UPDATE: The winner is…Dana Zamora!
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It’s not often one of my blog post subjects has an obituary published in the New York Times, but such is the case with Gertrude Bustill Mossell, journalist, author, poet, teacher, suffragist, and civil rights activist.
Born on July 3, 1855, Gertrude Bustill was born into a Black Quaker and Presbyterian family in Philadelphia, PA. Her family’s activism ranged from baking for the Continental Army at Valley Forge to creating the first mutual aid society with black activists Richard Allen and James Forten to engaging in the Underground Railroad. No wonder activism filled all aspects of Gertrude’s life. Her graduation speech, “Influence,” so impressed AME Bishop Henry McNeal, he published it in his newspaper, The Christian Recorder, and encouraged her to send him her poetry and essays for publication.
She taught in the public schools of three states for seven years. While teaching she also wrote and edited for seven magazines and newspapers. In 1883, she married Dr. Nathan Francis Mossell, ending her teaching career and taking a break from journalism to have two children.
She began writing again when editor T. Thomas Fortune hired her to write for his newspaper, The New York Age. From 1885 to1889, her column, “Our Women’s Department,” focused on issues from how to care for a household to civil rights and being politically active.
After that, she was the editor of the Indianapolis World from 1891 to 1892. Her byline was Mrs. N.F. Mossell. Gertrude wrote for both black and white publications, becoming the highest paid black newspaperwoman of the late 18th century, earning $500 a year.
She not only wrote articles but encouraged African American women to write and submit their work, making her an early advocate for women journalists. Gertrude wrote The Work of the Afro-American Woman in 1894, in which she wrote essays that highlighted the accomplishments of African American women in many walks of life, included a number of her poems, and challenged African American universities for not hiring enough of their own graduates and African American teachers in general. The book includes a photo of Gertrude and her two daughters, Mary Campbell and Florence Alma to whom her dedication prays “that they may grow into a pure and noble womanhood.” Her book reminded me of Hallie Q. Brown’s 1926 Homespun Heroines which I blogged about here back in February 2024. In 1902, Gertrude published a children’s book, Little Dansie’s One Day at Sabbath School.
In Philadelphia, Gertrude and her husband founded the Frederick Douglass Hospital for which she raised $30,000 ($1,000,000 in today’s dollars). The hospital included a training school for nurses. She also organized the Philadelphia branch of the national Afro-American Council, the first national civil rights organization in the US.
Gertrude died in 1948 in Philadelphia. An historic marker stands at 1432 Lombard Street in Philadelphia where she lived.
In the HBO series, the Gilded Age black journalist Peggy Scott is confronted by her father who tells her he doesn’t know any women who make a living writing. He obviously never heard of Gertrude. Unfortunately, there are movements in the US today hell bent on making sure the accomplishments of marginalized communities remain unheard of. I share these posts as my way of joining the fight with other groups to make sure those movements fail.
To win a $10 Amazon gift card, share your thoughts in the comments.
“The Patience of Unanswered Prayer” by Michal Scott inside Cowboys
Kidnapped and destined to be another victim of Reconstruction-era violence, a feisty shop owner is rescued by a trail boss whose dark secret might save them both.
Excerpt:
Franklin crawled hidden in the tall grass toward the voice. The smells of oil and sulfur assaulted his senses. Echoes of the two explosions that ripped the night apart still played in his ears. The first body thudded against the ground. The second splashed into the creek. Moonlight glinted off the shooter’s gun and chest. Franklin’s upper lip raised over his incisors as he recognized the metal of a sheriff’s badge.
The man stalked over to the body sprawled by the creek bank.
The woman.
A Black woman.
The cur gloated and pointed his gun barrel at her unmoving form.
Franklin snarled. He leapt and went straight for the sheriff’s throat. The man’s horrified cry yielded to stuttered curses as he choked and writhed in the grip of Franklin’s jaws. The copper tang of blood fueled his indignation. The crunch of cartilage sounded lovely in Franklin’s ears. Flesh and bone yielded to canines and incisors.
