WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.680 Welcome to today's deep dive. If you're joining 00:00:02.680 --> 00:00:05.960 us right now, you likely have that really intense 00:00:05.960 --> 00:00:09.160 curiosity, that drive to truly understand the 00:00:09.160 --> 00:00:12.660 mechanics of history. But... You know, you also 00:00:12.660 --> 00:00:15.080 value your time. Right. Nobody wants to be buried 00:00:15.080 --> 00:00:18.179 in raw data. Exactly. You want the thorough knowledge, 00:00:18.339 --> 00:00:20.679 the deep insights, without feeling completely 00:00:20.679 --> 00:00:24.100 overwhelmed. And today we're exploring an excerpted 00:00:24.100 --> 00:00:27.640 Wikipedia article that covers the, frankly, extraordinary 00:00:27.640 --> 00:00:30.460 life of Benjamin Papp Singleton. It really is 00:00:30.460 --> 00:00:32.939 a phenomenal source. It details a story of just 00:00:32.939 --> 00:00:36.320 sheer willpower and incredibly ambitious business 00:00:36.320 --> 00:00:39.219 ventures. Plus, it shows a man who constantly 00:00:39.219 --> 00:00:41.759 reinvented his approach to activism. He really 00:00:41.759 --> 00:00:43.899 did. And our mission for this deep dive is to 00:00:43.899 --> 00:00:46.340 explore how someone born into slavery, someone 00:00:46.340 --> 00:00:48.159 who never had the opportunity to learn to read 00:00:48.159 --> 00:00:50.820 or write, how he transformed himself into a visionary 00:00:50.820 --> 00:00:54.039 leader of mass migration. It's a literal masterclass 00:00:54.039 --> 00:00:56.539 in proving that true freedom is inextricably 00:00:56.539 --> 00:00:59.119 linked to economic independence. OK, let's unpack 00:00:59.119 --> 00:01:01.520 this. Where exactly does the story of Benjamin 00:01:01.520 --> 00:01:05.120 Singleton begin? Well, it begins in 1809 in Davidson 00:01:05.120 --> 00:01:07.219 County, Tennessee, which is right near Nashville. 00:01:07.900 --> 00:01:10.239 Now, the historical record regarding his early 00:01:10.239 --> 00:01:13.319 life is it's somewhat sparse. Which is pretty 00:01:13.319 --> 00:01:15.260 common, right? Yeah, a very common reality for 00:01:15.260 --> 00:01:18.230 individuals born into slavery. But we do have 00:01:18.230 --> 00:01:21.310 a few foundational facts from the source that 00:01:21.310 --> 00:01:23.989 set the stage for literally everything he accomplishes 00:01:23.989 --> 00:01:27.230 later. Right. So he was the son of a white father 00:01:27.230 --> 00:01:30.930 and an enslaved black mother. And from his youth, 00:01:31.109 --> 00:01:33.329 there's this really poignant contradiction that 00:01:33.329 --> 00:01:36.609 defines his daily life. Oh, the carpentry. Exactly. 00:01:36.930 --> 00:01:39.609 He was trained as a skilled carpenter. So that 00:01:39.609 --> 00:01:42.510 gives him a highly valuable, tangible trade. 00:01:42.670 --> 00:01:44.569 I mean, he could build things with his own hands. 00:01:44.670 --> 00:01:47.769 Which is huge. It is. But alongside that mastery, 00:01:48.030 --> 00:01:50.730 he carried a lifelong, really heavy regret over 00:01:50.730 --> 00:01:52.430 the fact that he was never taught to read or 00:01:52.430 --> 00:01:55.290 write. Carrying that burden while possessing 00:01:55.290 --> 00:01:58.189 such a brilliant strategic mind. It's just a 00:01:58.189 --> 00:02:00.769 fascinating tension. Yeah. And the historical 00:02:00.769 --> 00:02:03.310 accounts note he made several unsuccessful attempts 00:02:03.310 --> 00:02:06.189 to escape slavery, which just shows this early, 00:02:06.230 --> 00:02:08.990 persistent refusal to accept his condition. Who 00:02:08.990 --> 00:02:11.830 was not going to give up. No. And finally, in 00:02:11.830 --> 00:02:15.610 1846, he makes a successful break. He navigates 00:02:15.610 --> 00:02:18.150 the Underground Railroad, traveling north and 00:02:18.150 --> 00:02:20.430 crossing all the way into Windsor, Ontario. Right 00:02:20.430 --> 00:02:22.650 across the border. Right. But after spending 00:02:22.650 --> 00:02:25.490 about a year in Canada, he makes this interesting 00:02:25.490 --> 00:02:28.270 geographic pivot. He moves back into the United 00:02:28.270 --> 00:02:31.379 States to settle in Detroit, Michigan. And what's 00:02:31.379 --> 00:02:34.560 fascinating here is how Singleton utilized that 00:02:34.560 --> 00:02:37.139 hard won freedom during his time in Detroit. 