Once We Were Slaves: The Extraordinary Journey of a Multi-Racial Jewish Family

by Laura Arnold Leibman

An obsessive genealogist and descendent of one of the most prominent Jewish families since the American Revolution, Blanche Moses firmly believed her maternal ancestors were Sephardic grandees. Yet she found herself at a dead end when it came to her grandmother's maternal line. Using family heirlooms to unlock the mystery of Moses's ancestors, Once We Were Slaves overturns the reclusive heiress's assumptions about her family history to reveal that her grandmother and great-uncle, Sarah and Isaac Brandon, actually began their lives as poor Christian slaves in Barbados. Tracing the siblings' extraordinary journey throughout the Atlantic World, Leibman examines artifacts they left behind in Barbados, Suriname, London, Philadelphia, and, finally, New York, to show how Sarah and Isaac were able to transform themselves and their lives, becoming free, wealthy, Jewish, and--at times--white. While their affluence made them unusual, their story mirrors that of the largely forgotten
population of mixed African and Jewish ancestry that constituted as much as ten percent of the Jewish communities in which the siblings lived, and sheds new light on the fluidity of race--as well as on the role of religion in racial shift--in the first half of the nineteenth century.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Jewish, Judaism, Historical, Judaica, Biography

320 pages, Hardcover

First published July 1, 2021

Reviews

[NellyBells · Rating 4 out of 5]

The research and scholarship of this book is amazing. A lot of names, a lot of inter-marriage among Barbadian blacks and Jews from the Sephardic world. I learned so much - all of it new to me. Degrees of whiteness, enslaved or enslaver, building mercantile empires in England and the US over several hundred years..

[Jo Lloyd]

I bought this book having seen it reviewed in the Jewish Chronicle. I’m not sure what my preconceptions were, but this is an outstanding and academic historical biography of a family whose roots were of both Portugese Sephardic and enslaved Jews and of Jewish and enslaved society in the 18th and 19th centuries.
It traces the lives of siblings Isaac and Sarah Brandon. Born to a Sephardic Jewish father and an enslaved Christian mother on Barbados, the pair were manumitted by their father and then travelled to Suriname where they converted to Judaism. (It was virtually impossible in Barbados for black previously enslaved people to convert, such were the restrictions).
Sarah travelled to London with her father and was sent to school, ostensibly to learn how to live Jewishly. She married into a New York based Jewish merchant family, the Moses’. Her brother Isaac initially stayed in Barbados, but when his efforts to improve the status of Jews of colour on that island failed, he too left for New York. There, the records show that he went into business with his brother in law and was able to play a full part in synagogue life as had not been the case on Barbados.
The author ably demonstrates the complexity of racial segregation and restrictons and the political battles, often very heated, within the Jewish community not just in New York, but in Barbados and Suriname too.
Much of the siblings acceptance in society depended on how they were viewed: on Barbados they, and any other mixed race human beings were always termed as black. As such numerous restrictions applied to them. In New York – the censuses show that the siblings termed themselves as white. It seems that they themselves thought the best way to achieve success and acceptance was to pass as white, in society at least.
This is a really remarkable and very detailed book. It delves into so much of what I was completely ignorant. Viewed through the lens of today it seems amazing to me that Jews who have suffered so much stigma and persecution treated other human beings similarly. Soberingly, Jews of colour both in the US and in the UK are still far too often treated with suspicion which is unacceptable.
At times I found it very challenging to follow all the names and all the families mentioned, and I think the complicated family trees produced at the back of the book should have been in a larger, more readable font.
Nonetheless, I think this is an important read for anyone with Jewish roots and I thoroughly recommend it.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

One fascinating section of Laura Arnold Leibman’s “The Art of the Jewish Family: A History of Women in Early New York in Five Objects” discussed an ivory miniature portrait, and the life, of Sarah Brandon Moses. (See The Reporter’s review of the book here.) The parents of Moses and her brother, Isaac Brandon, were never married: their mother was a slave of African descent and their father a Sephardic Jew. In the early part of their lives, the two children were Christian and slaves. The story of how they converted to Judaism and were later legally labeled as white is the subject of Leibman’s excellent history “Once We Were Slaves: The Extraordinary Journey of a Multiracial Jewish Family” (Oxford University Press).
See the rest of my review at https://www.thereportergroup.org/past...

[Allison · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 - 4 stars - I mostly read this casually for the history (with hundreds of names introduced it’s impossible to really truly follow the family lines so I didn’t really focus on who was who) of Jewish life, slave life, early diseases, etc. in Suriname, Barbados and America. The book is really only about 175 pages once you take into account the pictures, all the notes and bibliography etc.

[norma baker · Rating 5 out of 5]

The U.S. is more diverse than we knew

This book traces the ancestors of a prominent New York Jewish family from Africa to Barbados, to New York in the U.S.. The ancestors are both slave owners and the enslaved. How this happened is fascinating.
People who enjoy family sagas, race relations, earlier history of our country, and unimpeded immigration, will enjoy this book.

[Debra Strangman johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Heartbreaking history about a subject a lot of people probably have never heard of. The author's research was extensive and detailed. I learned so much about a system that trapped people into participating even when it was against their own people just get ahead.

[Miriam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really interesting and often challenging history. A very academic approach to a fascinating genealogy, at times difficult to follow the narrative, timeline, and connections. Glad I stuck with it.

