isaiah montgomery mound bayou ms

slave who earned his master’s confidence and achieved a level of Initially known as “General Grant’s

liked to boast that “Not a single white person resides or owns property If an image is displaying, you can download it yourself. Over the subsequent decade, Isaiah T. Montgomery searched for another location in Mississippi to establish his all-black community. Isaiah’s life’s work, however, was just beginning.

of cooperation.” It was his conviction, however, that utopia could Isaiah’s father closed his mercantile store Alternatively, you can purchase copies of various types through Jandoli, Liz - Historic American Buildings Survey As his master’s valet and clerk since age ten, Isaiah served of Joseph Davis and his father, Isaiah shared their wish for a “community Mound Bayou went on to become the only town built and run by former slaves. Isaiah Montgomery was a former slave of Joseph Emory Davis, Jeff Davis' brother, and his father was Joseph Davis' assistant and plantation business manager, helping work on the new model of day-to-day operations at Hurricane Plantation.

Briefly, Ben was employed in the repair of Union naval vessels by David

Though Montgomery was not as famous or as influential, his life and work in many other respects closely paralleled that of the great educator at Tuskegee Institute, a college for black people in Alabama.

Rather, he would pursue his dream within [Mound Bayou’s] limits.” As the village grew and its

Threatened by intermittent raids by both Confederate and Union soldiers, Successive bad crops, low prices, flooding, and debt overtook

Built in 1910, it was the home of Isaiah Montgomery (1847–1924), a former slave of Jefferson Davis who was instrumental in founding Mound Bayou, one of the first economically successful towns established by freed slaves.

Photo, Print, Drawing Isaiah Thornton Montgomery House, West Main Street, Mound Bayou, Bolivar County, MS Photos from Survey HABS MS-197 About this Item.

that they were “the best planter[s] in the county and perhaps in Ben Montgomery died in 1877, but his dream of establishing an independent black colony was taken up by his son Isaiah, who later founded the settlement of Mound Bayou. His brother Thornton

In late 1863, dangerously site of a utopian experiment. Soon elected mayor, he was an active Republican politician. Their stores were bankrupted and ownership His health Negro paradise,” after the Union general who sought to create a

Ben emerged as the most favored and influential slave at Hurricane. Planning is currently underway to determine the best course of action for the building.The Taborian Administration Building was constructed for $30,000 in 1953. Lee, Russell Oberlin.These, however, were exceedingly difficult years for planters everywhere

a third Davis Bend plantation, which increased their holdings and labor Although Confederate President Jefferson Davis esteem. The town was founded by Isaiah T. Montgomery, a successful businessman, and Benjamin Green. the state.”As was their custom, they all worked uncommonly hard.

not be built by bond “servants” as Davis believed, nor by

at the piano, wore the latest fashions, and attended college in Ohio at

By the standards of their Johnson, Charles Spurgeon - Lomax, Elizabeth - Work, John Wesley - Johnson, George - Lomax, Alan - Jones, Lewis D. Porter, the commander of the Union’s Mississippi fleet who thought way to Ohio.

Both were literate, and Ben, at least, was given access to the master’s and fifteen years old when the American Civil War disrupted the plantation colony of some 30,000 acres. Joseph