roots1937

Mona Baptiste Update

The Historycal Roots team’s quest for the truth knows no limits, well very few anyway!

Our search for more information about Mona Baptiste took us to Dublin recently where we: visited her grave at Deansgrange cemetery; visited the house where she used to live in Ballsbridge, a mile or so from the centre of the city; and obtained a copy of her death certificate from the General Register Office. As you might imagine, this was thirsty work, fortunately Dublin was not short of places where weary travellers could quench their thirst.

Our first stop was the cemetery, situated several kilometres to the south of the city:

We had the reference number for Mona’s plot but, almost inevitably, it was incomplete and inaccurate. For the record, she is actually buried in the St.Patrick’s section, row Q, plot 56. She was interred in the Morrison family grave and lies with her mother-in-law and father-in-law – not perhaps everyone’s ideal scenario!

It’s a little surprising how worn the stone has become, Mona only died in 1993.

Having paid our respects we next went to her old home in Ballsbridge. Here we were in for a pleasant surprise because the front door of her old house still bears her name. It was quite moving to think that this door must have changed very little since she passed through it for the final time twenty five years ago:

Our final visit was to the Register Office which we walked past at least three times before finally locating the entrance at the back of a car park. The staff, possibly surprised that we had managed to find them, were very helpful and after only about ten minutes we held a copy of Mona’s death certificate in our hands. Such certificates always make sad reading, this one was no exception. It showed that Mona died from natural causes after a short illness. She passed away on 25th June 1993 at St James’s Hospital, Dublin. just four days after her 65th birthday and 45 years and three days after she stepped off the Empire Windrush at Tilbury.

Until very recently Wikipedia and other sources stated that Mona died and was buried in Krefeld, Germany, it’s nice to have set the record straight.

Fern and Kate Meet Walter Tull

We are pleased to announce that a new book in the ‘Fern and Kate Meet…’ series is now available. This time the girls meet Walter Tull, one of the first black professional footballers and one of the first black officers to lead troops in combat in World War One. Walter Tull’s achievements are all the more remarkable when you consider the difficult start he had in life – both his parents died before he was ten and he was sent away to be brought up in a children’s home in the East End of London.

The book is a short story for children between the ages of 7 and 10 (it’s difficult to be precise as children develop their reading skills at such different rates). In addition to the fictional story, the book gives factual information about Walter’s life and achievements.

The book is available from Amazon or you can order through this site, just go to the Walter Tull page (look for the ‘Our Books’ heading) for details.

What became of Dido Elizabeth Belle’s mother?

At Historical Roots we are so grateful to Yorkshire historian, Audrey Dewjee, for drawing our attention to dramatic new research into the story of Dido Elizabeth Belle.

Dido has been something of a fixation with us for approaching 30 years, ever since going to Camden library to get a copy of a short pamphlet that the local history society had produced about the mysterious black girl in the double portrait at Kenwood House. Gradually over the years, more snippets of information have emerged but until now, if anyone asked, we always had to say that, sadly, no one knew what had happened to Dido’s mother, Maria.

Now, thanks to fantastic work by Joanne Major, we know rather more about what became of Maria Bell. If you share even one tenth of our interest in Dido’s story you really must read Joanne’s article:

https://georgianera.wordpress.com/2018/06/26/revealing-new-information-about-dido-elizabeth-belles-siblings/

Joanne has found that John Lindsey, having fathered a number of illegitimate children, married in 1768. But it seems that Lindsey ‘did not neglect his former lover.’ Indeed, Joanne goes on to say ‘In 1773 Lindsay began a process to transfer a piece of property he owned in Pensacola, Florida to Maria Bell, with the requirement that she build a house there. At the time, Maria Bell was living in London but a year later, when the deal was finalised, she had travelled to America. In the document, she was referred to as “a Negro woman of Pensacola, formerly of Pensacola, and then residing in London”’. This, of course, raises the tantalising thought that, if Dido’s mother lived in London for several years while her daughter was being raised in Lord Mansfield’s household at Kenwood House, might they have been in contact?

