Joshua Leavitt
Encyclopedia
Rev. Joshua Leavitt was an American Congregationalist minister and former lawyer who became a prominent writer, editor and publisher of abolitionist
literature. He was also a spokesman for the Liberty Party
and a prominent campaigner for cheap postage. Leavitt served as editor of The Emancipator, The New York Independent, The New York Evangelist, and other periodicals. He was the first secretary of the American Temperance Society
and co-founder of the New York City Anti-Slavery Society.
Born in Heath, Massachusetts
, in the Berkshires
, Leavitt attended Yale College
, where he graduated at age twenty. He subsequently studied law and practiced for a time in Putney, Vermont
, before matriculating at the Yale Theological Seminary
for a three-year course of study. He was subsequently ordained as a Congregational clergyman at Stratford, Connecticut
. After four years in Stratford, Rev. Leavitt decamped for New York City, where he first became secretary of the American Seamens' Friend Society, and began his 44-year career as editor of Sailors' Magazine. Thus was Leavitt launched on his career as social reformer, temperance spokesman, editor, abolitionist and religious proselytizer.
Leavitt was heavily involved in a series of high-profile anti-slavery cases, including the escape of the slave Basil Dorsey from Maryland
into Massachusetts
(Leavitt aided Dorsey's passage northward, and members of the extended Leavitt family helped shelter Dorsey in Massachusetts), as well as the La Amistad
case, in which enslaved Africans on a Spanish ship rebelled and took control. Leavitt played a pivotal role in the Amistad events, when on September 4, 1839, he and Lewis Tappan
and Simeon Jocelyn formed the Amistad Committee to raise funds for the defense of the Amistad captives.
One of Leavitt's major accomplishments was helping to provide the intellectual underpinnings of the abolitionist argument through his writing and publishing. In 1841, for instance, Leavitt published his "Financial Power of Slavery", a compelling document which argued that the South was draining the national economy through its reliance on slavery.
Rev. Joshua Leavitt came from a long line of religious figures. His father was Col. Roger Leavitt, a wealthy landowner and Massachusetts legislator, and his mother Chloe (Maxwell) Leavitt. His grandfather was the well-known Congregational minister Rev. Jonathan Leavitt
, a 1758 graduate of Yale and pastor of Charlemont, Massachusetts
. The Leavitt family had ties to religious institutions since Joshua Leavitt's ancestor John Leavitt
served as founding deacon of Old Ship Church
in Hingham, Massachusetts
, and his ancestor Rev. Thomas Hooker
had left the Massachusetts Bay Colony
to found the state of Connecticut
.
Leavitt published The Christian Lyre in 1831, the "first American tunebook to take the form of a modern hymnal, with music for every hymn (melody and bass only) and the multistanza hymns printed in full, under or beside the music". It later became one of the standard tunebooks used in the 1930s New England Revivalism movement.
Rev. Joshua Leavitt's son William was a Congregational minister in Hudson, New York
. Aside from Rev. Joshua Leavitt, other members of the Leavitt family were prominent abolitionists. The National Park service lists two Leavitt family properties in upstate Massachusetts – the Hart and Mary Leavitt House
, as well as the Roger Hooker and Keziah Leavitt House
– on its National Underground Railroad historic sites tour. The entire extended family of Rev. Joshua Leavitt can be considered ardent – and active – abolitionist sympathizers.
Abolitionism
Abolitionism is a movement to end slavery.In western Europe and the Americas abolitionism was a movement to end the slave trade and set slaves free. At the behest of Dominican priest Bartolomé de las Casas who was shocked at the treatment of natives in the New World, Spain enacted the first...
literature. He was also a spokesman for the Liberty Party
Liberty Party (1840s)
The Liberty Party was a minor political party in the United States in the 1840s . The party was an early advocate of the abolitionist cause...
and a prominent campaigner for cheap postage. Leavitt served as editor of The Emancipator, The New York Independent, The New York Evangelist, and other periodicals. He was the first secretary of the American Temperance Society
American Temperance Society
The American Temperance Society , also known as the American Society for the Promotion of Temperance was a society established on February 13, 1826 in Boston, MA. Within five years there were 2,220 local chapters in the U.S. with 170,000 members who had taken a pledge to abstain from drinking...
and co-founder of the New York City Anti-Slavery Society.
