of the south and whites. These are basically the divisions of the book, but there is more to each part than I am including. There are also some photos, drawings, prints and records included in the book.

What I find fascinating is the number of Black Loyalists whose family tree has been recovered and recorded, even occasionally going right back to Africa. This is amazing research. There are many citations and quotes in the book, perhaps a few more than necessary but all give an excellent picture of life in these centuries.

This is the first known record of biological warfare being used (in the wars of the late 1700s). The virus which became a part of the wars was smallpox, and it was indeed used as a targeted weapon. So, we have the horrors of slavery, the horrors of war, and possibly the biggest killer, smallpox.

Part three brings us to the final routing of the British from the Carolinas and other southern provinces. From this point negotiations begin between the Americans and the British. Negotiations meaning mostly the fate of the slaves, freed or not, as this was almost the only "currency" left, the land being totally devastated.

This section also brings us to the early part of the movement of the Black Loyalists and escaped slaves toward what is now Canada, to Nova Scotia, the establishment of Black settlements, and the group of Black Africans that had paired up with these slaves and with Native North Americans. Loyalists who requested a return to Africa carried on to settle in Sierra Leone. This movement becomes a source or resource for genealogy today and some people are able to actually trace their ancestry to the original lands in Africa from which they came.

It was not all smooth sailing to eventually reach this northern clime however. Many were "dumped" at separate and often barren locations along the way. The author is to be commended for the amazing research she has done putting this cohesive work together both in the book and in the Nova Scotia Museum. There is so much more than I can say in this book, excellent coverage of a difficult time in North American history.

[Jbondandrews · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading this book. It was a very good starting point for a larger expanse on the Black Loyalists. I look forward to reading more of Ruth Holmes Whitehead books.

[Rebecca Hazell · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just finished reading this and had to really think of what to say. Beyond being excellent scholarship, this book is about people, some of whom are just names Whitehead found on lists. You might think, 'how boring', but you'd be wrong. Every name represents a human being with an untold, lost story. Whitehead told every story she could find, but the numbers are so low compared with the thousands who fled slavery only to find illness, death or ill treatment at the hands of the British, the American Revolutionaries, and the American Loyalists who fled, with their own slaves, to Nova Scotia where the few free Black people were treated so poorly that they scarcely survived there, either. It's an important reminder to us all that this kind of treatment continues today, not only among North American Blacks but around the world. Humbling and sad.

[Jamie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very important research!! I wish there was more information on these people and how they carved lives for themselves in Nova Scotia. What the black loyalists went through is so intense and shows strength, resilience, and an unbowed determination for freedom that deserves to be highlighted.

This book also sheds light on how they were offered their freedom to hurt the American economy and NOT because the British had a moral objection to slavery. A lot of these people were offered their freedom just to be sold again after the war of independence. It also criticizes the utter hypocrisy of the Americans who fought for their own freedom from “tyranny” while also being fully a-ok with enslavement…Make it make sense.

Furthermore, this book brings attention to the fact that the black loyalist didn’t have it easy once they reached Nova Scotia. They didn’t just arrive there to a warm welcome and a happy ending. A lot of them suffered through harsh winters, poverty, racism, disease, the risk of capture, etc. The fact that there are still people in Nova Scotia descended from the black loyalists today is a testament to their strength, courage, and resilience.

[Sofia Currin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an interesting book about a period of time that isn't talked about enough. I wanted to read more of what life was like for Black people in Nova Scotia but I understand why the Author didn't. The story was how on how freed slaves got to Canada, not afterwards.

[Clivemichael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well researched poignant tale of malfeasance and determination.

[Kathleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super well researched and really gives the detail that helps understand the experience of black people in the U S in the 1700s. The detail is what also makes this a book some won't want to read.