There is a great deal more of interest in Joanne’s article which is a fascinating read.

I notice that the heading of the page is ‘All Things Georgian’ and underneath it says that the site is for: ‘Super Sleuths who blog about anything and everything to do with the Georgian Era’. Well, Joanne Major definitely deserves to be regarded as a ‘super sleuth’ for casting fresh light on Dido’s story.

Daphne Steele – First Black Matron in the NHS

‘A woman of courage with a heart of gold’ – the words her sister, Carmen Munroe, used to describe Daphne Steele, who became the first Black matron in the NHS in 1964. The occasion, the unveiling of a blue plaque to commemorate Daphne’s contribution, took place at the site of St James’ Hospital, Balham, where Daphne trained when she first arrived in England.

The Windrush and the ships that came after it, transported around a quarter of a million people from the Caribbean to the UK between 1948 and 1961. In some cases many people from the same family made the trip. The Steeles were one such family and they were among the earliest to come.

My own father-in-law, Allan Steele, was on the SS Cottica when it docked at Plymouth in May 1952. He got the train to Paddington where he was met by his cousin, Carmen Steele. Carmen would go on to make her name as Carmen Munroe, the actress. Carmen herself had been met when she arrived in 1951 by her sister, Daphne Steele. Alan would himself meet his cousin William Steele following his arrival at Plymouth on 6th March 1953. At least two other members of the Steele family also made the journey. The Steeles were among the earliest arrivals, official figures show that 2,200 arrived in each of the years 1951 and 1952 with a total of 3,600 in the years 1948 to 1950.

Born in British Guyana (as it then was) in 1929, Daphne Steele was one of the many people from the Caribbean who dedicated their lives to the National Health Service and, on 16th October 2018, a blue plaque was unveiled in her honour (actually, thanks to a gust of wind, it unveiled itself!). Daphne became the first Black matron in the NHS, when she successfully applied for that role in 1964 at St.Winifred’s hospital in Ilkley, Yorkshire. Her son, Robert, also present at the unveiling, commented that when he and his mother arrived in Ilkley the Black population of the town increased by two, to a total of … two. It was clear from his comments that he and his mother were soon made to feel very welcome in the town and in fact Daphne remained there until she died in 2004.

Daphne’s sister, Carmen, at the unveiling:

Another sister, June, was also at the unveiling. She too had warm words of praise for her sister: ‘Daphne was someone with the most heart- warming smile and a great sense of humour. She put 110% into everything she did, giving freely of her time and was always willing to help people.’

The Nubian Jak Community Trust must be thanked for their tremendous work in getting blue plaques in place to commemorate the Black contribution to our history (40 and counting!). You can find out more about Nubian Jak’s work here: http://nubianjak.org/. On this occasion the Trust was ably supported by AGNAP (The Association of Guyanese Nurses and Allied Professionals). London and Quadrant Housing must also be acknowledged for welcoming the placement of the plaque on one of their buildings.

The 100 or so attendees were blessed with bright sunshine throughout the hour-long ceremony. It was a fitting celebration of the life of a remarkable woman.

Albert Johanneson

Here at Historycal Roots we take a pretty broad view of what counts as ‘history’, if something happened earlier than yesterday then perhaps it could be classed as ‘historical’? And, although much of the history you read in books is about ‘great’ men (and perhaps, occasionally, great women), we believe that the actions of more ‘ordinary’ people help to shape events at least as much. So, is it OK to celebrate the life of a pioneering Black footballer? Absolutely!

Friday 28^th September marks the anniversary of the passing of one such footballer, Albert Johanneson. Many people think Albert was the first ever Black footballer to ply his trade in English professional football, he was far from that. However, he was arguably the very first high profile Black player of the modern age – if the advent of ‘Match of the Day’ can be said to mark the birth of modern football. As such he faced challenges not experienced by any of his predecessors.

Albert joined Leeds United on 5^th April 1961, signing from Germiston Colliers in South Africa. He was a shy young man who, because of the evil impact of apartheid, lacked confidence about his place in a white dominated society.

