Spottswood Rice facts for kids

Spottswood Rice (born November 1819 – died October 31, 1907) was an important minister in the African Methodist Episcopal (AME) church. He also served as a soldier in the Union Army during the US Civil War. Spottswood Rice is best known for two powerful letters he wrote. These letters were sent to the person who enslaved his wife and children. He wrote them while he was a soldier in St. Louis and his family was still enslaved in Missouri. The letters showed how much he wanted to be with his family again. They also showed his anger at the people who owned his wife. After the war, he became a minister. He led churches in Missouri, New Mexico, and Colorado. In 1882, he started the first AME church in New Mexico.

Spottswood Rice's Early Life

Spottswood Rice was born enslaved in Madison County, Virginia, in November 1819. When he was very young, his owner moved him and his parents to Howard County, Missouri.

In Missouri, Spottswood Rice married a woman named Arry Ferguson. Because they were enslaved, the exact date of their marriage was not officially recorded. It might have been in 1852 or July 1844. Arry was born in Fauquier County, Virginia. They had seven or eight children together. At least five of their children lived to be adults. One of their sons died during the Civil War. Another son passed away in St. Louis in 1919. A third son died in Colorado Springs, Colorado in October 1925. One of their daughters, Mary, was born in Missouri on May 1, 1852. She got married in 1882. Mary later shared her story about being enslaved. This story was recorded for a special project called the Works Progress Administration Writer's Program.

Life as an Enslaved Person

Before they were freed, Spottswood Rice's wife and all his children were owned by a woman named Kitty Diggs. Spottswood Rice himself was owned by Benjamin Lewis. Lewis was a tobacco plantation owner. Spottswood Rice was the main enslaved person on the plantation. He was in charge of preparing and rolling the tobacco. Benjamin Lewis's son taught Spottswood Rice how to read. This made the elder Lewis unhappy. Spottswood was only allowed to visit Arry and his family two days a week, on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

One time, he tried to escape. He hid in the woods and under houses. But after three days, he gave up. He turned himself in to a slave trader he knew. The trader promised to buy him from Lewis. However, Lewis would not sell Spottswood Rice. So, he had to stay on the plantation.

The Emancipation Proclamation was announced on January 1, 1863. This important document declared that many enslaved people were free. Spottswood Rice read about it in the newspapers to the other enslaved people on the Lewis plantation. Lewis really valued Spottswood Rice. He even tried to convince Spottswood to stay and manage the farm. He also tried to get the other enslaved people to stay. Spottswood stayed for six months. Then, he left the plantation with eleven other enslaved people. They joined the Union Army in Kansas City. When patrols looking for Lewis's enslaved people came near the Union camps, they were turned away. This was because these people were no longer enslaved; they were now Union soldiers.

Serving in the Civil War

Benton Barracks Parade March.

Spottswood Rice joined the army on February 9, 1864. He enlisted near Glasgow, Missouri. He became a private in Company A of the 67th United States Colored Infantry Regiment.

During his time in the army, Spottswood Rice was in the hospital. He was at Benton Barracks near St. Louis, Missouri. He was treated for a long-term illness called rheumatism. While he was there in September 1864, Spottswood Rice wrote two letters. One letter was to his daughters, who were still enslaved in Howard County. The other letter was to Kitty Diggs, their owner.

He wrote with strong feelings about wanting to free his daughters. He said, "be assured that I will have you if it cost me my life." He challenged Kitty Diggs's wish to keep the girls. He said, "She is the first Christian that I ever heard say that a man could steal his own children, especially out of human bondage." He truly believed that 800 white and 800 black Union soldiers would come to the plantation and rescue his family. Kitty's brother, F. W. Diggs, wrote to General Rosecrans. Rosecrans was the commander of the Department of the Missouri. Diggs argued that Kitty's loyalty to the Union should mean the children would stay her enslaved property.

Spottswood Rice was a very religious man. His obituary, which is a notice of his death, says he was a chaplain in the Army. It is not clear if this was an official job title. Spottswood Rice left the army in May 1865. He continued to live in St. Louis. Right after the war, he worked as a nurse at Benton Barracks. His wife worked there as a laundress. His children went to their first schools at Benton Barracks. Later, they attended new schools created for Black children in the city.

Becoming a Minister

Spottswood Rice joined the African Methodist Church in St. Louis. He became a licensed local preacher. He was officially made a deacon in 1870 or 1874. In 1871, he was in charge of the mission in Savannah, Missouri. He became an Elder in 1876. At that time, he was the pastor of the Washington, Missouri Circuit. In 1879, he moved to Canton, Missouri. In 1881, he was the pastor of St. Peter's Chapel in St. Louis. In 1882, he moved to the State Line Church in Kansas City, Missouri. This church was part of the Kansas Congress. In October 1882, he was appointed to be the pastor of the church at Parsons, Kansas.

Later in the 1880s, Spottswood Rice started the first AME mission in New Mexico. This mission became known as Grant Chapel AME. On March 19, 1888, his wife Arry passed away. Spottswood Rice later married again. By 1901, he had moved to Colorado Springs, Colorado. There, he started another church. Spottswood Rice died on October 31, 1907.

Images for kids

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  Benton Barracks Parade March.