Civil Rights Timeline with Catto

Octavius Catto born to William T. Catto, an aspiring minister and free born millwright, and Sarah Isabella Cain, from the prominent mixed-race DeReef/Cain family, in Charleston, South Carolina. He was their third child. Sarah dies in 1845, a year after the birth of their fourth child.

The U.S. Supreme Court rules in the case of the slave ship Amistad that the Africans, who wrested control of ship, had been bound into slavery illegally and violated the 1808 ban on the slave trade. John Quincy Adams was the attorney for the Africans. The case became a symbol for abolishing slavery in America. Prominent blacks, including James Forten and Robert Purvis, provided financial support for the Africans’ defense. Purvis was instrumental in commissioning a portrait by Nathaniel Jocelyn of Joseph Cinque, which was broadly reproduced to raise money for the defense.  The original portrait hung in Purvis’ home. Because of the release of the Africans, Martin Van Buren lost his re-election campaign, and tensions over slavery increased between the North and the South.

On the morning of August 1, 1842 in Philadelphia, a parade on Lombard Street of over 1,000 members of the black Young Men’s Vigilant Association, commemorating the eighth anniversary of the end of slavery in the British West Indies, was attacked by an Irish Catholic mob. Over three days of attacks, a black church, an abolition hall, numerous homes and public buildings in the black community were looted, burned or mostly destroyed.

Irish potato famine begins with widespread failures of the potato crop and Irish immigration to America increases, producing increased competition with blacks for employment. The Irish form the largest ethnic group to come into Philadelphia. In the 1840s and 1850s, anti-Catholic sentiment grew against the Irish, and eventually led to nativist riots and the Lombard Street riot, where Irish targeted blacks. Blacks and Irish lived in adjacent communities.

William Catto’s family leaves Charleston, South Carolina for Baltimore, Maryland with the intent of William going to Liberia as a Presbyterian missionary and teacher in the coastal town of Nanna Kroo. When the South Carolina Presbytery uncovered writings where William wrote to a friend: “Keep the flame burning…”, his license is revoked and orders issued to arrest him and return him South. William packed his family and fled to Pennsylvania. O.V. Catto and his family arrived in Philadelphia, after a short stay in New Jersey. In Philadelphia, OV Catto attends the segregated Vaux Primary School and then enrolled in the Lombard Street Grammar School. His father becomes pastor of the First African Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia, which was founded by James Gloucester.

The Declaration of Sentiments, calling for equal rights for women and men, is signed by 100 men and women in Wesleyan Methodist Chapel, Seneca Falls, New York at the first Women’s Rights Convention led by Lucretia Mott and Elizabeth Cady Stanton. During this time, Mott was also actively involved in the work of the Female Anti-Slavery Society and the Vigilant Committee with Harriett Purvis.

Debate on the future of slavery in the territories escalates when Henry Clay introduces the Compromise of 1850 to the U.S. Congress. It culminates with the passage of the 1850 Fugitive Slave Law, limiting legal rights of escaped slaves and imposing penalties on anyone aiding a fugitive. Any person aiding a runaway slave, by providing food or shelter, was subject to six months’ imprisonment and a $1,000 fine. Abolitionists called this new federal law the “Bloodhound Law”, refering the to use of dogs to track down fugitives. The compromise briefly defused some tensions between slave and free states and abolished the slave trade in Washington, D.C.

William Still and others form the Vigilance Committee in Philadelphia to aid escaping blacks and protect free blacks from slave catchers. This becomes part of an expansive network of “Underground Railroad” activity. Philadelphia became an important hub, because it is the most southern major northern city.

Harvard accepts its first black students. Richard Greener becomes the first black of graduate from Harvard. He came to the Institute for Colored Youth as a teacher and assistant to O.V. Catto. Later in 1871 upon Catto’s assassination, he became head of its male division. Greener later became dean of Howard Law School.

Women’s Medical College of Pennsylvania opens in Philadelphia. It is the second medical institution in the world established to train women in medicine and offer them the M.D. degree. The school had strong abolition connections. In 1867, Rebecca Cole became the first black women to graduate from the school and receives a medical degree. She was the second in the nation to do so. Cole was an ICY graduate. The school’s first African American student was Sarah Mapps Douglass in 1852. Douglass did not graduate, but went on to teach at ICY.

