Original Research Essay #2
Petition for a Government Pension by Harriet Tubman (1898)
Document Type:
Legal Document
Document Type:
Primary source
Petition for a Government Pension by Harriet Tubman (1898)
Commentary
In the decades following the Civil War, white Southern Democrats steadily undid the reforms of Reconstruction, effectively disenfranchising African Americans and setting the stage for the official era of segregation that began with Plessy v. Ferguson (1896). During this time, a common but often futile method of addressing grievances available to freed blacks was the petition, and many such documents are still available. Even the American hero Harriet Tubman had to resort to such legal recourse later in her life. Tubman, an agent of the Underground Railroad and civil rights activist, lived in poverty following emancipation and sought a pension from the U.S. government for her services during the war. With the help of attorney Charles P. Wood, Tubman began the petition process in the late 1860s, but it would take nearly thirty years for the government to finally grant her a meager twenty-five dollars per month. The affidavit below is part of the final documentation on this matter.
I am about 75 years of age. I was born and reared in Dorchester County, Md. My maiden name was Araminta Ross. Sometime prior to the late War of the Rebellion I married John Tubman who died in the State of Maryland on the 30th day of September, 1867. I married Nelson Davis, a soldier of the late war, on the 18th day of March, 1869, in Auburn, N.Y.
I was furnished the original papers in my claim to one Charles P. Wood, then of Auburn, N.Y., who died several years ago. Said Wood made copies of said original papers which are herewith annexed. I was informed by said Wood that he sent said original papers to one James Barrett, an attorney . . . Washington, D.C., and I was told by the wife of said Barrett that she handed the original papers to the Hon. C.D. MacDougall, then a member of the House of Representatives.
My claim against the U.S. is for three years’ service as nurse and cook in hospitals, and as commander of several men (eight or nine) as scouts during the late War of Rebellion, under directions and orders of Edwin M. Stanton, Secretary of War, and of several generals.
I claim for my services above named the sum of eighteen hundred dollars. The annexed copies have recently been read over to me and are true to the best of my knowledge, information, and belief.
Earl Conrad, “The Charles P. Wood Manuscripts of Harriet Tubman,” in The Negro History Bulletin, Jan. 1950, pp. 94–95.
Citation forPetition for a Government Pension by Harriet Tubman (1898)
Citation styles are based on the Chicago Manual of Style, 15th Ed., and the MLA Style Manual, 2nd Ed..
MLA
"Petition for a Government Pension by Harriet Tubman (1898)." Oxford African American Studies Center. Tue Apr 18 20:59:17 EDT 2017. <http://www.oxfordaasc.com/article/ps/ps-aasc-0584>.
Chicago
"Petition for a Government Pension by Harriet Tubman (1898)." Oxford African American Studies Center, http://www.oxfordaasc.com/article/ps/ps-aasc-0584 (accessed Tue Apr 18 20:59:17 EDT 2017).
