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Benjamin "Pap" Singleton was born a slave in Nashville, Tennessee, in 1809. Singleton escaped to Canada to gain his freedom, returning to Tennessee after the end of the Civil War. Seeking a better life for himself and for his fellow emancipated African Americans, he began his efforts to buy land in Tennessee for blacks to farm. His plan failed due to unfair prices set by white landowners. Singleton then looked to Kansas as a potential site for black emigration, organizing the Tennessee Real Estate and Homestead Association with his business partner, Columbus Johnson. This company founded the Dunlap Colony in Morris County and a short-lived settlement in Cherokee County. Although his company did not create many successful colonies, through his advertisements he did help thousands of Exodusters relocate to Kansas, leading to his name as "Father of the Exodus." Singleton also organized a political group called the United Colored Links and later in life he promoted black colonization.
Date: 1880
This image can be incorporated into discussions of emigrant organizations that led Exodusters to Kansas. Also, it demonstrates how former slaves often took the lead in encouraging emigration. This source could be grouped with other images of Singleton, his poster titled "Ho for Kansas!" and sources related to the Dunlap Colony.
KS:7th:3.5:Exodusters (2005)
Item Number: 333
Call Number: B Singleton, Benjamin *2
KSHS Identifier: DaRT ID: 333
Collections - Photograph
Community Life - Town development - Town companies - Tennessee Real Estate and Homestead Association
Curriculum - 7th Grade Standards - Kansas History Standards - 1860s to 1870s (Benchmark 3) - Exodusters (Indicator 5) - Benjamin "Pap" Singleton
Curriculum - 7th Grade Standards - Kansas History Standards - 1860s to 1870s (Benchmark 3) - Exodusters (Indicator 5) - Emigrant aid organizations
Curriculum - 7th Grade Standards - Kansas History Standards - 1860s to 1870s (Benchmark 3) - Exodusters (Indicator 5) - Exoduster settlements
Curriculum - The Kansas Journey - Chapter 6: Welcome to Kansas: "Her Light Shall Shine"
Date - 1880s - 1880
Objects and Artifacts - Communication Artifacts - Documentary Artifact - Photograph - Carte-de-visite
People - African Americans - Exodusters
People - Notable Kansans - Singleton, Benjamin, 1809-1900
Places - Other States - Tennessee
Thematic Time Period - Immigration and Settlement, 1854 - 1890
Type of Material - Photographs - Format - Carte-de-visite
http://www.kansasmemory.org/item/333