US History

The Development of the Industrial United States (1870-1900)

African Americans

Migration

This collection uses primary sources to explore the Exoduster movement.

An illustration from *Harper’s Weekly* depicting white men subjecting a black man to violent intimidation while voting, 1876.

As Reconstruction ended, white Southerners and the conservative Democratic Party used violence, economic exploitation, discriminatory laws, and political disenfranchisement to subjugate African Americans and undo their gains during Reconstruction. This illustration depicts one scenario in which these oppressive tactics were used. While the black man is ostensibly free to vote as a result of the Fifteenth Amendment, the white men subject him to threats and violence for attempting to vote freely. This illustration specifically calls out operatives of the Tennessee Democratic Party for threatening violent and economic retribution against African American voters.

Transcription:

Text in bottom left: 
“The negroes of the South are free -- free as air,” says the parliamentary Waterson. This is what the State, a well-known Democratic organ of Tennessee says, in huge capitals, on the subject: “Let it be known before the election that the farmers have agreed to spot every leading Radical negro in the county, and treat him as an enemy for all time to come. The rotten ring must and shall be broken at any and all costs. The Democrats have determined to withdraw all employment from their enemies. Let this fact be known.”

Caption, bottom center: 
“Of course he wants to vote the Democratic ticket!” 
Democratic “Reformer.” -- “You’re as free as air, ain't you? Say you are, or I’ll blow your black head off!”

An 1875 newspaper article inviting Tennessee’s African American residents to participate in a state convention about migration to Kansas.

Benjamin Singleton was among the leaders of this convention, which was one of the first organized meetings about migration to Kansas.

A photograph of Benjamin “Pap” Singleton, 1880.

A native of Tennessee, Benjamin “Pap” Singleton was born enslaved in 1809 and became one of the leading promoters of black migration to Kansas in the 1870s. Singleton organized black settlements in Cherokee and Morris Counties in Kansas.

A broadside distributed by Benjamin Singleton advertising migration to Kansas, 1878.

Benjamin Singleton established the Edgefield Real Estate and Homestead Association to help organize travel and settlement for African Americans departing Tennessee for Kansas.

A sheet of lyrics for a song entitled, “The Land that Gives Birth to Freedom,” about leaving Tennessee for Kansas, 1877.

This songster, or sheet of song lyrics, was sold by Benjamin “Pap” Singleton as part of his campaign to encourage migration from Tennessee to Kansas.

Transcription:

The Land That Gives Birth to Freedom 
Words by Hester Hickman. Arranged by A. D. DeFrantz, Nashville, Tennessee, 1877.

We have held a meeting to ourselves to see if we cant 
Plan some way to live. (Repeat.)

Chorus.--Marching along, yes we are marching along, 
To Kansas City we are bound. (Repeat)

We have Mr. Singleton for our President, he will go on 
before us and lead us through. (Repeat) 
Chorus --

Surely this must be the Lord that has gone before him, 
and opened the way. (Repeat.) 
Chorus --

For Tennessee is a hard slavery State, and we find no 
Friends in this country. (Repeat.) 
Chorus --

Truly it is hard, but we all have to part, and flee into a 
Strange land unknown. (Repeat.) 
Chorus --

We want peaceful homes and quiet firesides; no one to 
Disturb us or turn us out. (Repeat.) 
Chorus --

Extending Our Voices to Heaven.

Farewell, dear friends, farewell. 
We are on our rapid march to Kansas, the land that gives 
Birth to freedom. May God Almighty bless you all. 
Farewell, dear friends, farewell.

Many dear mothers who are sleeping in the tomb of clay 
Have spent all their days in slavery in old Tennessee. 
Farewell, dear friends, farewell.

The time has come, we all must part, and take the parting band, 
Farewell, dear friends, farewell.

It seems to me like the year of jubilee has come; surely 
this is the time that is spoken of in history. 
Farewell, dear friends, farewell.

Sold by “Pap” Singleton, author of the exodus.

A map showing black towns and settlements in Kansas and Oklahoma in 1900.

While Kansas was the most popular destination for Exodusters, migrants also relocated to Oklahoma, Colorado, and other destinations on the Great Plains. This map shows black communities established by Exodusters in Kansas and Oklahoma. 

A letter from John Turner of St. Louis authorizing William Lloyd Garrison to raise funds for migrants en route to Kansas, April 2, 1879.