Federal marshals and Maryland slave hunters seek out suspected fugitive slaves in Christiana (Lancaster County), PA, near Philadelphia. In their ensuing struggles with black and white abolitionists, one of the attackers is killed and another is seriously wounded. Thirty-six black men and five whites are charged with treason and conspiracy under the 1850 Fugitive Slave Law. Their trial, held at Independence Hall in Philadelphia, became a cause celebre among blacks and abolitionists. Thaddeus Stevens defended the accused. All defendants were found innocent by the jury.

With the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act in 1854, Congress authorized the citizens of the respective states to decide whether they would be free or slave holding. This essentially repealed the Compromise of 1850 and set off bloody battles in Kansas over slavery. Abolitionist John Brown and his sons participated in the “Bleeding Kansas” battles.

William Catto, William Still and others form the Banneker Institute for “improving mental faculties”. The Institute, named to honor Benjamin Banneker, was an elite literary association. It became an important forum for discussion and political activism among men in Philadelphia’s black community. OV Catto, like many of his friends, joined their father as a member, when they graduated from ICY.

William Still and white abolitionist Passmore Williamson rescue Jane Johnson and her children and help her take the Camden ferry out of Philadelphia to freedom. Williamson is incarcerated for several months for not bringing Johnson to court. The case becomes a national news story that continued from August to November. It was a national tipping point over slavery.

Wilberforce University is founded in Ohio and is the first college owned and operated by African Americans. It is named to honor the British Abolitionist, William Wilberforce. Wilberforce was well-known among African Americans and much admired. William Still gave his oldest son “Wilberforce” as his middle name. William Wilberforce was also a member of the Pennsylvania Abolition Society.

The Republican Party holds its first convention in Philadelphia at Musical Fund Hall, located at 808 Locust Street. The convention approved an anti-slavery platform. Abraham Lincoln was on the ballot for Vice President, but William L. Dayton received the nomination.

John Brown conducts a raid on the federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry to free and arm enslaved people. His effort fails and he is executed. Philadelphia blacks hold a vigil at Shiloh Baptist Church during his hanging, while black homes, business and some churches were draped in black. Southern medical students countered the actions of the black community by strutting through the city speaking about how many “niggers” they owned. Brown’s body traveled through Philadelphia under cover on its way back to New York, due to concerns about violence by pro-slavery factions in the city. Many of Catto’s personal connections had close ties with John Brown, among them Thomas Dorsey and Ebenezer Bassett, who was identified in a letter John Brown carried in a letter in his vest pocket at his hanging.

O.V. Catto is among the Banneker Society young men who began holding more of their discussions of issues of the day in “the public square”, including outside of Independence Hall, instead of in meeting halls. In Catto’s world, John Brown died in service of his country. Their speech reflected this belief.

Abraham Lincoln is elected president and Southern states secede from the Union. The Civil War begins when Confederates fire on Fort Sumter.

Fannie Jackson (Coppin) enters Oberlin College. This step positions her for her career at the Institute for Colored Youth.

The U.S. Secretary of the Navy authorizes the enlistment of contrabands (enslaved people) taken in Confederate territories. More than a half million enslaved and freedmen sought protection behind Union lines.

The U.S. Sanitary Commission (USSC) is formed to raise money and materiel to improve conditions for soldiers on the battlefield and to support hospitals caring for the wounded. Philadelphia established a branch of the USSC, which acted as a regional center and depot for distributing resources. In Pennsylvania, women formed their own subsidiary, which served as a conduit for receiving donations from hundreds of smaller, local aid societies. The largest and most successful of the Sanitary Commission fundraising activities was the Great Central Fair, held at Logan Square from June 7 to June 28, 1864. President Abraham Lincoln, accompanied by wife Mary and son Todd, visited the Great Central Fair on June 16, 1864. African Americans generally were excluded from participating in USSC activities. Black congregations and women’s groups channeled support to the U.S. Colored Troops and other Union soldiers. Among the young black women spearheading this effort was Caroline LeCount, who became OV Catto’s fiance. LeCount is best known for her efforts to desegregate streetcars in Philadelphia, which were especially needed by black women working to get supplies to USCT soldiers at Camp William Penn in Cheltenhelm (outside Philadelphia) in 1863.

