Samuel Joseph May
Encyclopedia
Samuel Joseph May a radical American reformer during the nineteenth century, championed multiple reform movements including education, women’s rights, and abolitionism. He was born on September 12, 1797 in an upper class Boston area. May was the son of Colonel Joseph May, a merchant, and Dorothy Sewell, who was descended from or connected to many of the leading families of colonial Massachusetts, including the Quincys and the Hancocks. His sister was Abba May Alcott, mother of Louisa May Alcott. In 1825, he married Lucretia Flagge Coffin with whom he had five children. The oldest died as a toddler, but May saw this event as a sacrifice he had to make for the purity of his own soul.
. During this time, he met many prominent Unitarians and activists including Noah Worcester, who instilled in May the idea of peaceful opposition. May graduated from Harvard Divinity School in 1820 and became a Unitarian
minister. Following his graduation, he considered preaching in New York City and Richmond, Virginia prior to accepting a position in Brooklyn, Connecticut as the only Unitarian minister in that state. Here, he came to the forefront of the Unitarian movement and became well-known throughout New England as he attempted to establish Unitarian churches and reform.
whose purpose was to send the slaves back to Africa. May’s belief in perfectionism through imitating the life of Jesus Christ strongly influenced his involvement in reform movements. A pacifist, he actively participated in establishing peace societies, speaking out against the death penalty, and advocating nonresistance. He practiced this last belief to the extent of rejecting self-defense. He became a leader in the temperance movement, believing it to be a form of abolitionism since he saw men as slaves to drink. He was perhaps most renowned for his work in education reform as he sought to improve facilities, teachers, and curriculum in public elementary schools. May believed schools should be racially integrated and coeducational, and he advocated the philosophy of Swiss theorist Johann Pestalozzi.
Involvement in Abolitionism
In 1830, May happened to meet and create a strong friendship with William Lloyd Garrison
, which pushed him into the abolitionist movement. Although his abolitionist views alienated his family, friends, and other clergymen, he remained true to his beliefs. He helped Garrison found the New England Anti-Slavery Society, the American Anti-Slavery Society
, and the New England Non-Resistance Society
, in addition to working for the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society
. He served as one of the writers for the constitutions of some of these societies, and as a lecturer and general agent for the New England Anti-Slavery Society. Fighting for racial equality and better schools, May defended Prudence Crandall
in the 1830s as residents of Canterbury, Connecticut
fought her decision to close the school she ran for white girls and open it solely to young black ladies. This experience caused him to abandon his support for the colonization movement. He became pastor of the Unitarian Church of the Messiah of Syracuse, New York
in 1845, serving until 1868. He fought the Fugitive Slave Law of the 1850s by making announcements during his sermons of fugitive slaves in the area and took collections on their behalf, as well as aiding escaped slaves along the Underground Railroad
. As a prominent abolitionist in the city, May, with the help of many Liberty Party
members, including Gerrit Smith
and Samuel Ringgold Ward
, planned and successfully executed the rescue of Jerry McHenry
, a man arrested as a fugitive slave, from the police. In addition to fighting for the abolition of slavery, he fought for the equality of free blacks in his congregations by allowing them to sit in the front as opposed to the segregated rear pews. This act resulted in his reproach by white congregation members and also in his quitting some of his parishes. These actions, particularly late in the 1850s and immediately after President Lincoln was elected in 1860, led abolitionism’s opponents to violently attack May as well as burn him in effigy.
, May had long been torn between his commitment to pacifism and his growing belief that slavery could not be destroyed without violence. He felt that the use of force against the Southern rebellion was necessary. Following the war and success of emancipation, May continued his work for racial, sexual, economic, and educational equality until the end of his life, including service as president of the Syracuse public school district.
Samuel Joseph May died on July 1, 1871 in Syracuse, New York
, donating over 10,000 of his own titles to the Cornell Library
. These articles included pamphlets, leaflets, and other anti-slavery documents. His collection at the Cornell Library is scarce and considered a "great importance that the literature of the Anti-Slavery movement...be preserved and handed down, that the purposes and the spirit, the methods and the aims of the Abolitionists should be clearly known and understood by future generations."
In 1885, the Unitarian Church of the Messiah, in Syracuse, was renamed in May's honor to May Memorial Unitarian Church.
