Early Long Beach African Americans: George W. Hawkins

            In researching a possible new book on African Americans in our community, I came across a California State Office of Historic Preservation report (An Ethnic Sites Survey for California) that mentioned that most people seemed to believe that before 1940 there were virtually no African Americans in the State. But there were. Of the forty four of the original founders of the city of Los Angeles, twenty six were of African descent. Africans had been brought to Mexico, many as slaves, in the 17th century, and their descendants were racially mixed by the time of the colonization of California in the 18th century. People of mixed race were actually the majority of the population in several Mexican states. California governor Pio Pico (1845-46), the last governor of California under Mexican rule, has been described as Afro-Mexican. In the 1900 U.S. Census those that identified themselves as Mexican were classified as Black, along with African Americans. .

            I found 7,858 African Americans living in California in 1900, with 21 of that number (who lacked Hispanic surnames) living in Long Beach. Let me tell you about one of the more prominent members---George Washington Hawkins.

These image are from the Los Angeles Herald (11/4/1898). The one on the left shows Hawkins in a checked suit . The seated gentleman is J.J. Neimore, president of the California League of Afro-Americans. In the other image Hawkins'
 head is portrayed above the dog. These are the only image I have been able to find of Hawkins. The article, reporting on a "Colored Republicans Jubilee," like many from the time made fun of African Americans. This one discussed the dog who interrupted the conference more than the conference itself. 

            One of the leaders in the Long Beach and Los Angeles community was George Washington Hawkins, a Los Angeles furniture dealer who also owned a ranch in the Los Cerritos area of Long Beach. Hawkins was born in Alabama in 1845 and had been married to wife Carrie (born in Wisconsin in 1854) since 1875. Not much is known about George’s early life, though he may have been a slave born to a black mother and a white father, since he listed himself as “mulatto” in the 1910 U.S. Census.  He was referred to as “Captain” and may have served in the Civil War, though I can find no records to that effect.  He was first listed in Los Angeles City Directories in 1891 and continued having a residence in Los Angeles until 1913. He was one of the most successful African Americans in Los Angeles, according to a Los Angeles Herald article published in March 1902. His Los Angeles home was on the corner of 16th Street and Central Avenue and was located in “a refined aristocratic white community.”

            Hawkins had been active in the California Republican Party since his arrival in Los Angeles in 1891 and quickly gravitated to the California Afro-American League and its platform which stressed education, political involvement and helping each other. He was also instrumental in forming the Colored Business Men’s League of Los Angeles in 1901, which frequently met at his business at 242 E. Second Street in Los Angeles.  At that time Los Angeles had several African American physicians, a dentist, a veterinarian, tailor, plumber, nurses, pharmacist, blacksmith, cabinet makers and carpenters and there were several grocery stores and other businesses run by African Americans. The city also had two local African American newspapers. At the inaugural meeting Hawkins stated there was a need for such an association so African American men in business could come together and become acquainted with each other. There was a need to “instill into the race a desire to branch out in various commercial lines and to be better known among their people that they might obtain a good share of the trade that now drifted to other firms.” Hawkins also pointed out how an increase in patronage would enable African American owned businesses to employ others of their race. 

            In 1903 the Colored Business Men’s League took a firm stance against proposed school segregation in Los Angeles. Hawkins told the Los Angeles Herald (10/15/03)

           We are American citizens and taxpayers and our children are entitled to the same privileges as those of the whites. There should be no race distinction, particularly in a section where the differences that cause so much trouble in the south are lost sight of. It would be fully as unjust to isolate the Spanish, the Germans or any other nationality, as to exclude the Negro from the public schools. If there are unruly spirits among the Negro pupils there is a very simple remedy. Put them out of the school, just as is done with white children. No Negro parent will object to such a measure. I have talked with 20 or 30 men of my race within the past 48 hours, and I have not found one in favor of separate schools.” 

