Aspasia Cruvellier Mirault facts for kids

Aspasia Cruvellier Mirault (born 1800 – died 1857) was a clever American businesswoman. She managed to buy land in the city of Savannah, in the state of Georgia. This was a big achievement because, during the time before the American Civil War (known as the Antebellum period), non-white people were often not allowed to own land in places like Savannah. She became a successful entrepreneur and landowner.

Aspasia Cruvellier Mirault

Early Life and Family

Aspasia Cruvellier Mirault was born in a French colony called Saint Domingue. She was born a free person of color, meaning she was not enslaved. She was the daughter (or possibly younger sister) of Hagar Cruvellier. She also had siblings named Francis, Peter, and Justine.

When she was a child, Aspasia and her family moved to Savannah, Georgia. By 1812, they had settled there. Her family started a successful tailor shop in the city.

Becoming a Successful Businesswoman

Aspasia first worked as a seamstress in her family's tailor shop. In 1825, she decided to start her own business. She opened a bakery and pastry shop with her sister, Justine. She became a very successful businesswoman.

Aspasia married Samuel Mirault, and they had two daughters, Louisa and Letitia. She became a widow in either 1829 or 1831. By this time, she already owned her own pastry shop. Like many business owners of her time, she employed enslaved people in her business. Records from 1839 show she paid taxes for five enslaved women who worked for her.

Owning Land in Savannah

In 1842, Aspasia Cruvellier Mirault became a landowner. She bought a piece of land in Savannah that was being sold by the city. This was quite remarkable because, since 1818, a law in Savannah had made it illegal for non-white people to buy land.

However, wealthy African Americans in Savannah often found ways around this law. They would use a white person to buy the land for them. Aspasia used a man named George Cally to help her. George Cally bought the land in his own name, but he used Aspasia's money. They had a secret agreement that the land would truly belong to her, and it seems Cally kept his promise.

Aspasia had a house built on her new land. She used this property to make her business even bigger. It also gave her family, including her children and grandchildren, a larger place to live.