Liverpool Communities - Black African

 

The first known picture of Black people in Liverpool, 1776.
Courtesy of Liverpool Record Office, Liverpool libraries.

 

Dating back as far as the 1730s, the Liverpool Black African community is the oldest in Europe with Black Loyalists of the American Revolutionary War settling here followed by more African-American soldiers. In the 1750s Black settlers included sailors, freed slaves and student sons of African rulers from all over the West Indies and West Africa and one of the largest single contributions to the Liverpool Black population is that of black sailors settling in the port. Many present-day families owe their origin to seafarers and despite challenges, Black presence has grown and contributed to all aspects of Liverpool life with some Black families tracing their Liverpool history back over 200 years. Imagine the 18th century port, home to the children of African rulers, freed enslaved Africans and Black veterans of the American War of Independence. Later, in the 19th century West African seafarers working on Elder Dempster Line ships settled in the city, enabling the already established Black population to grow. Herman Melville, author of 'Moby Dick', had described Liverpool back in 1849 as "a port in which all climes and countries embrace". In his slipstream, visiting black Americans marvelled at the sight Melville had seen in Liverpool of a black ship's steward 'arm in arm with a good-looking English woman', unthinkable in America at the time.  

A street trader at St George's Dock, Liverpool in 1895. Courtesy Liverpool Daily Post and Echo.

 

The oldest Black community was near Pitt Street, close to the docks but some also settled in the Toxteth district, where they joined already settled English, Irish, Welsh and Chinese of seafarer or serviceman heritage. When the first World War was declared in 1914, Liverpool had a long established, but small, Black community of about 3,000 people. During the war period, a number of men from Africa and the Caribbean also settled in the city and the community expanded so much so that there was racial tension when the war ended. Then there were around 5000 Black people living in Liverpool and as servicemen returned home looking for jobs, community tensions grew. Riots broke out and a mob attacked a Black seafarers' boarding house. 24-year-old Charles Wooton from Bermuda, was chased from Pitt Street to the Queen's Dock on the River Mersey, where they pelted him with stones until he died in the water. No arrests were made.

The Liverpool Black Community differs from other vibrant cities such as London, and Bristol with communities of even older origins, with some black Liverpudlians being able to trace their roots in Liverpool for as many as ten generations. The slave trade undoubtedly played a large part in the build-up of the early Liverpool Black Community, both directly and indirectly. Following the mid-eighteenth century, Liverpool had steadily overtaken London and Bristol, her main rivals in the Slave Trade and by 1795, Liverpool had the monopoly of five-eighths of the European Slave Trade. In the early days isolated black people could be found in in many parts of the township, although parishes in the area now known as Toxteth and the southern fringes of the then Liverpool township centre, such as St. James, St. Thomas and St. Peters are possibly the earliest settlement. Black seafarers have made contributions to some of the most significant maritime events of the past 500 years. Many Black seafarers played an important role during both World Wars, for both the Royal Navy and Merchant Navy, but their contribution was often overlooked. For many reasons that befit a port city, and despite further riots after the second world war, and widespread discrimination in employment and accommodation, Liverpool emerged as a model for race relations in the 1950s, avoiding the tribulations of Notting Hill and Nottingham during the summer of 1958. The largest wave of Afro-Caribbean immigrants to the UK occurred in the 1940s and 1950s and despite being a relatively small community, Afro-Caribbeans have made a significant contribution to the history and culture of the city. In 2009, just under 5,000 Liverpudlians were of Afro-Caribbean origin, with most of these being of mixed White and Black origins. However there are numerous Afro-Caribbean-owned businesses and community centres in and around Toxteth and the Smithdown Road area. 

The so-called 'Toxteth riots' of July 1981 were the most virulent single uprising on the British mainland within living memory and was about police brutality, which was invariably racist. They changed the face of policing in Britain and led to what national and local authorities have since called the 'regeneration' of the inner cities, although some would argue 'degeneration'. The capital of culture in 2008 had the slogan, 'The World In One City', but that was only really true of Liverpool 8. Cohesion and integration should have been a shining example here but it wasn't, the discrimination was worse.

In October 2020, to coincide with the start of Black History Month, a stone commemorating the first recorded black resident in Liverpool was unveiled more than 300 years after his death with Liverpool Parish Church hosting a special ceremony to commemorate his life . Records show the man, known only as Abell, was buried at St Nicholas' Church on the 1st of October 1717. Councillor Anna Rothery, the city's first black lord mayor, unveiled the stone and said, "It is well-documented that Liverpool has the oldest black community in Europe. Black people have played a pivotal role in the development of our city, a role which continues to this day. As a city we are facing up to the grim injustices of our past and by setting them in their context, we are a better place. In a year that has exposed the divides that continue to exist between communities across the globe based on race and colour, it is hoped that we can continue to learn and grow from our shared history and truly make Liverpool a city for all." Laurence Westgaph, the historian-in-residence at National Museums Liverpool, said, "This gesture by St Nicholas Church records in stone the presence of black people in this town for more than 300 years and at a time when Liverpool's population was less than 10,000 people. Since then there has been a black presence in this great city, demonstrating that people of African descent have been resident and contributing to Liverpool life since the beginnings of the town’s rise from a struggling seaport to the second city of the British Empire and beyond."

see also :- http://www.thefootballvoice.com/2022/03/liverpool-communities-polish.html