            Hawkins was elected state vice president of the California Afro-American League in 1904. The organization was one of several African American political groups formed in the United States after the Civil War. The California League started in San Francisco in 1891 with less than 150 members; by 1896 it had a chapter in all major cities of the state. Initially the members were all Republicans who espoused the belief that none but responsible and honest men should be nominated and elected to public office. After the first meeting on August 10, 1891, those present decided to form an association that would uphold the principles of the Republican Party and by doing so benefit their people in maintaining their political rights. It was also understood that as membership in the League increased, efforts would be made to obtain employment for those looking for work, and in this and other ways “establish a fraternity of interest and good will toward each other.” Women were allowed membership and voting rights in the organization and supported universal women’s suffrage, as did the men in the League.

           

T.B. Morton

Theophilus B. Morton founded the California Afro-American League and served as its president for seven years. Born in Virginia in 1849, he escaped from slavery in 1862 and in 1864 took part with the Eighth Illinois Regiment in defense of Washington D.C. Morton settled in California in 1875. He believed the highest duty a man owed himself was the love of a home, and in order to have a home and have it properly protected he must be involved in the political affairs of the state and nation.

       The League had a hard road ahead of them because of dissension among the members. Many felt that the pioneers and native born California African Americans were being slighted by those who had come from the south. There was also a prejudice of the black men against those of lighter color, according to the San Francisco Call (8/6/1895) 

           Morton had high ideals for the African American race. He told those in attendance at the 1896 congress held in Los Angeles:

            The young people of the race will be encouraged by the congress to cultivate their talents so that they will be fitted for the various callings in the business world, and not be contented to live from hand to mouth. We need to show our ability, and we have considerable, and thus receive the recognition we deserve, and disarm many good men and women who wish us prosperity of any lurking prejudice that remains. (San Francisco Call, 7/5/1896)

            In 1896 the League supported McKinley for president and were very happy to receive a letter from McKinley thanking them for their support. At that conference they appointed a committee of five to consider the best way to get legislation passed to end discrimination against their race. The most urgent measure related to section 60, article I, of the California Civil code, commonly known as ‘the black law,” which read: “All marriages of white persons with negroes or mulattoes are illegal and void.”  (This law would remain until the California Supreme Court voided the ban on interracial marriage in 1948). They also pushed for a bill which would allow “full and equal accommodation, advantages, facilities and privileges of inns, restaurants, hotels, eating houses, bathhouses, barber shops, music halls, public conveyances on land and water and other places of public accommodation or amusement.” If anyone committed the offense they would pay a sum of not less than $100 or more than $500. (This too would remain a dream not achieved in their lifetimes).

            The League also called mass meetings to denounce the lynching of African Americans in the South by lawless mobs and demanded proper action by the law in finding those responsible and punishing them. The League raised money to assist in defraying the cost for lawsuits in the states where the outrages occurred.

            In a speech Hawkins gave in August 1904 to the Afro-American League in Los Angeles he said the Negroes of the day were in reality slaves, kept down by the white people. He believed the Negro had to do better work and work longer hours than the white man to keep his position. He urged the race to turn to agricultural pursuits; own farms and their home life would be far happier.

            Hawkins took his own advice and purchased property in the Los Cerritos area of Long Beach. With the arrival of the Pacific Electric railway in 1902 he could easily commute between his ranch and his used furniture store in Los Angeles. A Los Angeles Herald article detailed his sentiments:

            The colored man who owns an orange ranch is treated by his white neighbor with vastly more consideration than one who owns none. The former, when he goes to a packing house to sell his oranges, finds the color of his skin no barrier. The latter goes to the same packing house to get a job and finds to his sorrow that none but white men are employed. Now, these two black men differ only in the fact that one had oranges to sell and was entertained, while the other, who had nothing to sell had a race problem on his hands.... The number of this class is happily on the increase, this pursuit carries with it an independence and dignity that the poor man finds nowhere else. To employ himself should be the ambition of every laboring man. In this lies the-hope for the colored race of Southern California. (LA Herald 3/2/1902)

            I haven’t been able to find anything more on George Washington Hawkins. I have had to rely on Los Angeles and San Francisco newspapers for information, though there were a few Long Beach newspapers from the early 1900s that have been preserved. In March 1903 the Long Beach Evening Tribune mentioned the Reverend P. Robertson of the Second Baptist Church of Los Angeles had established a mission in Long Beach at Tenth between Elm and Atlantic. Though not mentioned by name, I am certain it was thanks in part to George Washington Hawkins.