Born in Heath, Massachusetts
Heath, Massachusetts
Heath is a town in Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 805 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area.- History :...
, in the Berkshires
The Berkshires
The Berkshires , is a highland geologic region located in the western parts of Massachusetts and Connecticut.Also referred to as the Berkshire Hills, Berkshire Mountains, and Berkshire Plateau, the region enjoys a vibrant tourism industry based on music, arts, and recreation.-Definition:The term...
, Leavitt attended Yale College
Yale College
Yale College was the official name of Yale University from 1718 to 1887. The name now refers to the undergraduate part of the university. Each undergraduate student is assigned to one of 12 residential colleges.-Residential colleges:...
, where he graduated at age twenty. He subsequently studied law and practiced for a time in Putney, Vermont
Putney, Vermont
Putney is a town in Windham County, Vermont, United States. The population was 2,634 at the 2000 census.On December 26, 1753 Col.Josiah Willard led a proprietors' petition for a Putney charter which was issued by Governor Benning Wentworth of the New Hampshire Grants under King George II of England...
, before matriculating at the Yale Theological Seminary
Yale Divinity School
Yale Divinity School is a professional school at Yale University, in New Haven, Connecticut, U.S. preparing students for ordained or lay ministry, or for the academy...
for a three-year course of study. He was subsequently ordained as a Congregational clergyman at Stratford, Connecticut
Stratford, Connecticut
Stratford is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States, located on Long Island Sound at the mouth of the Housatonic River. It was founded by Puritans in 1639....
. After four years in Stratford, Rev. Leavitt decamped for New York City, where he first became secretary of the American Seamens' Friend Society, and began his 44-year career as editor of Sailors' Magazine. Thus was Leavitt launched on his career as social reformer, temperance spokesman, editor, abolitionist and religious proselytizer.
Leavitt was heavily involved in a series of high-profile anti-slavery cases, including the escape of the slave Basil Dorsey from Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
into Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
(Leavitt aided Dorsey's passage northward, and members of the extended Leavitt family helped shelter Dorsey in Massachusetts), as well as the La Amistad
La Amistad
La Amistad was a ship notable as the scene of a revolt by African captives being transported from Havana to Puerto Principe, Cuba. It was a 19th-century two-masted schooner built in Spain and owned by a Spaniard living in Cuba...
case, in which enslaved Africans on a Spanish ship rebelled and took control. Leavitt played a pivotal role in the Amistad events, when on September 4, 1839, he and Lewis Tappan
Lewis Tappan
Lewis Tappan was a New York abolitionist who worked to achieve the freedom of the illegally enslaved Africans of the Amistad. Contacted by Connecticut abolitionists soon after the Amistad arrived in port, Tappan focused extensively on the captive Africans...
and Simeon Jocelyn formed the Amistad Committee to raise funds for the defense of the Amistad captives.
One of Leavitt's major accomplishments was helping to provide the intellectual underpinnings of the abolitionist argument through his writing and publishing. In 1841, for instance, Leavitt published his "Financial Power of Slavery", a compelling document which argued that the South was draining the national economy through its reliance on slavery.
Rev. Joshua Leavitt came from a long line of religious figures. His father was Col. Roger Leavitt, a wealthy landowner and Massachusetts legislator, and his mother Chloe (Maxwell) Leavitt. His grandfather was the well-known Congregational minister Rev. Jonathan Leavitt
Jonathan Leavitt (minister)
Rev. Jonathan Leavitt was an early New England Congregational minister, born in Connecticut, and subsequently the pastor of churches in New Hampshire and Massachusetts, both of which dismissed him from his posts. Several of Rev...
, a 1758 graduate of Yale and pastor of Charlemont, Massachusetts
Charlemont, Massachusetts
Charlemont is a town in Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 1,358 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area.- History :...
. The Leavitt family had ties to religious institutions since Joshua Leavitt's ancestor John Leavitt
John Leavitt
Deacon John Leavitt was a tailor, public officeholder, and founding deacon of Old Ship Church in Hingham, Plymouth County, Massachusetts, the only remaining 17th-century Puritan meeting house in America and the oldest church in continuous ecclesiastical use in the United States...
served as founding deacon of Old Ship Church
Old Ship Church
The Old Ship Church was built in 1681 in Hingham, Massachusetts in the United States. It is the oldest church in continuous ecclesiastical use in the United States. It is the only remaining 17th century Puritan meetinghouse in America...
in Hingham, Massachusetts
Hingham, Massachusetts
Hingham is a town in northern Plymouth County on the South Shore of the U.S. state of Massachusetts and suburb in Greater Boston. The United States Census Bureau 2008 estimated population was 22,561...