He made his debut at Elland Road in a 2-2 draw with Swansea on 8^th April 1961and went on to play a total of 197 games (plus three appearances as a substitute) for the club, scoring 67 goals – a prolific return for a winger. He was the first Black player to play in a European match for an English club and, on 1^st May 1965, he famously became the first Black player to appear in an FA Cup Final.

Albert suffered horrendous racism in his native South Africa and, when he moved to England, he continued to be racially abused by fans and opposition players. Monkey chants and the throwing of bananas were common place. We won’t ever know how all of this affected his confidence as a man or his performance as a footballer. We do know that both his parents were alcoholics and at some stage Albert sadly followed suit. This had inevitable negative consequences on his finances, marriage and his family.

Despite treatment, Albert died in relative poverty in 1995. His funeral was attended by his old teammates who remembered him with fondness and respect as did the many thousands of football fans who had been thrilled by his goals and skilful wing play.

George Best, who famously wrestled with demons of his own, once commented: ‘Albert was quite a brave man to actually go on the pitch in the first place wasn’t he? And he went out and did it. He had a lot of skill. A nice man as well – which is, I suppose, the more important thing, isn’t it? More important than anything.’

Through his courage, Albert Johanneson transcended the mere game of football and achieved more than many of us from far more privileged backgrounds can ever hope to claim.

Rest In Peace, Albert.

You will be able to read more about Albert and many other pioneering Black footballers in a book we are working on, keep your eyes open for it.

The final resting place of Sarah Bonetta Forbes-Davies

Whilst not quite ‘forgotten history’, Sarah Bonetta Forbes-Davies’ remarkable story is not as widely known as it deserves to be. Here, Bill Hern of Historycal Roots, re-tells her story and describes his visit to her final resting place, metaphorically and literally opening the gates to remind us of a sadly neglected figure.

Although not as well-known as Dido Elizabeth Belle (subject of the film ‘Belle’) who died in 1804, the story of the life of Sarah Bonetta Forbes-Davies has gained greater exposure in recent years. There is no doubt that Sarah is a significant figure in Black British History and yet she lies in an unmarked grave on the island of Madeira.

I visit Sarah’s grave each year in the beautiful British Cemetery in Funchal:

On each visit I feel a sadness that it does not even have a headstone. If it were not for a marker planted in the ground over her burial plot we would have no way of recognising where Sarah was laid to rest.

I understand that Sarah’s husband erected a granite monument more than 8 feet high in Ijon in Western Lagos but whether, 138 years later, that memorial still stands I do not know.

This year I was heartened to see that others must remember Sarah too. A figure had been placed on her grave. But surely one of the most prominent Black women in Victorian Britain warrants at the very least a headstone?

For those of you that aren’t conversant with Sarah’s amazing life here is a short summary:

Sarah was born in Oke-Odan, West Africa in 1843. She was the equivalent to a Princess and her birth name was Aina. She was orphaned when only 5 years old after enemies ransacked her village killing her parents and taking her into slavery.

She was being held by King Ghezo of Dahomey when a Royal Navy Captain, Frederick E Forbes, visited Dahomey on a mission to dissuade the King from continuing to deal in slavery. Captain Forbes allegedly persuaded King Ghezo to give the now 8-year old Aina to Queen Victoria. Other versions of this story claim that King Ghezo offered the girl as a gift to Queen Victoria. Whatever the truth, the little girl joined Captain Forbes on his ship, HMS Bonetta, to make the journey back to England.

Captain Forbes named the girl Sarah Bonetta Forbes after his ship and his own surname. On arrival in England Sarah was taken to see Queen Victoria. She enchanted the Queen just as she captivated many people over her short life. The Queen treated Sarah as a goddaughter.

Sarah was hugely intelligent and musically gifted. She was educated in Africa (Sierra Leone) and England.

In 1862, when still only 18 years old, Sarah married Captain James Pinson Labulo Davies, a wealthy Nigerian merchant, 13 years her senior. The wedding was a lavish affair at the Church of St Nicholas in Brighton.