        According to census records Hawkins and his wife Carrie had no children whose descendants might know more about this remarkable man of many achievements. If any readers have additional information, please let me know.

From Slave to Soldier to Long Beach

Since February is African American History Month,  I thought I’d share the story of a forgotten former slave, Harry Stubblefield,  who fought in the Civil War and ended up in Long Beach. 

            In researching my next book, Died in Long Beach: Cemetery Tales, I came across a nondescript grave in Long Beach’s Sunnyside Cemetery that contains the remains of a fascinating person.   

                When African American Harry Stubblefield (1843?-1/23/1913) passed away in 1913, the Long Beach Press noted that he was born the property of a wealthy Kentucky tobacco planter, who had one son. When this son, a prominent physician, married, his father gave him Harry as a wedding gift.  In 1890 this physician died and his widow Sina came to Long Beach and, according to the obituary, brought Harry with her. Former slaves often took the surname of their one-time owner, which was the case with Harry.  The obituary also pointed out that Harry was 102 years old, something that could not be substantiated.

            Further research added more to an interesting story.  Clues led me to the physician’s name---Peter--- and that Sina’s given name was Catherine.  Census records from 1850 showed that Peter’s father, G. W. Stubblefield, owned 14 slaves in Rockingham, North Carolina, varying in age from 1-60. There were 11 males (7 listed as black, 4 as mulatto) and 3 females (2 black, 1 mulatto).  The four mulatto males ranged in age from 5-10 years of age. One of these mulattos could have been Harry.  Was Harry related to the Stubblefield family in more ways than name only?

            The 1850 census also showed that Peter was not an only son as Harry’s obituary stated.  Peter had three brothers, and three sisters.   It also seems that Peter’s father was active in Kentucky during the Civil War providing provisions (and perhaps slaves) for the Southern cause.

             When he was barely twenty Peter left North Carolina to serve as a private with the North Carolina volunteers in the Mexican-American War (which lasted from the spring of 1846 to the fall of 1847).  Sina later claimed his pension as a war widow.  Perhaps the carnage he saw inspired Peter to become a physician. The next record I found was in the 1860 census when Doctor Peter Stubblefield was in Weakley, Tennessee, married to Tennessee native Sina Boyd. 
             Early African Americans came to Tennessee from the colonies of Virginia and North Carolina, including Harry when he came to Tennessee from North Carolina with Peter and Sina Stubblefield.  An 1826 law prohibited them bringing Harry into the state for anything besides the direct use of his labor.  Fortunately for Harry, slaves could not be sold in Tennessee.

             Could Peter have taken a different side during the Civil War than his father and brothers? Tennessee was the last state to secede from the Union and join the Confederacy.  Some living in the state were strongly pro-Confederacy, while others were Unionist.  The 26 eastern counties tried to secede from Tennessee, but Confederate troops were sent to prevent it.  However, portions of Tennessee provided many troops for the Union as well as waging guerrilla warfare against Confederate interests in the state.  Which side did Peter really favor? I took this question to the Tennessee Library and Archives.  The Archives' staff said that when captured by Union forces, Confederate soldiers were given the option of being sent to a prisoner of war camp, or they could swear allegiance to the United States and fight on the Union side.  The Tennessee Archives researchers said there were quite a number of soldiers who served on both the Confederate and Union side.  This seems to be the case with Peter.

            According to the United States Census of Union Veterans and Widows of the Civil War, 1890, Peter served as a Lieutenant from 1862-1865.  There is also a listing (in Tennessee, Civil War Service Records of Confederate Soldiers, 1861-1865) for P. B. Stubblefield serving in the Confederacy as a Second Lieutenant, 9th Regiment Tennessee Infantry, Company G. The names of two of his brothers are also listed next to his. 

