Angels of Mercy: White Women and the History of New York's Colored Orphan Asylum (Empire State Editions)

302 Pages·2011·1.66 MB·English

by  William Seraile

Angels of Mercy
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Angels of Mercy
White Women and the History of
New York’s Colored Orphan Asylum
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Empire State Editions
An imprint of Fordham University Press
New York 2011
Copyright(cid:2)2011FordhamUniversityPress
Allrightsreserved.Nopartofthispublicationmaybereproduced,storedinaretrieval
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LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData
Seraile,William,1941–
Angelsofmercy:whitewomenandthehistoryofNewYork’sColoredOrphan
Asylum/WilliamSeraile.—1sted.
p. cm.
Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex.
ISBN978-0-8232-3419-6(cloth:alk.paper)
1.ColoredOrphanAsylumandAssociationfortheBenefitofColoredOrphans(New
York,N.Y.)—History. 2.Womenphilanthropists—NewYork(State)—NewYork—
History. 3.Women,White—NewYork(State)—NewYork—History. I.Title.
HV995.N52C657 2011
362.73(cid:2)2—dc22
2011006835
PrintedintheUnitedStatesofAmerica
13 12 11 5 4 3 2 1
Firstedition
Contents
Preface vii
Acknowledgments xi
Introduction 1
1. TheEarlyYears,1836–42 8
2. FifthAvenue:GrowthandProgress,1843–54 31
3. DisasterandRebirth,1855–63 54
4. Harlem,1864–83 76
5. Harlem,1884–1906 97
6. NewStartinRiverdale,1907–22 120
7. Riverdale:TrialsandTribulations,1923–36 158
8. FromtheColoredOrphanAsylumtotheRiverdale
Children’sAssociation,1937–46 178
Conclusion 209
Appendixes
A. FoundersoftheColoredOrphanAsylum,1836 213
B. OriginalMaleAdviserstotheCOA,1836–37 213
vi | contents
C. EarlyCOAMajorFinancialSupportersinthe1830s 214
D. COAManagers/Trustees,1837–1946 216
E. FirstDirectress/President 232
F. Superintendent/ExecutiveDirector 232
G. LocationsoftheCOA’sHomes 233
Notes 235
Bibliography 265
Index 273
Preface
The Colored Orphan Asylum, founded in New York City in 1836, is
a remarkable institution that is still in the forefront aiding children.
Althoughnolongeranorphanage,itssuccessor,theHarlemDowling–
WestSideCenterforChildrenandFamilyServices,maintainstheprin-
ciples ofthewomenwhoorganizednearlytwohundredyearsagothe
firstorphanageforchildrenofAfricandescentintheUnitedStates.
Remarkably, the twenty-five founders fought against gender dis-
crimination, financial difficulties, and initial black resistance to house
childrenwhowereeitherneglected,mistreated,ororphaned.Manyof
the women were the daughters, wives, or siblings of influential New
Yorkerswhomadetheirreputation andwealthasbusinessmen,bank-
ers, merchants, or entrepreneurs. Some were ardently antislavery, if
notabolitionists.
This study has several major themes that will be explored in its
eight chapters. First, I will describe the efforts of the white women
managers to procure a home for the children despite intense racial
hostilityandgeneralcivicdisinterest.Althoughtheywouldeventually
receive financial backing from some of Manhattan’s wealthiest citi-
zens, including John Jacob Astor, Rufus Lord, Gerrit Smith, Gulian C.
Verplanck, John Horsburg, Anson G. Phelps, Ann Jay, and Elizabeth
and Sarah DeMilt, to name a few, the early years of the orphanage
representedafinancialnightmare.
Second, while the white female managers and their male advisers
were dedicated touplifting theblackchild, theyharboredextreme pa-
ternalisticviewsthatdidnotseekguidancefromtheAfricanAmerican
community.Theexception,ofcourse,wasthehiringofJamesMcCune
viii | preface
Smith as the institution’s physician, a position he held for twenty
years. The orphanage accepted material aid in the form of nonperish-
ablegoods,volunteerlabor,andsmallfinancialcontributionsfromthe
blackcommunity,butitdidnotseektheiradviceandonlygrudgingly
accepteditwhenitwasgiven.
Third, the evangelical and mainly Quaker founding managers
sought to save the souls of their charges. Later, in the nineteenth cen-
tury, their successors adopted a harsher, moralistic tone as they (and
othersimilarinstitutions)becamemorebureaucraticandprofessional.
Their objective was to uplift the poor in their care and, in a sense, to
‘‘rescue’’ their charges not only from the evils of the street but also
from the perception that they, and not the black community, could
bestraisethechildrenintoresponsibleadulthood.
Fourth,itwasfrankcriticismin1913fromW.E.B.DuBois,editor
ofThe Crisis,that highlightedtheconflict betweentheorphanage and
the community it served. It was not until 1939 that the white leader-
ship decided that it was not enough simply to employ African Ameri-
cans inmenial positions; theyalso had toreach out andinclude them
intheleadershipoftheinstitution.Theorphanage’sfirstblackfemale
trustee was elected in that year and was soon followed by others, in-
cludingJewishwomenandAfricanAmericanmen.
Fifth, it had become clear in the first few decades of the twentieth
century that the institution was an orphanage primarily in name, as
mostofthechildrenundercarewere‘‘half-orphans,’’thatis,neglected
ordelinquentchildren.Itwasduringthisperiodthatthetrusteesintro-
duced the cottage system as a means to accommodate children in a
less-institutionalizedmanner.Boardingthechildrenoutledtoagreater
interaction with black churches and families. An antidiscrimination
lawinNewYorkStatepressuredthereluctanttrusteestoacceptwhite
children in the late 1940s. It was at this time that it was decided to
close the ‘‘orphanage’’ in the Riverdale section of the Bronx and find
boardinghomesforallthechildren.
The Colored Orphan Asylum survived several fires, the nation’s
financialpanics,wars,theGreatDepression,andracialhostilitysoviru-
lentthatitledtothedestructionofitsFifthAvenuebuildingbyamob
duringNewYork’sJuly1863draftriots.Overfifteenthousandchildren
preface | ix
were raised in the orphanage during the period under study, and
throughoutitshistory,lettersandvisitshaverevealedthathundredsif
not thousands of ‘‘old boys and girls’’ have looked back with admira-
tion and respect for the home that nurtured them throughout their
formativeyears.