As an indication of the status Sarah had reached with the Royal family she had attended, only one month prior to her own marriage, the wedding of Queen Victoria’s daughter Princess Alice. This was a private affair taking place only months after the death of Victoria’s beloved husband Prince Albert, yet Sarah was invited and attended.

Shortly after her marriage Sarah became pregnant. She gave birth to a daughter in 1863. After seeking permission from Queen Victoria, the proud parents named the child Victoria Matilda. Victoria went on to become a goddaughter of Queen Victoria.

The family then moved to Lagos, Nigeria and two further children Arthur (1871) and Stella (1873) were born.

Sarah never enjoyed perfect health and while in Lagos she was diagnosed with Tuberculosis (TB). For poor people TB meant almost certain death but people of Sarah’s standing and wealth were advised to go to a country with a more favourable climate in order to recover. Her doctor recommended she go to the island of Madeira in the Atlantic Ocean. Sadly, the remedy was not a success and Sarah passed away on 15 August 1880.

Such was the affection in which Sarah was held, news of her death was quickly relayed to Queen Victoria who recounted seeing how distraught Victoria Davies was upon hearing of her mother’s death.

Victoria Davies would go on to marry a Nigerian physician Dr John Randle who was himself an important but much under-rated figure in Black British History and definitely a candidate for a further article on Historycal Roots.

An Evening With Dido Elizabeth Belle

Friday 31st August saw a group of young people deliver ‘An Evening With Dido Elizabeth Belle’ at the Shoestring Theatre in Croydon.

The show was the end product of a boot camp they attended during their school holiday. The young cast sang, danced and acted out a school trip to Kenwood House where a young schoolgirl of mixed heritage, called Fern, came face to face with Dido Elizabeth Belle, first in the famous painting and then in the flesh as Dido came to life before her eyes.

The one-off performance drew a sell out crowd of seventy who gave the young cast a rousing reception at the end of the show. The youngsters (from age seven up to sixteen) had given up two weeks of their holiday to prepare for the show, receiving coaching in the performing arts (singing, dancing and acting). Their hard work really did pay dividends and will, hopefully, have done wonders for their self-confidence (performing in front of a live audience can be a daunting experience for people of any age).

The distinguished historian Michael Ohajuru appeared in the show as himself, explaining to the school party the significance of the painting and the context surrounding it.

After a short interval, Michael chaired a question and answer session with the audience that featured Evadne Bygrave (CEO of Sing-a-Book and the driving force behind the show) and David Gleave (of Historycal Roots and author of the book ‘Fern and Kate Meet Dido Elizabeth Belle’ on which the show was loosely [!] based). Asked why he felt Dido’s story was important, David said: ‘I was a white boy who went to a white school where I was taught white history. I learned about Florence Nightingale, for example, but not Mary Seacole. It was only much later that I realised there was a very different and much more diverse and interesting version of history that had been left untold.’ Dido, he went on to say, had come from the most disadvantaged background imaginable but had nevertheless overcome the obstacles that confronted her to leave her unique mark on the world, something we could all draw inspiration from.

The show could hardly have been better timed because, purely by chance, a couple of days later the painting of Dido was featured in an episode of ‘Fake or Fortune?’ on the BBC. The programme told Dido’s story and explored who might have painted the famous double portrait. For many years the painting was attributed to Zoffany but, after a fascinating investigation, the artist was identified as David Martin, a highly regarded Scottish portrait painter. A value of £600,000 was put on the painting but everyone agreed that its significance as a historical document far outweighed any monetary value.

We first became aware of Dido’s story about thirty years ago when a group of local historians in Camden asked themselves questions about the mysterious Black girl in the painting at Kenwood House. We have followed developments avidly ever since and it is so satisfying to know that her story is now much more widely known. Hopefully our young actors will be among those who now have a better understanding of the rich diversity of British history.

