The Provincial Freeman & Mary Ann Shadd Cary’s Indelible Footprint

The Black Press

Source : Toronto Public Library Digital Archive


Provincial Freeman masthead

Beginning in 1854 when the paper was printed in Toronto, it was published weekly. The Provincial Freeman espoused the importance of Black self-reliance and integration into Canadian society.

Source: Provincial Freeman


April 3, 1854

Notices on the availability of the Provincial Freeman.

Source: Provincial Freeman, April 3, 1854 



 


July 6, 1855

Notices on the availability of the Provincial Freeman.

Source: Provincial Freeman, July 6, 1855

 


Mary Ann Shadd Cary Plaque

Shadd Cary was honoured with a plaque by Heritage Toronto in 2011. 

Source: Natasha Henry-Dixon (2023)


The Black Press

In 1854, Mary Ann Shadd Cary moved the printing of the Provincial from Windsor to Toronto to this location at present-day 143 King Street East among numerous shops and stores. 

A printshop was also located at this address in 1851, with a James Stephens listed as the printer. Stephens printed the only slave narrative published in Canada, The Narrative of Thomas Smallwood. This was likely where the Provincial Freeman was printed.

The Provincial Freeman newspapers

The Provincial Freeman was one of the first newspapers published by and for Black people. Mary Ann Shadd Cary was the first Black woman and first woman of any racial background in North America to edit and publish a newspaper. During that era women were not permitted to own and operate businesses. Because of that, Mary Ann Shadd Cary enlisted the help of Black abolitionist Samuel Ringgold Ward, asking him to appear to be the founder of the newspaper, to which he consented. 

The paper’s motto was 'Self Reliance is the Road to Independence.' The Provincial Freeman was “devoted to anti-slavery, temperance and literature.' It advocated for the abolition of slavery in the US and promoted emigration to Canada for freedom seekers and free and freed Black People. Mary Ann Shadd Cary wrote “A Plea for Emigration' or 'Notes for Canada West” in 1852 to encourage Black people to relocate to Canada West. This provided details on the province’s society.  The Provincial Freeman newspaper carried local, national and international news, reporting on issues of importance to the Black community.  

A range of topics

The paper covered a range of topics. It announced the arrival of freedom seekers and featured stories on the state of slavery in the United States, it included escape attempts, and challenges against the institutions in the courts. The Provincial Freeman discussed temperance, education, land ownership, and mutual aid societies. Readers were encouraged to insist on fair treatment, and to take legal action against racial discrimination. 

The paper also championed women’s rights and provided a forum for Black women, showcasing their accomplishments and community work. The paper also ran advertisements for Black businesses in the province.

Initially, Shadd hid her gender, usually signing off as M.A. Shadd., Publishing Agent, because of the prevailing gender norms that perpetuated that women should not engage in public activities. In August 1854, in response to a letter to the editor addressed to Mr. M. A. Shadd, Mary Ann Shadd Cary responded, and signed her full name. 

Support

After revealing that she was the editor, while receiving some support and encouragement, Shadd Cary and the paper faced a wave of sexist backlash. Mary Ann Shadd Cary hired some Black male community leaders and fellow comrades such as William Newman and Hezekiah Ford Douglas, who were involved as editors or contributors to the paper to help preserve the paper while she continued to work behind the scenes. 

Mary Ann Shadd Cary continued to do some public speaking, which was uncommon for women at that time. She toured to sell the newspaper and encouraged people to purchase subscriptions, and she also discussed women’s rights. Mary Ann Shadd Cary navigated and pushed back against the restrictive gender norms imposed on women of the time.


End


Mary Ann Shadd Cary

This is the only known photo of Mary Ann Shadd Cary. The date and place it was taken is unknown.

Source: Library and Archives Canada

Text Version of the audio - Conclusion

Mary Ann Shadd Cary moved to Chatham in the summer of 1855. The Provincial Freeman was then published in Chatham from 1855 to 1857. She got married to Thomas Cary in January of 1856. In Chatham, Shadd Cary returned to teaching and started a family. The Carys had two children, a daughter named Sarah and a son named Linton. Thomas passed away in 1860. 

Mary Ann Shadd Cary returned to the United States in 1863 to support the cause of the Union Army by helping to recruit Black soldiers. She went on to study law at Howard University and became very active in the women’s suffrage movement.  

This brief tour that traces the steps of Mary Ann Shadd Cary and Black Torontonians in the mid-19th century is illustrative of the ways that Black history blankets the city’s landscape, though obscured, by the vast urbanization of Canada’s largest city and its erasure of a longstanding Black Canadian presence that stretches over 220 years in what is now the city of Toronto. This extends outward from the city's core to the modern-day city limits. 

The Underground Railroad era saw the first large wave of African-descended migrants into Toronto in pursuit of their freedom. Hundreds of freedom seekers chose the city as their permanent or temporary homes, contributing to the development and growth of Toronto, and to the fabric of a diverse, thriving Black community and city.

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Tracing Mary Ann Shadd Cary's Footsteps in Mid-19th C. Black Toronto

Tracing Mary Ann Shadd Cary's Footsteps in Mid-19th C. Black Toronto image circuit

Présenté par : Dr. Natasha Henry-Dixon, York University
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