, and his ancestor Rev. Thomas Hooker
Thomas Hooker
Thomas Hooker was a prominent Puritan colonial leader, who founded the Colony of Connecticut after dissenting with Puritan leaders in Massachusetts...
had left the Massachusetts Bay Colony
Massachusetts Bay Colony
The Massachusetts Bay Colony was an English settlement on the east coast of North America in the 17th century, in New England, situated around the present-day cities of Salem and Boston. The territory administered by the colony included much of present-day central New England, including portions...
to found the state of Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
.
Leavitt published The Christian Lyre in 1831, the "first American tunebook to take the form of a modern hymnal, with music for every hymn (melody and bass only) and the multistanza hymns printed in full, under or beside the music". It later became one of the standard tunebooks used in the 1930s New England Revivalism movement.
Rev. Joshua Leavitt's son William was a Congregational minister in Hudson, New York
Hudson, New York
Hudson is a city located along the west border of Columbia County, New York, United States. The city is named after the adjacent Hudson River and ultimately after the explorer Henry Hudson.Hudson is the county seat of Columbia County...
. Aside from Rev. Joshua Leavitt, other members of the Leavitt family were prominent abolitionists. The National Park service lists two Leavitt family properties in upstate Massachusetts – the Hart and Mary Leavitt House
Hart Leavitt
Hart Leavitt was a Massachusetts merchant, landowner, legislator and prominent abolitionist. Leavitt was the brother of Roger Hooker Leavitt, with whom he operated an Underground Railroad station in Charlemont, Massachusetts, where the two brothers, aided by a third sibling in New York, the...
, as well as the Roger Hooker and Keziah Leavitt House
Roger Hooker Leavitt
Col. Roger Hooker Leavitt was a prominent landowner, early industrialist and Massachusetts politician who with other family members was an ardent abolitionist, using his home in Charlemont, Massachusetts as an Underground Railroad station for slaves escaped from the South...
– on its National Underground Railroad historic sites tour. The entire extended family of Rev. Joshua Leavitt can be considered ardent – and active – abolitionist sympathizers.
External links
- Portrait of Joshua Leavitt, Massachusetts Historical Society
- Finance of Cheap Postage, Joshua Leavitt, Secretary of the Boston Cheap Postage Association, Boston, 1849
- The Christian Lyre, Joshua Leavitt, New York, 1833
- The Monroe Doctrine, Joshua Leavitt, New York, 1863
- Easy Lessons in Reading for the Use of the Younger Classes, Joshua Leavitt, Keene, New Hampshire, 1830
- The Amistad Case, The National Portrait Gallery, Washington, D.C.
Further reading
- The Road to Freedom: Anti-Slavery Activity in Greenfield, Greenfield Human Rights Commission, the Greenfield Historical Commission, starrcenter.washcoll.edu
- The Amistad Case, National Portrait Gallery, Washington, D.C.
- Joshua Leavitt, Evangelical Abolitionist, Hugh Davis, Louisiana State University Press, Baton Rouge, La., 1990, ISBN 0807115215
See also
- Roger Hooker LeavittRoger Hooker LeavittCol. Roger Hooker Leavitt was a prominent landowner, early industrialist and Massachusetts politician who with other family members was an ardent abolitionist, using his home in Charlemont, Massachusetts as an Underground Railroad station for slaves escaped from the South...
- Hart LeavittHart LeavittHart Leavitt was a Massachusetts merchant, landowner, legislator and prominent abolitionist. Leavitt was the brother of Roger Hooker Leavitt, with whom he operated an Underground Railroad station in Charlemont, Massachusetts, where the two brothers, aided by a third sibling in New York, the...
- Underground RailroadUnderground RailroadThe Underground Railroad was an informal network of secret routes and safe houses used by 19th-century black slaves in the United States to escape to free states and Canada with the aid of abolitionists and allies who were sympathetic to their cause. The term is also applied to the abolitionists,...