This letter from St. Louis pastor and black community leader John Turner allowed Boston abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison to raise money to support the Exodusters arriving in St. Louis. Turner and his colleagues likely sent standardized letters like this one to community leaders across the country. When they asked for donations to help Exodusters in St. Louis, bearers of the letter, like William Lloyd Garrison, would have proof that they were acting on behalf of the St. Louis community to collect money.

Reverend John Turner was the Chairman of the Committee of Twenty-Five, a group of St. Louis black community leaders who came together in March 1879 to strategize about how to meet the needs of the Exodusters. By March, approximately 2,500 Exodusters had already arrived in St. Louis and thousands more continued to arrive over the coming months. Most were greeted by members of the St. Louis black community on their arrival, and at least two-thirds of Exoduster arrivals were housed and fed at St. Louis’s black churches until their travel to Kansas could be arranged. The St. Louis black community received little financial support from white St. Louisans, so they reached out to black communities and former abolitionists across the country to raise the funds necessary to provide food, shelter, clothing, and transportation for the Exodusters. 

A print from *Frank Leslie’s Illustrated Newspaper* depicting African Americans en route to Kansas via St. Louis, 1879.

This illustration shows four scenes of the Exoduster experience in St. Louis. Thousands of Exodusters traveled through St. Louis en route to Kansas, particularly during the spring of 1879. Most arrived by steamboat on the Mississippi River from Mississippi, Louisiana, and elsewhere in need of food, shelter, and assistance getting the rest of the way to Kansas. 

A photograph of a crowded steamboat with migration organizers Benjamin Singleton and S. A. McClure superimposed in the foreground.

Benjamin Singleton and S. A. McClure led efforts to promote migration to Kansas, specifically from Tennessee in the late 1870s. Many Exodusters traveled by steamboat, like the one pictured in this photograph.

An illustration from *Harper’s Weekly* entitled, “The Negro Exodus: The Old Style and the New,” May 1, 1880.

This illustration, which appeared in widely-read magazine *Harper’s Weekly*, contrasts how African Americans left the South during the Great Exodus (the “new style”) with the ways African Americans escaped slavery (the “old style”). Illustrations like this one also demonstrate how Americans across the country consumed news about the Great Exodus.

An excerpt from the *Second Report of the Kansas Freedmen’s Relief Association*, 1880.

Kansas Governor John St. John established the Kansas Freedmen’s Relief Association in 1879 to help support the Exodusters once they arrived in Kansas. Upon arriving in eastern Kansas by steamboat, Exodusters often needed to travel further west to claim land or join settlements. The Kansas Freedmen’s Relief Association was based in Topeka and helped settle Exodusters in Topeka and elsewhere in the state through local branches.

A 1910 photograph of Elsie and Lela Scott, children of Exodusters John and Julia Scott, who settled in Stafford County, Kansas.

Twins Elsie (1889-1981) and Lela (1889-1962) Scott were two of seventeen children of Exodusters John and Julia Scott. The Scotts migrated from Louisiana to Indiana and then to Stafford County, Kansas. This photograph was taken at the W. R. Gray Studio in St. John, Kansas in 1910.

A photograph of the African Methodist Episcopal Church in Nicodemus, Kansas.

The town of Nicodemus, Kansas was founded by a group of African Americans from Kentucky in 1877. It was one of the first all-black communities in Kansas. By the 1880s, Nicodemus had several hundred residents, some stores and businesses, a post office, churches, and a school. The African Methodist Episcopal Church was established in Nicodemus in 1879. Congregants met in each other’s homes until they raised funds to construct this building in the 1880s. 

An excerpt from an 1887 map of Graham County, Kansas, including Nicodemus, an African American community founded in 1877.

The town of Nicodemus, Kansas was founded by a group of African Americans from Kentucky in 1877 as one of the first all-black communities in Kansas. By the 1880s, Nicodemus had several hundred residents, some stores and businesses, a post office, churches, and a school. Part of the appeal for Exodusters to move to a settlement like Nicodemus was the opportunity to claim tracts of land under the Homestead Act. This map of Nicodemus suggests both a small town in the shaded area and expansive surrounding land (shaded in green).

An excerpt from Benjamin Singleton’s testimony before Congress, 1880.

After the sudden wave of African American migration from the South to Kansas in 1879, the US Senate appointed a committee of five senators to investigate the cause of the migration. The committee interviewed over 150 people, including Benjamin Singleton, who describes his role in the Exoduster Movement and his reasoning for promoting migration away from the South in this excerpt from his testimony.

