On his death he scandalized Hancock county society by bequeathing the vast bulk of his estate (a share with a value estimated at more than $300,000) to his only child, Amanda America Dickson (1849-1893). This fascinating story of Amanda America Dickson, born the privileged daughter of a white planter and an unconsenting slave in antebellum Georgia, shows how strong-willed individuals defied racial strictures for the sake of family. 448 Telfair St. Augusta, Georgia. #126 Sacramento, CA. . Amanda America Dickson, the daughter of a slave and her owner, became one of the wealthiest black women in nineteenth-century America when the Georgia Supreme Court upheld her claim to her father's contested will. Evidence suggests that David Dickson took charge of Amanda's education. Dickson was born in 1849 to prominent Hancock County plantation owner David Dickson and a 12-year-old slave. Features: 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms. At the time of her birth, her mother was 12 year old Julia Frances Dickson, a house servant belonging to Elizabeth Dickson. While more than 0 listings in Dickson, TN in January . For Vinea Capitals Allan Soto, serving others is where his passion lies. [1]:120121, In June 1893, with the kidnapping drama (involving Mamie Toomer, Charles Dickson, and Charles Dickson's co-conspirators) behind them, Nathan and Amanda America purchased two first-class tickets from a sales representative of the Pullman Palace Car Company to transport them from Baltimore, Maryland back to Augusta, Georgia. Gabriel moved to Emanuel County, Georgia after his fathers death.David Lipscomb College, TN~ 1939 (Edna Waters)Harding College, Se "Amanda America Dickson." Please contact Find a Grave at [emailprotected] if you need help resetting your password. . Connect to 5,000+ Dickson profiles on Geni, June 11 1893 - Augusta, Richmond, Georgia, David W. Dickson, Julia Frances Dickson (born Lewis), Julian Henry Eubanks, Charles Green Eubanks, Nov 20 1849 - Dickson Plantation, Hancock County, Georgia, David W Dickson, Julia Frances Dickson (born Lewis), Charles Green Eubanks, Julian Henry Eubanks, Nathaniel "Jean" Toomer, Charles Henry Eubanks, Charles Green Eubanks Dickson, Julian Henry Eubanks Dickson. [1]:47. I am very apprieciative to the people who have read the book and reviewed the website. Resend Activation Email. Please enter your email and password to sign in. [1]:69, Years after having completed her teaching degree, Amanda America For memorials with more than one photo, additional photos will appear here or on the photos tab. A Loving Wife. or don't show this againI am good at figuring things out. Heiress and socialite Amanda America Dickson Toomer was, in her time, the wealthiest African American woman in Georgia, and one of the wealthiest women in the United States. It was an unhappy marriage and Amanda left Charles in 1870, returning to the Dickson Plantation, where she was legally given the surname of Dickson for herself and her sons. She was. In her youth, Amanda was taken into the Dickson family home and raised by her paternal grandmother where she was taught to read, write, and play the piano. In 1865, according to family history, Amanda married her white cousin Charles Eubanks in the North. Eubanks. Amanda America Dickson spent her childhood and adolescence in the house of her white grandmother and owner, Elizabeth Sholars Dickson, where she learned to read and write and play the pianothe survival skills of a young lady but not ordinarily the opportunities of a slave. The Supreme Court ruled in 1887 that Amanda was legally entitled to the inheritance under the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which states that property rights are equal for blacks and whites, including the offspring of black and white citizens. This 1,200 square foot home, which was built in 2018, sits on a 0.40 acre lot. Her enslaved mother, Julia Frances Lewis Dickson, was just 13 when she was born. His white relatives contested the will. 16 mm, 101 min. When John Toomer died, he became the property of Colonel Henry Toomer, Johns brother. Are you sure that you want to delete this memorial? Come celebrate the 2022 results. Retrieved Jul 17, 2020, from https://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/articles/history-archaeology/amanda-america-dickson-1849-1893/. Born on November 21, 1849, baby Amanda's parents couldn't be more dissimilar her father, the renowned white agricultural plantation owner, and writer, David Dickson; her mother, Julia Frances Lewis Dickson, was an enslaved child-servant to Dickson's mother Elizabeth Sholars-Dickson. GREAT NEWS! IMPORTANT PRIVACY NOTICE & DISCLAIMER: YOU HAVE A RESPONSIBILITY TO USE CAUTION WHEN DISTRIBUTING PRIVATE INFORMATION. By studying her life, one is able to gather information about the "The Way It Was" in the South during the 19th . As a child Toomer was purchased by John Toomer, who moved to Houston County, Georgia, in the 1850s. Drama In the aftermath of the terrible Civil War which has devastated the South, Amanda America Dixon returns home to find she has become the sole heir to a vast cotton plantation. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/10337890/amanda-america-toomer. On March 10, 1893, Nathan and Amanda brought Mamie to the St. Francis School and Convent in Baltimore, Maryland, an order of black nuns, in an attempt to protect her from Charles Dickson's misguided attentions. [1]:81100 Then, in March 1886, the white relatives filed their appeal with the Supreme Court of Georgia. She was intermittently unconscious from nervous shock. the Tifton church from a lady who hud just died in Florida. In 1890, Smith returned to the United States, and after two years of preaching and related work in the East, she settled in . Her enslaved mother, Julia Frances Lewis Dickson, was just 13 when she was born. During the contest of the will, Amanda purchased a beautiful three-story brick house in the elite downtown neighborhood of Augusta, Georgia, which was at the time an integrated city. A system error has occurred. Learn more about managing a memorial . Davids death and his surprising will became news throughout the country. [1]:123, Amanda America Dickson Toomer's funeral took place at the Trinity Colored Methodist Episcopal Church in Augusta, Georgia. The funeral was held at Trinity Colored Methodist Church. David Dickson was a rich white Georgian who attentively raised, educated, and supported Amanda America Dickson, the daughter he fathered by one of his many slaves. Amanda America Dickson's life reflected the power of family and class to erode the boundaries of race in the nineteenth-century South. In the winter of 1885 David Dickson died, leaving the bulk of his estate to Amanda Dickson and subsequently to her children after her death. Leave a message for others who see this profile. She left home briefly, between the years 1876 and 1878, to attend the Normal School of Atlanta University. Amanda America Dickson (November 20, 1849 - June 11, 1893) was an African-American socialite in Georgia who became known as one of the wealthiest African American women of the 19th century after inheriting a large estate from her white planter father.. Born into slavery, she was the child of David Dickson, a white planter, and Julia Frances Lewis (Dickson), a young enslaved woman of his who . Learn about how to make the most of a memorial. Leslie, Kent. She was held in high esteem by those who came to know her because of her wealth, elegance, and intelligence. The bulk of his estate, 17,000 acres, valued at $500,000, went to Amanda -- making her the largest property owner in Hancock County. cemeteries found within kilometers of your location will be saved to your photo volunteer list. She was the main heir to the estate of over 15,000 acres valued at $309,543. It was practically a statewide scandal when it was discovered that Dickson willed the bulk of his $300,000 estate- $8 million in todays dollars- to his only child, Amanda. In New Georgia Encyclopedia. Toomer was born in 1839 in Chatham County, . The music, too, feels familiar -- sorrowful wails to let us know that slavery was sad and evil, as if we didn't know. One of the first laws the Georgia State legislature passed after the war reinstated the prohibition against interracial marriage. This courthouse was destroyed by fire in 2015, but reconstructed around the original walls. To view a photo in more detail or edit captions for photos you added, click the photo to open the photo viewer. She was the richest woman in the south, at that, a black woman during the civil war era. Use Escape keyboard button or the Close button to close the carousel. This relationship is not possible based on lifespan dates. Login to find your connection. This browser does not support getting your location. Her mother, Julia Frances Lewis Dickson, and her second husband, Nathan Toomer, both petitioned in court to be designated the temporary administrator of her estate. Shortly thereafter Nathan Toomer married Nina Pinchback. Their mixed-race sons later married prominent members of Georgia society. Try again later. Thank you for your time. Amanda's father was 40 year old David Dickson, son of Elizabeth and a wealthy white merchant, planter and slave owner. Are you sure that you want to delete this photo? Although conceived through the rape of her adolescent mother, Amanda was raised and educated in the Dickson household. Previously sponsored memorials or famous memorials will not have this option. Ann Short Chirhart and Betty Wood (Athens: University of Georgia Press, 2009). This episode is sure to set a fire in you to go for your dreams! The higher court stated that the "rights of each race are controlled and governed by the same enactments or principles of law"in other words, whatever rights and privileges belonged to a bastard white child belonged to a mixed-race child as well. That court ruled in 1887 that Amanda Dickson was legally entitled to the inheritance under the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which states that property rights are equal for blacks and whites, including the offspring of black and white citizens. The marker, recognizing Amanda America Dickson Toomer, is located at her final home at 448 Telfair St. in Augusta, Georgia, where she spent the last seven years of her life. Forego a bottle of soda and donate its cost to us for the information you just learned, and feel good about helping to make it available to everyone. She learned to read and write, and assumed the social