[Michelle Nelson · Rating 2 out of 5]

I appreciate the free copy I received from Goodreads Giveaways; I enjoy some non-fiction every now and then. The premise of Once We Were Slaves: The Extraordinary Journey of a Multi-Racial Jewish Family sounded interesting; how COULD poor, Christian children born to an enslaved mother in Barbados end up being wealthy New York Jews? Also, how could this intriguing, rags to riches story be the one unknown branch of a family tree? But as you start following this tale you quickly realize that the whole reason this amazing story was “lost” is because if it was NOT secretive and elusive, it never would have even unfolded this way at all…In order for the dominoes of fortune to fall, Sarah and Isaac had to code switch–keeping various parts of their identities hidden at different times, in different places and from different people. It must have been exhausting; but the stakes were high and the prize alluring…

I did have some challenges navigating this book. Not unexpectedly, many of the names are very similar (at times even identical!) There were also marriages amongst close family members. Often Laura Arnold Leibman would refer to someone by only their last name (but most of the people being discussed at any one time had the SAME last name); I don’t like to have to concentrate so hard and go back sentences or paragraphs to make sure I know who’s being referred to. The problems keeping everyone straight occur more at the beginning of the book, but were bad enough to make me consider whether or not to continue reading. I was glad I persisted because this problem seemed to resolve itself near the end and I could read much faster and had a better knowledge of who the players were. I referred to the family trees in the middle of the book when I was considering giving up–hoping they might clarify the relationships. But at that point the trees were too overwhelming to process and didn’t give me the salience I was seeking. After I finished the book, and looked back at the trees, they were very clear! (But, they were TINY! I had to get out a magnifying glass to read them and I’m not THAT old!!) I also would have liked to have some maps to refer to–at a minimum NYC and Barbados, but London and the relevant areas of China and Mexico would have been nice, too. Also, the photos, at times, seemed to be inserted a bit haphazardly and not at the most opportune places in the text. (For instance when you learn that Selina is such a hottie that all the brothers are smitten by her, YOU WANT TO SEE HER PICTURE! But that’s not where her portrait is to be found; you have to flip back to the preface to find it.) These issues are what led me to give the book a 2 rather than the 3 I would have given it based on content alone.

[Darlene · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating deep-dive into American Jewish history, rooted in the Sephardi, African, and Ashkenazi communities of the West Indies. Sarah and Isaac Brandon started their lives enslaved in Barbados, but they ended their lives free, Jewish, and wealthy, and their offspring married into the first families of American Jewish history--Seixas, Moses, Lopez, Henriques, Lazarus, Gratz and more.

This history moves between the West Indies, Philadelphia, London, New York, and the trading ports of China, and should be of interest to anyone who loves American history and wants to know more about the true diversity of our nation's founding, and the role race and religion played in the ability of individuals to move through society. Highly recommended.

[Jessica Layman · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this subject fascinating, but I really think I should have read a physical copy instead of using an audiobook. I struggled a lot with the names and I didn't have the family trees or photos to refer to. I am not great at keeping track of complicated family trees anyway, and this family had so many similar names! I also found that I wasn't as interested in the later generations, only in the first generations and how those first generations that converted survived and thrived.

There was a lot of interesting social and cultural information that I appreciated, and I think this would have made a good talk or workshop, but maybe the book wasn't for me. Still gets 3 stars though!

[Anina · Rating 2 out of 5]

Although the topic is interesting and the historical and cultural development very fascinating, the book was written in a utterly complicated way. Right from the introduction you get a jumble of names and generations, which unfortunately does not unravel in the course of the book. The history is important and should be analysed historically (as it is done here), but unfortunately this was not done in a comprehensible way for the reader.

[Jeanine Owens · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is great read not just because of the history of the family it follows, but also the history of the times this family, the people they interacted with and the parts of the world in which they lived and worked.

[Marge · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting story about Jews of Color in various communities but the author couldn't bear to leave out any research or detail. The book suffers from too much information about tangential subjects.

[Beth Ann Garcia · Rating 4 out of 5]

An in-depth look at one family's multi-racial Jewish ancestry.

[Ashley Lomasney · Rating 3 out of 5]

read for class. so hard to follow would not recommend. 3 stars for being well researched

[Joanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting topic. But like most history I read, I find that all the name, dates and quotes too much of a slog and I lose momentum, and interest. Maybe it’s just me.

[Sarah Meytin · Rating 1 out of 5]

Didn’t finish. Found it read like a college essay. Not a good read.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fascinating information but not a great listen. The repetitive names in the family make it hard to follow. The epilogue is by far the best part!

[Cassidy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Strong academic text. Extremely complex genealogy to keep track of while reading, but worth it for the insightful research it presents about Jews of color in early America

[Edward Weiner · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book. Difficult subject.

[Marge Congress · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book must be read in hardcover. The Kindle version does not allow the huge family trees to be readable. I ended up just reading for the sociological, economic, and religious factors in each person's life. That was an amazing journey. Extremely detailed, this is a scholarly work that will take the reader to places they never dreamed of, and situations unheard of.

2nd reading in 2023. Very dense but I enjoyed most of it more this time as I didn't try to keep track of the indivdual families.

[Megan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was free with my Audible subscription, but I might need to buy a hardcover. It's a fascinating story and I would guess there's additional bits, like a family tree, in the print version.