Education and early career
May started attending Harvard University in 1813 and during his junior year he chose to become a minister. In addition, while he was at Harvard and afterwards, he taught school in Concord, MassachusettsConcord, Massachusetts
Concord is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, in the United States. As of the 2010 census, the town population was 17,668. Although a small town, Concord is noted for its leading roles in American history and literature.-History:...
. During this time, he met many prominent Unitarians and activists including Noah Worcester, who instilled in May the idea of peaceful opposition. May graduated from Harvard Divinity School in 1820 and became a Unitarian
Unitarianism
Unitarianism is a Christian theological movement, named for its understanding of God as one person, in direct contrast to Trinitarianism which defines God as three persons coexisting consubstantially as one in being....
minister. Following his graduation, he considered preaching in New York City and Richmond, Virginia prior to accepting a position in Brooklyn, Connecticut as the only Unitarian minister in that state. Here, he came to the forefront of the Unitarian movement and became well-known throughout New England as he attempted to establish Unitarian churches and reform.
Early Reform
May began a biweekly publication, The Liberal Christian, in January 1823; its main goal was to explain the Unitarian Theology. He helped in the formation of Windham County Peace Society in 1826; in 1827, May organized a statewide convention for school reform in Connecticut, and he started a series of lectures in 1828. Meanwhile, he also belonged to the American Colonization SocietyAmerican Colonization Society
The American Colonization Society , founded in 1816, was the primary vehicle to support the "return" of free African Americans to what was considered greater freedom in Africa. It helped to found the colony of Liberia in 1821–22 as a place for freedmen...
whose purpose was to send the slaves back to Africa. May’s belief in perfectionism through imitating the life of Jesus Christ strongly influenced his involvement in reform movements. A pacifist, he actively participated in establishing peace societies, speaking out against the death penalty, and advocating nonresistance. He practiced this last belief to the extent of rejecting self-defense. He became a leader in the temperance movement, believing it to be a form of abolitionism since he saw men as slaves to drink. He was perhaps most renowned for his work in education reform as he sought to improve facilities, teachers, and curriculum in public elementary schools. May believed schools should be racially integrated and coeducational, and he advocated the philosophy of Swiss theorist Johann Pestalozzi.
Involvement in AbolitionismAbolitionismAbolitionism 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...
In 1830, May happened to meet and create a strong friendship with William Lloyd GarrisonWilliam Lloyd Garrison
William Lloyd Garrison was a prominent American abolitionist, journalist, and social reformer. He is best known as the editor of the abolitionist newspaper The Liberator, and as one of the founders of the American Anti-Slavery Society, he promoted "immediate emancipation" of slaves in the United...
, which pushed him into the abolitionist movement. Although his abolitionist views alienated his family, friends, and other clergymen, he remained true to his beliefs. He helped Garrison found the New England Anti-Slavery Society, the American Anti-Slavery Society
American Anti-Slavery Society
The American Anti-Slavery Society was an abolitionist society founded by William Lloyd Garrison and Arthur Tappan. Frederick Douglass was a key leader of this society and often spoke at its meetings. William Wells Brown was another freed slave who often spoke at meetings. By 1838, the society had...
, and the New England Non-Resistance Society
New England Non-Resistance Society
The New England Non-Resistance Society was founded at a special peace convention organized by William Lloyd Garrison, in Boston in September 1838. Leading up to the convention, conservative members of the American Anti-Slavery Society and the American Peace Society expressed discomfort with...
, in addition to working for the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society
Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society
The Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society was organized as an auxiliary of the American Anti-Slavery Society in 1835. Its roots were in New England Anti-Slavery Society, organized by William Lloyd Garrison, editor of The Liberator, in 1831...
