Amaryllis Collymore facts for kids

Amaryllis Collymore (1745–1828) was an Afro-Barbadian woman who was born into slavery. She gained her freedom and became a very successful businesswoman. She managed a large plantation and bought many other properties. By the time she died, she was the wealthiest free Black woman in Barbados.

Life Story of Amaryllis Collymore

Amaryllis Renn Phillips was born in 1745 in Barbados. At that time, Barbados was under British rule. She was born into slavery.

In 1780, Robert Collymore bought Amaryllis and her five children. Four of these children were also Robert's children. In 1784, Robert helped Amaryllis and her children become free. He did this by selling them to a friend, James Scuffield. This was a common way to help enslaved people gain freedom in Barbados without paying high fees.

Robert Collymore bought a sugar plantation called Lightfoots. It was 42 acres and had 44 enslaved people working on it. He bought it to provide for Amaryllis and their children. Amaryllis Collymore took over running the estate. She was very good at it.

She expanded the plantation to over 100 acres. She also bought seven other properties in Bridgetown. These properties were on Canary Street, High Street, and James Street. She rented them out to earn more money. Amaryllis also ran a successful shop. By 1805, she owned another property on Roebuck Street, which she sold for £800.

In 1809, Amaryllis and her daughter, Katherine Anne Collymore, received money from Renn Phillips' will. This helped her wealth grow even more.

When Robert Collymore died in 1824, he left Lightfoots plantation to Amaryllis and their eleven children. He also left them the enslaved people working there. Her children included Katherine Anne, Frances Lasley, Margaret Jane, Robert, Thomazin Ashby, Elizabeth Clarke, Samuel Francis Collymore, Jackson Brown Collymore, and Renn Phillips Collymore. Renn Phillips Collymore would later become the great-great-grandfather of a famous writer, Frank Collymore.

Amaryllis Collymore's will was written in 1826. It showed that her estate was worth over £10,000. She left a home in Bridgetown and a plantation called Haggat Hall to her relatives. She also left 67 enslaved people, silver, and other personal items. When she died, she was known as "the richest free woman of color in pre-emancipation Barbados."

Death and Lasting Impact

Amaryllis Collymore died on December 16, 1828. She was buried in the St. Mary's Churchyard in Bridgetown.

The house where Amaryllis and her children lived is still standing today. It is now called the Morningside Building. It is part of the Barbados Community College and houses its Arts Department. Her story shows how a person born into slavery could achieve great success and wealth.

See also

Other former enslaved women who became slave-owners in Barbados:

• Rachael Pringle Polgreen
• Susannah Ostrehan
• Dorothy Thomas (entrepreneur)