Wallace Willis
Encyclopedia
Uncle Wallace Willis was a Choctaw
freedman
living in the Indian Territory
. His dates are unclear: perhaps 1820 to 1880. He is credited with composing (probably before 1860) several Negro spiritual
s. Willis received his name from his owner, Britt Willis, probably in Mississippi
, the ancestral home of the Choctaws. He died, probably in what is now Atoka County, Oklahoma
, as his unmarked grave is located there.
Prior to the Civil War
, Willis and his wife, Aunt Minerva, were sent by their owner to work at the Spencer Academy where the superintendent, Reverend Alexander Reid, heard them singing. In 1871 Reid was at a performance of the Jubilee Singers and thought the songs he had heard the Willises singing were better than those of the Jubilee Singers. He furnished them to the group which performed them in the United States and Europe. Many are now famous.
It is sometimes claimed that the composer of the songs credited to Willis is unknown, but no record exists of any of them prior to the performances by the Jubilee Singers.
Choctaw
The Choctaw are a Native American people originally from the Southeastern United States...
freedman
Freedman
A freedman is a former slave who has been released from slavery, usually by legal means. Historically, slaves became freedmen either by manumission or emancipation ....
living in the Indian Territory
Indian Territory
The Indian Territory, also known as the Indian Territories and the Indian Country, was land set aside within the United States for the settlement of American Indians...
. His dates are unclear: perhaps 1820 to 1880. He is credited with composing (probably before 1860) several Negro spiritual
Spiritual (music)
Spirituals are religious songs which were created by enslaved African people in America.-Terminology and origin:...
s. Willis received his name from his owner, Britt Willis, probably in Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
, the ancestral home of the Choctaws. He died, probably in what is now Atoka County, Oklahoma
Oklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
, as his unmarked grave is located there.
Prior to the Civil War
American 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...
, Willis and his wife, Aunt Minerva, were sent by their owner to work at the Spencer Academy where the superintendent, Reverend Alexander Reid, heard them singing. In 1871 Reid was at a performance of the Jubilee Singers and thought the songs he had heard the Willises singing were better than those of the Jubilee Singers. He furnished them to the group which performed them in the United States and Europe. Many are now famous.
It is sometimes claimed that the composer of the songs credited to Willis is unknown, but no record exists of any of them prior to the performances by the Jubilee Singers.
Compositions
- "I'm A Rollin'"
- "Swing Low, Sweet ChariotSwing Low, Sweet Chariot"Swing Low, Sweet Chariot" is a historic African-American spiritual. The first recording was in 1909, by the Fisk Jubilee Singers of Fisk University....
" - "Steal Away To Jesus"
- "The Angels are Coming"
External links
- Willis, Uncle Wallace and Aunt Minerva—Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History & Culture.