Charlotte Forten, daughter of Robert Forten and Robert Purvis’ niece, heads to Port Royal, South Carolina as a teacher for the Philadelphia Port Royal Commission. The Atlantic Monthly publishes her essays on her experiences, Life on the Sea Islands, in 1864. Charlotte is the granddaughter of sailmaker, James Forten, who amassed one of the largest fortunes in Philadelphia of his times.

President Lincoln issues Emancipation Proclamation which frees nearly 4 million enslaved people in Confederate territories. The proclamation also issued orders to enlist black volunteers for three years, enabling the creation of the United States Colored Troops (USCT).

The 54th Massachusetts is organized. Free blacks throughout the North enlist in the 54th. The largest group are Pennsylvanians. Other training stations, like Camp William Penn, outside of Philadelphia are later established. Between 178,000 and 200,00 black men enlisted and white officers served under the Bureau of Colored Troops.

The USCT recruitment offices open at 1210 Chestnut Street. The site is originally the headquarters and recruiting station of The Supervisory Committee for the Enlistment of Colored Troops and later for The Free Military School for Applicants for the Command of Colored Troops, seeking white officers. The temporary Union League clubhouse is three doors at 1216 Chestnut Street. The Union League worked in concert with black leaders such as Frederick Douglass, Robert Purvis, William and O.V. Catto, Jacob White, John Pierre Burr, and William Still to recruit black soldiers.

Catto presents the USCT 24th Regiment with its regimental flag, designed by artist David Bustill Bowser, at a ceremony at the PA State House (Independence Hall). The motto inscribed on the flag, “Let Soldiers in War Be Citizens in Peaceʺ, reflects African American aspirations for citizenship rights and equality.

Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrenders to General Ulysses S. Grant, ending the Civil War.

On April 8th, the Thirteenth Amendment passes the U.S. Senate, ending slavery. It is ratified by the states on December 6th.

Abraham Lincoln is assassinated on April 14th. His body laid in state at Independence Hall, where throngs of citizens, black and white, paid homage to him. Catto was among the leaders who paraded at Independence Hall to mourn Lincoln. Lincoln’s funeral in Philadelphia is the largest public funeral held in the city.

Catto pioneers the racial shift in baseball by forming the Pythian Baseball club, an amateur team made up of black business and middle-class professional men from the Washington, Philadelphia, New Jersey, and New York regions. The effort was supported by the Knights of Pythias fraternal organization and its Philadelphia founding member William Still. (The fraternal order was the first to be authorized by Congress and the charter was granted by Abraham Lincoln.) The team dissolved at Catto’s death in 1871. A new Pythians team with professional players was organized in 1887 as part of the National Colored Baseball League.

The Freedmen’s Bank is chartered by the federal government as a private corporation. By 1866, the bank had established 19 branches in 12 states. The Philadelphia office, operated by William Whipper, became one of the most successful operations. It attracted a large number of societies, churches, charities, other private organizations and individuals, who opened accounts and established trusts with the company. O.V. Catto is listed as the 6th person to open an account at the Philadelphia office. The bank served as both an important symbol of black self-determination and a means for the black community to build economic wealth through savings, particularly in the South following the economic devastation of the Civil War and the poor economic condition of the formerly enslaved.

After the Civil War, Catto joins the Pennsylvania National Guard’s 5th Brigade at the invitation of the Brigade Commander, General Louis Wagner. Catto was promoted to Brigade Inspector General with the rank of Major, making him the highest ranking African-American in the military services at that time. His role was to inspect the troops, while riding on horseback. It is said that Catto was a very capable horseman.

Morton McMichael is elected the first Republican mayor of Philadelphia and supports efforts to enlarge civil rights and liberties for blacks. McMichael was a founding member of the Union League and its fourth president.