graces of white Southern affluence. David Dickson showed that farmers could profit from slave labor without having to resort to violence to keep them in submission. Dickson's lawyer asks, for example, to instigate one memory trip. Failed to delete memorial. [1]:101102 James Jackson expressed his firm conviction against upholding the will, saying, "I would rather died in my place than uphold the will." She was kind-hearted, generous, and charitable, and her benevolent work was indeed extensive.. The New Georgia Encyclopedia is supported by funding from A More Perfect Union, a special initiative of the National Endowment for the Humanities. Amanda's family said her father "became devoted to his daughter . In the 1870s he built a handsome house for Amanda and her mother Julia and gave her some property. David Dickson is a wealthy plantation owner in antebellum Georgia who fathers Amanda by raping one of his slaves, Julia. "[1]:123 Amanda America Dickson Toomer died on June 11, 1893, with "complications of diseases" being the cause of death listed on her death certificate. Try again. David Dickson had only one child, Amanda America Dickson, who died in 1893.She had two sons, Julian Henry, 1866-1937 and Charles Green, 1870-???. It would be a mistake, however . Please check your email and click on the link to activate your account. Citing the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, the Georgia Supreme Court affirmed the lower court's decision, saying that the rights and privileges of a black woman and her children would be the same rights and privileges of a white concubine or an illegitimate white woman and her children. Amanda America Dickson, conceived as a result of her forty-year-old white father's rape of her thirteen-year-old enslaved mother, became the pet of her white grandmother and her father. She was born. . Ashlee and Nesia discuss life as the owner of a basketball team, retirement and more. MORE: Augusta Historical Marker Part of Georgia Civil Rights Trail . [1]:118 Amanda died on June 11, 1893, eleven months after they were married. This fascinating story of Amanda America Dickson, born the privileged daughter of a white planter and an unconsenting slave in antebellum Georgia, shows how strong-willed individuals defied racial strictures for the sake of family. The email does not appear to be a valid email address. Flowers added to the memorial appear on the bottom of the memorial or here on the Flowers tab. Her father, David Dickson, was a white planter and slave plantation owner who owned her mother; he was one of the eight wealthiest plantation owners in the county. Remove advertising from a memorial by sponsoring it for just $5. . Because of anti-miscegenation laws, they couldn't legally marry in Georgia. Public domain image, Courtesy Georgia Historical Society, African American History: Research Guides & Websites, Global African History: Research Guides & Websites, African American Scientists and Technicians of the Manhattan Project, Envoys, Diplomatic Ministers, & Ambassadors, Racial Conflict - Segregation/Integration, http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=13428942, http://mygahistory.com/amanda-america-dickson/, Foundation, Organization, and Corporate Supporters. While Dickson left bequests to his nieces and nephews, most of his wealth went to his daughter with the caveat that she bequeath $100,000 to each of her sons, whom he had called his little men. How Amanda used this legacy was left to her sound judgement and unlimited discretion . Amanda America Dickson was born in November of 1849. The votes are in! Her father had stipulated that Amanda, and her children after her death, were the beneficiaries, and no future husband or Dickson family member could "interfere". We will review the memorials and decide if they should be merged. Amanda America was born to 40-year-old slave master David Dickson and 13-year-old slave, Julia Lewis in 1849.Legally, Amanda was still a slave until her grandmother's death in 1864.By the 1860s David Dickson was the richest planter in Hancock County, with 150 slaves, 350 cattle, 600 hogs, 200 sheep and 57 mules and horses.Amanda was still a teen-ager when she married her father's nephew, Charles Eubanks. As Henry Toomers personal assistant, Nathan Toomer learned the manner of the white upper class. The white members of the Dickson family appealed to the Superior Court of Hancock County and to the Georgia Supreme Court. The marker was placed at Toomer's last Augusta residence448 Telfair Street. Find-A-Grave, Amanda America Dickson Toomer, http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=13428942; Mark based on information from your browser. The City of M. Amanda is raised and educated by her father and grandmo Cast & Crew Read More John Kent Harrison Director They serve as an inspiration and testament to the strength of the human spirit and the will to succeed. Amanda America Dickson Toomer was born of the rape of 12-year-old slave Julia Frances Lewis Dickson by planter David Dickson in 1849. Your donation is fully tax-deductible. Amanda America Dickson, the daughter of an enslaved woman and her enslaver, became one of the wealthiest Black women in nineteenth-century America. 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