The man staggered under Franklin’s weight. Lithe and lean in his wolf form, he still carried the heft of his human two hundred and fifty pounds.
The man convulsed, slumped then stilled.
Life flowed in the villain’s veins yet, but wouldn’t for long. The merciful thing to do would be to finish him off before some other predators made a meal of him.
Franklin felt nothing akin to mercy.
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Thank you for sharing the history of this amazing woman!
My thoughts on those ‘movements’ are they need to get there collective heads out of their backsides and actually study their history. The so called ‘marginalized communities’ have been successfully navigating prejudice and persecution forever. The ‘movements’ have rearranged things so that this blond haired, blue eyed, white woman now feels marginalized. Oh wait! I am a dump blond! Why should I feel marginalized? Oops, I think we hit a hot button. (Backing away from my soap box.)
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Holy cow, what a brilliant lady, and the things her and her family have done, , thank you for the history lesson,
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So true, Pansy. Knowing your history and that agency is nothing new is so empowering. Arthur Schomburg being told by a teacher black people had no history led to the creation of his collection that is now a library with millions of examples disproving that teacher’s claim. In seminary being able to cheer my white sisters on as they claimed their space in the development of feminist theology was a blast. Its only in claiming your space that you stop allowing yourself to be marginalized. Thanks for getting on that soap box and commenting Pansy. ; )
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Glad to be of service, Dana.
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As always Delilah. Thanks for letting me share my love of African American women’s history in your space.
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The written word helps people to have a voice.
A wonderful post.
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intriguing person
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The ironic thing about history is when we don’t learn the lesson then it repeats itself. So incredibly sad to me that people continue to put others down to make themselves “feel” superior to someone else. The older I get the more I fail to understand way we can’t just get along, why acceptance and peace are still a prayer instead of reality. We are all human and different by design, I wish we could embrace this and have a better future for ourselves and especially our children. Enjoy the talents of others as it takes courage to be reason for change. We have the capacity for this as well as the love to even agree to disagree if that’s what it takes to live together in peace as no one person or group is superior to another. The hate and anger or maybe it’s the uneducated fear that perpetuates these stereotypes. SMH sad really….
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So true, Mary. It’s no wonder repressive regimes and movements always attack literacy. Thanks for commenting.
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Very intriguing, BN. Once again I marvel at how these women use what privilege they have to help others. Thanks for commenting.
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Amen and amen, Theresa! Thanks for commenting.
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Thanks for giving more added history. I love learning new things more and more each time.
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It’s my pleasure to share what I’m learning, Beckie. Thanks for commenting.
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Where are her writings? I would be interested to know what she was writing about back in the day.
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Hi Jennifer, here’s a link to the text of her book The Work of the Afro American woman:
https://scalar.lehigh.edu/african-american-poetry-a-digital-anthology/mrs-nf-mossell-the-work-of-the-afro-american-woman-full-text-1894. Her newspaper and magazine articles can probably be found in the archives of the Schomburg Library in NYC, the Historical Society of Philadelphia and the Library of Congress. Thanks for asking.
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Anna, thank you for so consistently help bring the lives and work of these incredible women to light. It is heartbreaking that so many of these people are so relatively unknown when their contributions have so significantly influenced how we currently live. And also, it makes me sad that women who perhaps haven’t made such a vital difference to the world at large end up completely unsung. It’s a reminder for me that we are all important in some way to someone, and to be mindful of that as I go through life. Thanks again, Anna.
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Thank you for your appreciation, flchen. I’m grateful that others came before me and unearthed this information on these women so I can share it too.
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What an amazing woman. Thank you for bringing her story forward. Just think how much more history is still unknown
because men (and I can’t even say traditionally here because they are still doing it) insist on suppressing the accomplishments of people they feel superior to.
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Hi Cindy, it sure is a shame because like you said it’s still happening. Thanks for commenting.