Mississippi becomes the first of the former Confederate states to enact Black Codes, severely limiting the rights and liberties of blacks. It is the first immediate resistance reaction by southern whites. Other southern states soon follow.

The Ku Klux Klan is formed by ex-Confederates in Pulaski, Tennessee.

W.E.B. DuBois is born. After completion of his doctorate at Harvard in 1896, he came to Philadelphia and did the landmark study, The Philadelphia Negro, where he paid homage to O.V. Catto. He also exposed the deep poverty within the black community. DuBois’ Pan African philosophy was inspired by Alexander Crummell, whom DuBois paid tribute to in Chapter 12 of Souls of Black Folks. Among DuBois’ significant work was serving as editor of The Crisis magazine by the NAACP.

Through the Equal Rights League, Catto works on Pennsylvania’s ratification of the 15th Amendment, which prohibits discrimination against male citizens in registration and voting based on race, color or prior condition.

Louisiana sends the first black legislators to Congress.

Ebenezer Bassett steps down as ICY principal, receiving an appointment from President Grant to be minister of Haiti. The minister position was the highest-ranking position at that time held by a black man in the federal government.

Fifteenth Amendment is ratified, granting voting rights to males of all races.

Catto’s funeral is the largest public funeral in Philadelphia since Lincoln’s and his death is mourned in many black communities throughout the country. He was seen as the “most magnetic and promising leader that the Philadelphia black community had yet produced.” He was laid to rest at Lebanon Graveyard, a black cemetery run by the family of childhood friend and Pythian teammate, Jacob White, Jr. When Lebanon was condemned and closed in the early 20th Century, Catto was remains were moved to Eden Cemetery, a historic African American cemetery, now listed on the National Register of Historic Places. In 2008, Catto’s headstone was vandalized along with 200 others. A new headstone, “Remembering a Forgotten Hero”, was put in place in 2010. Catto was well known in many places in the United States, in large part because of his extensive network of civil rights activists. Stories of Catto’s assassination appeared in papers throughout the United States, including in the New York Times. Rev Henry Highland Garnett eulogized Catto at Shiloh Presbyterian Church in NYC. John Mercer Langston convened the law faculty at Howard University and said: “Yet we cannot but express the hope that out of the life-blood of O.V. Catto (another of our martyrs) a holier and better civilization may spring, that hate no man on account of his creed and color.” Catto was honored with the naming of the Catto Secondary School in Philadelphia in 1895. Caroline LeCount, his fiancé, was named principal, the first black person in the city to hold such a position. Later the Catto Disciplinary School opened, when the Secondary School closed. This school was renamed to honor Paul Robeson. Today, the OV Catto Community School (K-8) in Camden, New Jersey stands as a memorial to Catto. (After Catto’s death his family regrouped in New Jersey, maintaining his earlier connections in that state.) In October 1871, a ‘Catto Medal’ was authorized for deserving soldiers of the Pennsylvania National Guard by order of General Louis Wagner, commander of the 5th Brigade, PANG as an honor and commemoration for Major Octavius V. Catto, Inspector General, 5th Brigade. The medal was not awarded again until 2012. The original medal cast was lost over the years and a new Catto medal cast was created, when the award was reinstated. Benjamin Tanner and others sought to have a memorial created to honor Catto’s honor, but with no success. In 1903, the Elk Lodge had its name change to be the O.V. Catto Lodge. The Lodge’s original banner is in the collections of the Philadelphia History Museum. St. Thomas African Episcopal Church continually recognizes Catto as its honored churchmen and maintains archives and artifacts related to Catto. Among these is a ceremonial bat of the Pythians. In 2004, the Hon. James Kenney, then City Councilman, served as a catalyst for forming the O.V. Catto Memorial Fund to have a public monument honoring Catto placed on the apron of City Hall. One hundred and forty-six years after Catto’s death in September 2017, the City of Philadelphia with support from the Catto Memorial Fund dedicated a public monument to him on the apron of City Hall. Designed by sculptor Branly Cadet, the memorial is the first on public land in Philadelphia to honor an African American.