Equiano: the journey of discovery continues

It was a pleasure to meet Jonathan Miller and Arthur Torrington at the American International Church on Tottenham Court Road recently. This is where we now know Gustavus Vassa (Olaudah Equiano)[1] was buried in 1797. Jonathan is archivist at the church and is as excited as we are about the discovery.

We discussed how we can work together to bring Equiano’s links with the church to greater public attention. This fits well with the church’s own desire to make the history of the church more visible to the local community and the many visitors who pass along Tottenham Court Road every day.

The church already has an impressive outreach programme, running a regular soup kitchen and also an overnight shelter for some of London’s homeless people, as well as hosting a multiplicity of food stalls that were doing a roaring trade when we visited. A visible commemoration of Equiano would add another dimension to the church’s appeal.

Jonathan produced some fascinating material from the archive. There has been some uncertainty about the physical appearance of the church in Equiano’s day as it has been through a number of incarnations over the past two and a half centuries. Jonathan was able to clear this up, producing this image:

Jonathan also showed us an image of the Minister, Torial Joss, at the time of Equiano’s attendance:

Whether Joss was able to officiate at Equiano’s funeral on 6th April 1797 must be in some doubt as he himself was buried on 22nd April, just sixteen days later.

We had a discussion of how Equiano might have been buried. The burial register shows that a handful of people (Joss was one of them) were buried in a ‘family grave in chapel’ . One person, David West Esq, had recently been buried in a ‘vault in chapel’, a few others were buried in a family grave outside the church but the vast majority appear, because there is no other entry in the register, to have been buried in a ‘common grave in grounds’. As Jonathan pointed out, ideas about how people were buried were rather different from today and it seems that burial in a common grave was very much the norm.

We discussed the possibility of obtaining funding for a number of events next year and the hope is that a major event can be hosted at the church itself next April – very much something to look forward to!

[1] Gustavus Vassa was the name given to Equiano by one of his owners, it was the name that Equiano himself used during his time in London, sometimes adding the soubriquet ‘the African’. On this site we are more inclined to use his African name, Olaudah Equiano.

More ‘forgotten history’ remembered

Thanks to the hard work of Bill Hern we have recently been able to add two new pages to the ‘forgotten history’ section of this site.

A page on Charles Williams tells the story of the father of Yorkshire comedian. Charlie Williams.

While another new page recalls the life of Corporal Jacques M’Bondo whose remarkable life took him from landlocked Ouaka in what is now part of the Central African Republic to a hillside grave in County Durham, via Paris, Belgium, the killing fields of First World War Flanders and London.

Two fascinating stories that cast light on different aspects of Black British history..

Sam King Memorial Lecture

Sam King was one of the passengers on the Empire Windrush when it docked at Tilbury in May 1948. He was just 22 years old and his family had sold livestock to pay his fare of £28 10 shillings. Like many men who had served in the RAF during the war he wanted to return to the ‘Mother Country’.

A born leader, he worked for 34 years in the Post Office, working his way up to a management position, became a Labour Councillor in 1982 and within six months had become the first Black Mayor of Southwark. In 1988 he was awarded the MBE.

On 19th June 2018 his memory was honoured with a memorial lecture held at St Margaret’s Church in the grounds of Westminster Abbey. Organised by Sam’s good friend, Arthur Torrington (together they created The Windrush Foundation – https://windrushfoundation.com/), the event was hosted by The Reverend Jane Sinclair, Canon of Westminster and Rector of St Margaret’s, and chaired by Lady Benjamin of Beckenham (sorry, she’ll always by Floella from Play School for me!).

There were tributes from Sam’s grand daughter, Dione McDonald, Lord Ouseley of Peckham Rye and Michelle Asantewa and a calypso from Alexander D’Great, before Arthur delivered his lecture, a wide ranging discussion of the influence people from the Caribbean have had on Britain, an influence that, he stressed, started long before the Windrush.

What made the event so special was that it was led by people who had known Sam and were able to speak from the heart about how he had influenced them. He was clearly a man who was widely loved and respected and it was a privilege to be present.