Educational Roots and Rebellious Routes: Reflections on the Career Outcomes of Four Black Students in Nineteenth-Century New York City

Abstract

Despite its long-term reputation for being cosmopolitan and progressive, nineteenth-century New York City was a place of grave racial inequality. To combat poverty and racial discrimination, Black elites and white philanthropists invested in primary education for Black children. This thesis traces the elementary school experiences and subsequent career paths of four children in this environment. Collectively, these case studies demonstrate how personal choices, communal backing, and alignment with respectability politics impact the efficacy of basic education.

Each subject faced a unique systemic racial barrier to educational attainment or career growth, and they each confronted these obstacles differently. Ira Aldridge, an actor, and James McCune Smith, a physician, traveled to Europe as young adults to seek equitable work and education opportunities, respectively. Their achievements highlight the role of personal initiative in one’s career trajectory. Maritcha Remond Lyons, a leading educator, initially had to sue to attend high school and then earned a professional reference letter from the school. Her journey underscores the importance of community support in building one’s career. Finally, Austin Reed, who received his basic education at a juvenile reformatory, demonstrates a tension between the potential for success and ineffective methods of resisting authority. Using memoirs, letters, speeches, and newspaper articles, this thesis argues that basic education must co-exist with the effective use of individual agency, strong community support, and respectability to land its intended impact on Black New Yorkers in the nineteenth century.