Questions

1. Based on the [newspaper article about the state convention](https://dp.la/primary-source-sets/exodusters-african-american-migration-to-the-great-plains/sources/1660), the [broadside advertising migration to Kansas](https://dp.la/primary-source-sets/exodusters-african-american-migration-to-the-great-plains/sources/1662), the lyrics for “[The Land that Gives Birth to Freedom](https://dp.la/primary-source-sets/exodusters-african-american-migration-to-the-great-plains/sources/1663),” and [Benjamin Singleton’s testimony](https://dp.la/primary-source-sets/exodusters-african-american-migration-to-the-great-plains/sources/1673), what were the reasons people decided to leave the South? What were the pull factors driving people to go to Kansas?
2. Analyze the religious imagery used to describe leaving for Kansas in the lyrics for “[The Land that Gives Birth to Freedom](https://dp.la/primary-source-sets/exodusters-african-american-migration-to-the-great-plains/sources/1663).” How might this religious messaging have informed African Americans’ decisions to leave? Briefly research the Biblical significance of the word, *Exodus*. How does the Biblical meaning relate to the Exoduster Movement?
3. Based on the [letter from John Turner](https://dp.la/primary-source-sets/exodusters-african-american-migration-to-the-great-plains/sources/1665) and the illustration from *[Frank Leslie’s Illustrated Newspaper](https://dp.la/primary-source-sets/exodusters-african-american-migration-to-the-great-plains/sources/1666)*, in what ways did the St. Louis black community support the Exodusters? Why do you think it was important to members of that community to help the Exodusters?
4. What do the [photograph of the steamboat](https://dp.la/primary-source-sets/exodusters-african-american-migration-to-the-great-plains/sources/1667), the [print from *Frank Leslie’s Illustrated Newspaper*](https://dp.la/primary-source-sets/exodusters-african-american-migration-to-the-great-plains/sources/1666), and the [print from *Harper’s Weekly*](https://dp.la/primary-source-sets/exodusters-african-american-migration-to-the-great-plains/sources/1668) reveal about how people traveled from the South to Kansas?
5. At the end of [Benjamin Singleton’s testimony](https://dp.la/primary-source-sets/exodusters-african-american-migration-to-the-great-plains/sources/1673), he calls himself “the father of the exodus.” Using the [broadside advertising migration to Kansas](https://dp.la/primary-source-sets/exodusters-african-american-migration-to-the-great-plains/sources/1662), the lyrics for “[The Land that Gives Birth to Freedom](https://dp.la/primary-source-sets/exodusters-african-american-migration-to-the-great-plains/sources/1663),” the [photograph of the steamboat](https://dp.la/primary-source-sets/exodusters-african-american-migration-to-the-great-plains/sources/1667), and [Benjamin Singleton’s testimony](https://dp.la/primary-source-sets/exodusters-african-american-migration-to-the-great-plains/sources/1673), evaluate how Singleton’s work to organize migration to Kansas provided a model and inspiration for the Exodus. Highlight evidence in the sources about the St. Louis aid efforts and the illustrations of Exodusters en route that supports the idea that the Exodus was more organic than any one promoter could claim responsibility for.
6. Compare the depictions of “old” and “new” styles of Exodus in the [illustration from *Harper’s Weekly*](https://dp.la/primary-source-sets/exodusters-african-american-migration-to-the-great-plains/sources/1668). How do they represent different travel experiences? What challenges or obstacles are evident in the depiction of the “new” style of Exodus?
7. Based on the [excerpt from the Kansas Freedmen’s Relief Association report](https://dp.la/primary-source-sets/exodusters-african-american-migration-to-the-great-plains/sources/1669), what specific kinds of support did this organization provide to the Exodusters?
8. What does the [photograph of the church building in Nicodemus](https://dp.la/primary-source-sets/exodusters-african-american-migration-to-the-great-plains/sources/1671) suggest about the early years of the town’s history? Using the [map of Graham County](https://dp.la/primary-source-sets/exodusters-african-american-migration-to-the-great-plains/sources/1672), what can you infer about what life may have been like in the region surrounding Nicodemus? Using the [map of Exoduster towns](https://dp.la/primary-source-sets/exodusters-african-american-migration-to-the-great-plains/sources/1664), explore where some of the nearest African American communities were for the residents of Nicodemus.
9. Using the [map of Exoduster towns](https://dp.la/primary-source-sets/exodusters-african-american-migration-to-the-great-plains/sources/1664), examine the locations of black communities in Kansas and Oklahoma. Considering factors like climate, neighboring populations, and topography, what experiences and challenges do you think may have been common across these communities? In what ways might life in Kansas and Oklahoma towns have been different? Do outside research to explore what African American life was like in Oklahoma and other places on the Great Plains beyond Kansas during the late nineteenth century.

