John Kizell facts for kids

John Kizell was an amazing leader who helped shape the early history of Sierra Leone in West Africa. He was born on Sherbro Island but was captured as a child and forced into slavery. He was taken to Charleston, South Carolina, where he was sold.

Years later, during the American Revolutionary War, John Kizell found freedom by joining the British. After the war, he was moved to Nova Scotia in Canada. But he eventually returned to West Africa. In 1792, he was one of about 50 people born in Africa among 1,200 Black Loyalists who settled in Freetown. Most of these Black Loyalists were African Americans who had also gained freedom.

John Kizell was a Baptist, a type of Christian. He was part of a church led by David George (Baptist). After arriving in Freetown, Kizell soon went back to his home, Sherbro Island. This island was very close to the mainland of Sierra Leone.

Because he had lived in South Carolina, Kizell learned to speak English. This skill made him very important. He became a go-between, helping the British government talk with the Sherbro people who lived on the island and nearby mainland.

From about 1818 to 1820, Kizell also worked with a group called the American Colonization Society. This group wanted to help free Black people from the United States move to Africa. He helped them and new African-American settlers create a new home that would later become the country of Liberia.

John Kizell's Early Life

Historians used to think John Kizell was from the Sherbro people. They believed he was born on what is now called Sherbro Island, in the Bonthe District of Sierra Leone. Some new ideas suggest he might have been from the Bom or Krim people. These groups also lived on the islands and near the coast of Sierra Leone.

When he was a child, Kizell was captured and sold into slavery. This happened when he was visiting his uncle, who was a chief nearby.

Life in Slavery

John Kizell survived the terrible journey across the ocean, known as the Middle Passage. After his ship arrived in Charleston, South Carolina, he was sold again. Charleston was a big slave market. The city was a center for growing rice and cotton, which needed many enslaved people to work the fields.

In 1779, during the American Revolutionary War, John heard about a special offer. British General Henry Clinton promised freedom to enslaved people who escaped from rebel owners and joined the British. John, who had taken the last name Kizell, escaped during the Siege of Charleston. He joined the British forces.

Returning to Africa

After the war, the British kept their promise of freedom. John Kizell was one of nearly 3,000 Black Loyalists who were moved to Nova Scotia, Canada. White Loyalists were also sent there. The British government had promised them land in this new colony.

However, getting the land was slow, and the weather was harsh. The Black Loyalists also faced unfair treatment from former slave owners.

Soon, they were offered another choice. The British were starting a new colony in West Africa for freed enslaved people. This included some poor Black people from London and most of the former enslaved African Americans from the United States. The British offered the Black Loyalists a chance to build their own community there.

Along with 1,200 African-American Black Loyalists, Kizell joined the journey to Freetown on the coast of West Africa. A group called the Sierra Leone Company helped manage this new settlement. Kizell played a part in setting up Settler Town, Sierra Leone, which was the first area built as part of Freetown.

Kizell's Trading Post

John Kizell set up a trading post on his home island, Sherbro land. It was like a small branch of Freetown and was called Kizzelltown. He continued to help British officials talk with the people on Sherbro Island. This included Afro-Europeans, who were descendants of early British slave traders and Sherbro women. Kizell became a successful trader and a Baptist preacher. He even started a church on Sherbro Island.

Working with the ACS

In 1820, a group called the American Colonization Society (ACS) was formed. Their goal was to help free Black people from the United States move to a new American colony in West Africa.

In 1818, Kizell met with two ACS representatives, Samuel J. Mills and Ebenezer Burgess. They visited to look for good places for the new settlement. Kizell also met Paul Cuffe, a wealthy Black American shipbuilder who was also trying to help free Black people move to Africa. Kizell told him that the Sherbro lands would be a good place for African-American settlers.

In 1820, Kizell helped ACS officials Samuel Bacon and Samuel Crozer, along with African-American settlers like Daniel Coker. He helped them talk with local leaders on the island to get land for the new settlers.

Financial Challenges

John Kizell stayed connected with the African-American community in Settler Town, Sierra Leone. He owned many plots of land there. For reasons that are not fully clear, Kizell faced some financial difficulties. He had to give up his property until he could pay back what he owed to the Sierra Leone Company.