. He served as one of the writers for the constitutions of some of these societies, and as a lecturer and general agent for the New England Anti-Slavery Society. Fighting for racial equality and better schools, May defended Prudence Crandall
Prudence Crandall
Prudence Crandall , a schoolteacher raised as a Quaker, stirred controversy with her education of African-American girls in Canterbury, Connecticut...
in the 1830s as residents of Canterbury, Connecticut
Canterbury, Connecticut
Canterbury is a town in Windham County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 4,692 at the 2000 census.-History:The area was first settled in the 1680s as Peagscomsuck, consisting mainly of land north of Norwich, south of New Roxbury, Massachusetts and west of the Quinebaug River and the...
fought her decision to close the school she ran for white girls and open it solely to young black ladies. This experience caused him to abandon his support for the colonization movement. He became pastor of the Unitarian Church of the Messiah of Syracuse, New York
Syracuse, New York
Syracuse is a city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, United States, the largest U.S. city with the name "Syracuse", and the fifth most populous city in the state. At the 2010 census, the city population was 145,170, and its metropolitan area had a population of 742,603...
in 1845, serving until 1868. He fought the Fugitive Slave Law of the 1850s by making announcements during his sermons of fugitive slaves in the area and took collections on their behalf, as well as aiding escaped slaves along the Underground Railroad
Underground Railroad
The 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,...
. As a prominent abolitionist in the city, May, with the help of many 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...
members, including Gerrit Smith
Gerrit Smith
Gerrit Smith was a leading United States social reformer, abolitionist, politician, and philanthropist...
and Samuel Ringgold Ward
Samuel Ringgold Ward
Samuel Ringgold Ward was an African American who escaped enslavement to become an abolitionist, newspaper editor and Congregational minister....
, planned and successfully executed the rescue of Jerry McHenry
Jerry Rescue
The Jerry Rescue, on October 1, 1851, involved the daring, public rescue of a fugitive slave who had been arrested the same day, in Syracuse, New York, during the anti-slavery Liberty Party's state convention...
, a man arrested as a fugitive slave, from the police. In addition to fighting for the abolition of slavery, he fought for the equality of free blacks in his congregations by allowing them to sit in the front as opposed to the segregated rear pews. This act resulted in his reproach by white congregation members and also in his quitting some of his parishes. These actions, particularly late in the 1850s and immediately after President Lincoln was elected in 1860, led abolitionism’s opponents to violently attack May as well as burn him in effigy.
Work for Women's Rights
In addition to speaking and writing pamphlets and articles concerning abolitionism, May was a leading advocate in women’s rights as well. Most notably, he wrote The Rights and Condition of Women in 1846 in favor of giving women the right to vote and allowing them equality in all aspects of life. May’s work with the women’s movement prompted him to move towards socialist economic views including redistribution of the nation’s wealth, overhaul of the legal system, and a “soak-the-rich” income tax. He published a variety of other writings including "Education of the Faculties" (Boston, 1846); "Revival of Education" (Syracuse, New York, 1855): and "Recollections of the Anti-Slavery Conflict" (Boston, 1868).Final years
By the time of the American Civil WarAmerican Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
, May had long been torn between his commitment to pacifism and his growing belief that slavery could not be destroyed without violence. He felt that the use of force against the Southern rebellion was necessary. Following the war and success of emancipation, May continued his work for racial, sexual, economic, and educational equality until the end of his life, including service as president of the Syracuse public school district.
Samuel Joseph May died on July 1, 1871 in Syracuse, New York
Syracuse, New York
Syracuse is a city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, United States, the largest U.S. city with the name "Syracuse", and the fifth most populous city in the state. At the 2010 census, the city population was 145,170, and its metropolitan area had a population of 742,603...
, donating over 10,000 of his own titles to the Cornell Library
Cornell University Library
The Cornell University Library is the library system of Cornell University. In 2010 it held 8 million printed volumes in open stacks, 8.5 million microfilms and microfiches, more than of manuscripts, and close to 500,000 other materials, including motion pictures, DVDs, sound recordings, and...
. These articles included pamphlets, leaflets, and other anti-slavery documents. His collection at the Cornell Library is scarce and considered a "great importance that the literature of the Anti-Slavery movement...be preserved and handed down, that the purposes and the spirit, the methods and the aims of the Abolitionists should be clearly known and understood by future generations."
In 1885, the Unitarian Church of the Messiah, in Syracuse, was renamed in May's honor to May Memorial Unitarian Church.
External links
- Samuel Joseph May. Born in Boston, Massachusetts, September 12th, 1797. Died in Syracuse, New York, July 1st, 1871. Syracuse: Syracuse Journal Office, 1871.