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Martin Delaney

1812-1885

Name: Martin Delaney - 1812-1885

Birthplace: Charles Town (now WVA)

Status: Born free

Occupation/Training: Physician, Nationalist, Emigrationist, Editor

Residence: WVA, PA, Canada

Abolitionist Involvement: Born free 6 May 1812, Delaney grew up in a family setting, which consisted of parents and grandmother, who early instilled in him a sense of pride in their blackness. The family moved to Chambersburg, PA when Delaney was 10. By 1831, he had moved to Pittsburgh, where he became one of the first students at a school established there by the African Education Society. Delaney aspired to the medical profession, and attended Harvard for a year. He returned to Pittsburgh where he completed his medical work andestablished a medical practice. He was inspired by the exploits of Nat Turner to find a way to help his people.

He founded newspaper called 'The Pittsburgh Mystery'; then worked with Frederick Douglass on his paper, 'The North Star,' as editor from 1847-1849. They became close colleagues, although their points of view were sometimes at opposite poles. Disappointed with what he felt was inaction and feelings of supremacy on the part of some white abolitionists, disillusioned with the treatment of slaves, and radicalized by the tightening of controls on free Blacks, Delaney became a serious proponent of nationalism, and finally of emigrationism.

As early as 1839, he briefly gave up his practice to explore areas of the United States which he felt might be appropriate for establishing a Black nation. He is known to have visited parts of Arkansas, Louisiana, Texas and the Indian Territory area. Every place Delaney searched, however, seemed unsatisfactory due to his finding someone white there who he felt would try to take over control. He returned to Pittsburgh in 1840, even more alienated, and became convinced that the "nation" would have to be created outside of the United States. By 1852, with fugitives escaping more and more to Canada, Delaney and others of this mindset began to debate the relative merits of moving to the Caribbean, Central America, Mexican California or the African Gold Coast.

Delaney decided that Africa should be the location, and moved his family and medical practice to Chatham, Ontario, Canada. He considered this to be a stopover on his way to self-imposed exile. Here he also came into contact with John Brown. In 1859, under the direction of the Niger Valley Exploring Party, he led an expedition to Liberia, Lagos and Nigeria with Robert Campbell, to map likely areas. Delaney signed an agreement with the Alake (chief) at Abeokuta, Nigeria for the establishment of a colony there. Hoping to grow cotton for the English market, he then began to seek out possible English textile manufacturers. Those who appeared interested in his proposition, however, seemed more concerned with establishing their own commercial leadership of the possible African market than with assisting Black emigrants from America.

In 1860, Delaney traveled to Britain seeking funding and assistance. While there, he attended the International Statistical Conference in London and the Congress of the National Association for the Promotion of Social Sciences in Glasgow, Scotland. He was also invited to appear before the Royal Geographic Society to report on his African safari.

Although he had tried to be careful in making a distinction between Black-led Emigrationism and white-led Colonization, many African Americans saw them as basically the same, and rejected Delaney's ideas. Further, he was confronted with opposition from the American Colonization Society, which was attempting to locate new territory in Africa, and whose connections prevented him from obtaining the financial backing that he sought. Some members of the African Civilization Committee, a rival group to his, also tried to undermine his efforts. Finally, pressure from English missionaries already established in Abeokuta caused the Alake to withdraw his agreement to Delaney's colony.

WhileDelaney is Best known as the Father of Black Nationalism, His home in Pittsburgh at 3rd Avenue and Market Street was also used as a stop on the Underground Railroad. A marker was placed ath this site by the Pennsylvania Historical Society and Museum Commission in 1991.

Family: Wife - Kate 5 children

Place of Death:

Publications: An incomplete novel entitled 'Blake';The Condition, Elevation, Emigration and Destiny of the Colored People of the United States, Politically Considered; Report of the Niger Valley Exploring Party

References: Black Abolitionists, by Benjamin Quarles; Holy Warriors, by James Stewart; The Shaping of Black America, by Lerone Bennett; Building an Antislavery Wall, by R.J.M. Blackett; There is a River, by Vincent Harding; The Hiippocrene Guide To The Underground Railroad, by Charles Blockson.

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