THE FIGHT FOR BLACK MOBILITY: TRAVELING TO MID-CENTURY CONVENTIONS

CLARISSA MARIA CAMPBELL BEMAN

Clarissa Maria Campbell (or Cammel) Beman was born on December 18, 1809 in East Haddam, Connecticut,¹ to John “Punch” Cammel and Axe (or Achsah) Mason.² Both Cammel and Mason were born free and had four children, the youngest of which was Clarissa. As a young woman, she eventually lived in Middletown, Connecticut where she established a chapter of Colored Female Anti-Slavery Society, whose goal was to improve the conditions of both free and enslaved African Americans.³ Part of Connecticut’s Black elite community, Clarissa Campbell mingled with many Black activists devoted to racial uplift. She went on to marry Leverett Beman, one of Jehiel Beman’s sons. The couple was well-off, and, during their marriage, Leverett Beman built their home and established a small residential subdivision for African Americans.⁴ Today it is known as the Leverett Beman Historic District.

In Middletown, Clarissa Beman petitioned against and boycotted goods that were produced by slave labor. As founder of the Colored Female Anti-Slavery Society, Beman “assumed leadership roles in local organizations that coordinated petitioning drives.”⁵ Middletown was a divided city, being home to anti-slavery groups and pro-slavery factions, and in 1835, an anti-slavery riot broke out.⁶ Despite this, the Bemans continued to fight for racial uplift. It is also highly likely that Clarissa Beman aided fugitive slaves as Middletown was one of the stops on the Underground Railroad.

Clarissa Beman died in 1844, likely due to childbirth.⁷ Although her life was cut short, it is clear that she took every advantage of her position as a free Black woman to support anti-slavery efforts.

Credits

Written by Samantha de Vera, University of Delaware.

With contributions from Taylor Williams, Taught by: Professor Pier Gabrielle Foreman, University of Delaware Spring 2013.

References