Activity

Ask students to create a fictional character who participated in the Exoduster Movement in the spring of 1879. Have students plot their character’s journey on a map and annotate key places or moments on the trip. Students should consider factors such as where their characters originally lived, why they decided to leave the South, their travel route and experiences, and their decision about where to settle. Students should use the images and documents about the travel experience in this set to incorporate details into their annotations. Students may also use the [map of Exoduster towns](https://dp.la/primary-source-sets/exodusters-african-american-migration-to-the-great-plains/sources/1664) to select a place that their character would settle. Students should also consider what initial steps their character might take upon arriving in that town to establish a home and begin to support a family there.

Teaching Guide: Exploring the Exoduster Movement

Resources

1. [To Kansas](http://www.inmotionaame.org/migrations/topic.cfm?migration=6&topic=4), *In Motion: The African American Migration Experience*, The New York Public Library. 
2. “[Seeking the Promised Land: African American Migrations to Kansas](http://www.civilwaronthewesternborder.org/essay/seeking-promised-land-african-american-migrations-kansas#),” *Civil War on the Western Border*, Kansas City Public Library.  
3. “[Exodus to Kansas](https://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/2008/summer/exodus.html),” *Prologue Magazine*, Summer 2008. 
4. [Western Migration and Homesteading](https://www.loc.gov/exhibits/african/afam009.html), *The African-American Mosaic*, Library of Congress.  

Overview

When Reconstruction ended in 1877, southern whites used violence, economic exploitation, discriminatory laws called Black Codes, and political disenfranchisement to subjugate African Americans and undo their gains during Reconstruction. Kansas and other destinations on the Great Plains represented a chance to start a new life. Kansas had fought to be a free state and, with the [Homestead Act of 1862](https://dp.la/primary-source-sets/sets/the-homestead-acts), the region offered lots of land at low cost. As a result, between the late 1870s and early 1880s, more than 20,000 African Americans left the South for Kansas, the Oklahoma Territory, and elsewhere on the Great Plains in a migration known as the “Great Exodus.” 

These African American migrants, or Exodusters, came primarily from Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas, and Tennessee. Some participated in organized recruitment efforts to establish black colonies in Kansas. Others just picked up and left, often traveling by steamboat to St. Louis, where they received help to get the rest of the way. One prominent promoter of the Exodus was Benjamin “Pap” Singleton, who organized several colonies in Kansas and recruited African Americans from Tennessee to move there. The peak of the Exodus occurred in the spring of 1879 when 6,000 migrants arrived in Kansas in only a few months. 

For many Exodusters, the “promised land” of Kansas proved more punishing than they had hoped; the land was difficult to cultivate, and building homes and businesses with few resources proved challenging. The Exodus slowed in the 1880s and, by 1900, the population of many of the rural Exoduster towns and settlements began to decline. 

The Exodus demonstrated that formerly enslaved people were claiming their freedom of movement—the power to decide where they would travel and live that slavery had denied them. In doing so, they sought better lives for themselves and rejected the violent white supremacist regime that was taking hold in the post-Reconstruction South. The predominantly black communities the Exodusters created provided important models of black self-government and community building in the West at the end of the nineteenth century.

English

Exodusters: African American Migration to the Great Plains

exodusters_12_3e4f991e93db4673247a0c4d4bea2115.jpg

Courtesy of National Archives and Records Administration.

“Wetlands and Wildlife Scenic Byway - Exoduster Children, Elsie and Lela Scott,” Digital Public Library of America, https://dp.la/item/3e4f991e93db4673247a0c4d4bea2115. 

A 1910 photograph of Elsie and Lela Scott, children of Exodusters John and Julia Scott, who settled in Stafford County, Kansas.

Cite this item

Tips for Students

Item 12 of 15 in the Primary Source Set Exodusters: African American Migration to the Great Plains