            What of Harry?  Before July 17, 1862, it was illegal for African Americans to serve in the army.  On this date the Confiscation Act allowed African Americans to be employed by the (Union) military and another law specifically allowed free blacks to be recruited. The first African American unit was the First South Carolina (Union) Volunteers – mustered in on August 25, 1862. 
            Records show Harry enlisted in the Union Army as part of the 4th U. S. Colored Heavy Artillery unit from Tennessee. Harry’s unit was organized from the 2nd Tennessee Heavy Artillery (African Descent). It was designated 3rd Heavy Artillery on March 11, 1864 and 4th Heavy Artillery on April 26, 1864.  United States Colored Troops fought in all theaters of the war, but mainly served as garrison troops in rear areas. Harry’s unit saw garrison duty at Union City, Tennessee, until September 2, 1864, and then moved to Fort Donelson, Tennessee, until October 11, 1864.  Their next post was Fort Halleck, Columbus, Kentucky, until June, 1865.  The unit moved to Arkansas in June, 1865, and saw duty at Pine Bluff, Arkansas, until February, 1866. The unit was mustered out February 25, 1866.

                By the end of the war, there were almost 179,000 African Americans serving in 166 regiments – about 10 percent of the Union army. Unfortunately, not much else is known about Harry and his term of service in the 4th U. S. Colored Heavy Artillery unit.

             Much information can be gained from pension records, but I have yet to find a pension record for Harry.   African Americans faced many obstacles in applying for a pension. It was difficult and expensive, and African American applicants were often poor and illiterate. Furthermore, the Pension Bureau often appointed special investigators to verify claims. According to researchers, African Americans were investigated about twice as often as whites and these investigations were more thorough and took longer. Furthermore, claim agents (who often assisted in the application process) often took advantage of African American soldiers by submitting fraudulent claims. Finally, the difficulty African Americans had in providing essential dates, including dates of birth, marriage, military service, wounds, and illnesses, led to frustration and suspicion on the part of pension bureaucrats.

            After the war, the 1870 U. S. Census has 43-year-old Dr. Peter Stubblefield living with his 34-year-old wife Sina, in Weakley, Tennessee, along with 27-year-old Harry (mistakenly transcribed as Harvey) and 7-year-old Sallie Stubblefield. Both Harry and Sallie are noted as being “black.” Harry’s profession was given as “domestic servant.”  Could Sallie have been Harry’s daughter, or just another of the former Stubblefield slaves?

            In looking at the 1880 U. S. Census Peter and Sina Stubblefield were still living in Weakley, Tennessee. Harry was working for and living with them. Sina’s 37-year-old brother John Boyd, and her 30-year-old brother William Boyd were also residing with them.  Sallie seems to have left the family.

            Unfortunately a fire destroyed most of the 1890 U. S. Census, but I did find Sina in the 1900 Census living with her brother John Boyd, a real estate agent, and his family in Long Beach, California.   Harry, however, wasn’t mentioned as being with her, nor was he listed in any other census records from 1900. 

            From Long Beach City Directories it appears Sina’s brother John convinced her to invest in real estate, and in 1905 she was managing the Roselle Apartments at East Seaside Boulevard at the foot of Linden Avenue.  The apartments had been named for her niece Roselle Boyd, John’s daughter. 

            In the 1910 U. S. Census 75-year-old Sina was still living at the Roselle Apartments.  Harry Stubblefield (age 66) was listed as one of her tenants.  Interestingly, Harry’s race is given as “white.”

            Harry isn’t listed in any of the Long Beach City Directories so I can’t say for sure when he joined Sina in Long Beach.  Sina (1/31/1834-12/13/1911) died in 1911.  Her body was taken to Weakley, Tennessee, to be buried next to her husband, Peter (3/20/1827-2/28/1890) at the Obion Chapel Cemetery.  What of Harry?  Most likely he continued to reside at the Roselle until his death in 1913.  It seems he had those who cared enough about him to give him a decent burial and a simple headstone.

            Wouldn’t it have been interesting to ask Harry about his life as a slave? Was he the child of one of the white plantation owners?  How did he come to fight for the Union during the Civil War and why did he come back to live with the Stubblefields once the war ended?  And was Sallie Stubblefield his daughter, and if so what happened to her?       

            Mysteries remain.  Hopefully I’ll uncover more about Harry before I finish writing Died in Long Beach: Cemetery Tales.