1 00:00:00,120 --> 00:00:01,960 Speaker 1: This Day in History Class is a production of I 2 00:00:02,080 --> 00:00:07,440 Speaker 1: Heart Radio. Hi, I'm Eves, and Welcome to This Day 3 00:00:07,440 --> 00:00:11,319 Speaker 1: in History Class, a show that on covers history one 4 00:00:11,400 --> 00:00:23,880 Speaker 1: day at a time. Today is August nineteen. The day 5 00:00:24,040 --> 00:00:29,600 Speaker 1: was August nineteen fourteen. Mary Ellen Pleasant was born, though 6 00:00:29,640 --> 00:00:33,800 Speaker 1: the exact year of her birth has been disputed, so 7 00:00:33,960 --> 00:00:37,559 Speaker 1: many of the details of her life are unconfirmed. Pleasant 8 00:00:37,640 --> 00:00:43,080 Speaker 1: is remembered as an entrepreneur, activist, and abolitionist. It's not 9 00:00:43,159 --> 00:00:46,680 Speaker 1: clear where Pleasant was born. She said she was born 10 00:00:46,680 --> 00:00:49,440 Speaker 1: in Philadelphia and that her mother was a free black 11 00:00:49,479 --> 00:00:53,199 Speaker 1: woman and her father was a Hawaiian man who imported silks, 12 00:00:54,320 --> 00:00:56,600 Speaker 1: but other sources have said that she was born in 13 00:00:56,680 --> 00:01:00,720 Speaker 1: Georgia or Virginia and that she was born slaved to 14 00:01:00,840 --> 00:01:04,840 Speaker 1: a black mother and a white plantation owner. When she 15 00:01:04,920 --> 00:01:08,919 Speaker 1: was young, she went to Nantucket, Massachusetts, where she lived 16 00:01:09,000 --> 00:01:13,240 Speaker 1: with the Hussies, a Quaker family. There she worked as 17 00:01:13,280 --> 00:01:17,880 Speaker 1: a bond servant in the family store. Pleasant married twice 18 00:01:17,920 --> 00:01:21,759 Speaker 1: in her life, first to a man named James Henry Smith, 19 00:01:21,840 --> 00:01:25,120 Speaker 1: who died in the eighteen forties and left her an inheritance, 20 00:01:25,600 --> 00:01:29,920 Speaker 1: and second to a black man named John Pleasant. While 21 00:01:30,000 --> 00:01:33,120 Speaker 1: she was with her first husband, she became involved in 22 00:01:33,120 --> 00:01:36,640 Speaker 1: the abolition movement. He had instructed her to put the 23 00:01:36,680 --> 00:01:40,479 Speaker 1: inheritance towards the movement, but she likely did not direct 24 00:01:40,520 --> 00:01:44,320 Speaker 1: all of the money towards the cause. After the California 25 00:01:44,360 --> 00:01:47,600 Speaker 1: gold rush began in eighteen forty eight and people moved 26 00:01:47,640 --> 00:01:52,120 Speaker 1: west seeking fortunes, abolitionists also migrated to the state in 27 00:01:52,200 --> 00:01:56,840 Speaker 1: pursuit of gold. Pleasant moved to San Francisco and started 28 00:01:56,880 --> 00:02:00,320 Speaker 1: working as a housekeeper and cook, but she was making 29 00:02:00,360 --> 00:02:04,160 Speaker 1: a lot of money from her investments. She was putting 30 00:02:04,160 --> 00:02:07,680 Speaker 1: her money into stock and money markets, and she lent 31 00:02:07,760 --> 00:02:12,720 Speaker 1: money to minors and business people with interest. Over the years, 32 00:02:12,720 --> 00:02:17,320 Speaker 1: she owned laundries, boarding houses, and restaurants. She had shares 33 00:02:17,360 --> 00:02:21,320 Speaker 1: in dairies and Will's Fargo Bank. She also put her 34 00:02:21,360 --> 00:02:25,240 Speaker 1: money to philanthropic use. She helped black people get homes 35 00:02:25,280 --> 00:02:28,680 Speaker 1: and jobs in San Francisco and helped free black people 36 00:02:28,760 --> 00:02:33,480 Speaker 1: who were illegally enslaved in California. Some sources have said 37 00:02:33,520 --> 00:02:36,800 Speaker 1: that she was involved in the underground railroad, and she 38 00:02:36,960 --> 00:02:40,160 Speaker 1: claimed that she gave money to help John Brown with 39 00:02:40,280 --> 00:02:44,360 Speaker 1: the raid on Harper's Ferry in Virginia. Pleasant was also 40 00:02:44,480 --> 00:02:48,640 Speaker 1: involved in civil rights advocacy. In the eighteen sixties, she 41 00:02:48,840 --> 00:02:52,360 Speaker 1: staged a sit in in San Francisco street cars, and 42 00:02:52,600 --> 00:02:55,720 Speaker 1: she participated in a court case that earned black people 43 00:02:55,800 --> 00:02:59,679 Speaker 1: the right to give their testimonies in California courts. But 44 00:03:00,000 --> 00:03:04,040 Speaker 1: Pleasant's life was not free from controversy. There were rumors 45 00:03:04,080 --> 00:03:07,480 Speaker 1: that her boarding houses were fronts that provided wealthy men 46 00:03:07,520 --> 00:03:12,720 Speaker 1: with mistresses, and she formed a relationship, possibly romantic, with 47 00:03:12,800 --> 00:03:17,000 Speaker 1: a wealthy white man named Thomas Bell. She moved into 48 00:03:17,080 --> 00:03:20,440 Speaker 1: a mansion with Bill and his wife Teresa, and became 49 00:03:20,480 --> 00:03:25,200 Speaker 1: the housekeeper. People gossiped that she was Thomas's lover and 50 00:03:25,240 --> 00:03:27,480 Speaker 1: that she was running scams to get money out of 51 00:03:27,480 --> 00:03:31,120 Speaker 1: the Bells. Her name was even on the deed to 52 00:03:31,200 --> 00:03:35,520 Speaker 1: the Bill homestead. When Thomas Bell died after falling from 53 00:03:35,520 --> 00:03:40,280 Speaker 1: a window, rumors spread that Pleasant killed him. Teresa Bell 54 00:03:40,440 --> 00:03:43,280 Speaker 1: claimed that Pleasant pushed him out of the window, and 55 00:03:43,480 --> 00:03:47,720 Speaker 1: the city turned against Pleasant. Court battles with the Bills 56 00:03:47,800 --> 00:03:52,600 Speaker 1: and others cost Pleasant money and her reputation. Though she 57 00:03:52,680 --> 00:03:55,760 Speaker 1: said that the Bell property belonged to her, as she 58 00:03:55,920 --> 00:03:59,520 Speaker 1: designed and built the mansion, She was forced to leave 59 00:03:59,600 --> 00:04:04,560 Speaker 1: the Bill estate when she was eight five. In she 60 00:04:04,720 --> 00:04:08,480 Speaker 1: declared bankruptcy though it was reported that she was still 61 00:04:08,560 --> 00:04:12,000 Speaker 1: worth between thirty five thousand and a hundred and fifty 62 00:04:12,000 --> 00:04:16,360 Speaker 1: thousand dollars. Pleasant was well known in San Francisco by 63 00:04:16,360 --> 00:04:19,640 Speaker 1: the time she died in nineteen o four. Despite the drama, 64 00:04:20,720 --> 00:04:25,280 Speaker 1: newspapers gave her the condescending nickname Mammy, a stereotypical name 65 00:04:25,320 --> 00:04:28,359 Speaker 1: for black women who took care of white children. She 66 00:04:28,480 --> 00:04:32,239 Speaker 1: stated that she did not like the name. Decades after 67 00:04:32,240 --> 00:04:35,799 Speaker 1: her death, the inscription she was a friend of John 68 00:04:35,800 --> 00:04:39,440 Speaker 1: Brown was added to her gravestone as she had requested, 69 00:04:40,000 --> 00:04:42,359 Speaker 1: and a park was established in her memory at the 70 00:04:42,400 --> 00:04:46,040 Speaker 1: site of the mansion where she lived. I'm Eve Chef 71 00:04:46,160 --> 00:04:48,920 Speaker 1: Coote and hopefully you know a little more about history 72 00:04:48,960 --> 00:04:52,680 Speaker 1: today than you did yesterday. You can learn more about 73 00:04:52,720 --> 00:04:57,880 Speaker 1: history by following us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram at 74 00:04:58,120 --> 00:05:03,360 Speaker 1: t D I h see podcast. Thank you so much 75 00:05:03,440 --> 00:05:06,279 Speaker 1: for listening, and I hope to see you again tomorrow 76 00:05:06,600 --> 00:05:15,479 Speaker 1: for more tidbits of history. For more podcasts from I 77 00:05:15,560 --> 00:05:18,359 Speaker 1: Heart Radio, visit the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or 78 00:05:18,360 --> 00:05:19,960 Speaker 1: wherever you listen to your favorite shows.