00:02:37.319 --> 00:02:39.639 Yeah. Tell us about that. He did not simply cross 00:02:39.639 --> 00:02:42.439 the border, secure his personal safety and just, 00:02:42.500 --> 00:02:45.080 you know, quietly fade into a comfortable life. 00:02:45.159 --> 00:02:48.060 Right. He actually lived as a scavenger and worked 00:02:48.060 --> 00:02:50.620 as a carpenter. He was literally picking through 00:02:50.620 --> 00:02:52.659 the streets and utilizing his woodworking skills 00:02:52.659 --> 00:02:55.360 just to scrape together meager resources. Just 00:02:55.360 --> 00:02:57.439 to survive. But he wasn't hoarding that money. 00:02:57.740 --> 00:03:01.219 He pooled those funds to operate a clan. Wow. 00:03:03.560 --> 00:03:19.039 That is incredible. So he's using his trade to 00:03:19.039 --> 00:03:22.159 survive, but his street smarts to navigate others 00:03:22.159 --> 00:03:25.180 through that final, really dangerous stretch 00:03:25.180 --> 00:03:27.719 to safety. Exactly. And he remains in Detroit 00:03:27.719 --> 00:03:30.879 until the Civil War is well underway. Then, in 00:03:30.879 --> 00:03:34.020 1862, the Union Army occupies Middle Tennessee, 00:03:34.120 --> 00:03:36.840 and Singleton makes the decision to return to 00:03:36.840 --> 00:03:38.960 Nashville. He heads back, believing his freedom 00:03:38.960 --> 00:03:41.500 will be protected within those union lines. Right, 00:03:41.580 --> 00:03:43.840 right. Taking up residence in Nashville, he returns 00:03:43.840 --> 00:03:46.280 to his trade. He starts working as a cabinet 00:03:46.280 --> 00:03:49.039 and coffin maker. Coffin making. Yeah. It was 00:03:49.039 --> 00:03:52.020 a stark, grim reality of the era, given the war, 00:03:52.159 --> 00:03:54.479 but it was a very steady economic anchor for 00:03:54.479 --> 00:03:56.639 him. I can imagine. And during this period, this 00:03:56.639 --> 00:04:01.020 extends from 1862 through 1875, Singleton undergoes 00:04:01.020 --> 00:04:03.759 a really profound paradigm shift. I saw. Well, 00:04:03.780 --> 00:04:06.000 the Civil War ends, the Reconstruction era begins, 00:04:06.240 --> 00:04:08.710 but the grand political promises start to hollow 00:04:08.710 --> 00:04:11.270 out. Yeah, they really do. Freedmen were facing 00:04:11.270 --> 00:04:14.150 severe political marginalization and pervasive 00:04:14.150 --> 00:04:17.189 racial violence. And Singleton observes this 00:04:17.189 --> 00:04:20.009 landscape. He concludes that legal freedom is 00:04:20.009 --> 00:04:22.269 essentially meaningless without financial autonomy. 00:04:22.709 --> 00:04:25.550 That makes total sense. He realizes African -Americans 00:04:25.550 --> 00:04:28.129 were never going to achieve parity in the post 00:04:28.129 --> 00:04:30.709 -war South without controlling their own capital. 00:04:30.990 --> 00:04:33.209 And that realization leads him to take matters 00:04:33.209 --> 00:04:35.470 into his own hands rather than just, you know. 00:04:36.029 --> 00:04:38.069 Waiting on political leaders who are actively 00:04:38.069 --> 00:04:40.829 failing to deliver equality. Exactly. He stops 00:04:40.829 --> 00:04:44.389 waiting. So in 1869, he forms an alliance with 00:04:44.389 --> 00:04:46.670 Columbus M. Johnson. A black minister in Sumner 00:04:46.670 --> 00:04:48.870 County. Right. And they start looking for highly 00:04:48.870 --> 00:04:51.230 practical ways to establish economic independence. 00:04:51.709 --> 00:04:55.930 By 1874, they take their first major swing. They 00:04:55.930 --> 00:04:57.610 found the Edgefield Real Estate Association. 00:04:58.029 --> 00:05:00.930 A huge step. And the goal is incredibly straightforward. 00:05:01.170 --> 00:05:03.939 Just help African -Americans acquire land. Right 00:05:03.939 --> 00:05:06.000 there in the Nashville area. Right. Keep it local. 00:05:06.139 --> 00:05:08.579 But when they attempt to execute this plan, they 00:05:08.579 --> 00:05:11.779 hit a massive systemic roadblock. Yeah, the white 00:05:11.779 --> 00:05:14.259 landowners in the area simply refused to bargain 00:05:14.259 --> 00:05:17.220 with them. Refused entirely. The historical record 00:05:17.220 --> 00:05:20.339 shows these landowners formed a sort of localized 00:05:20.339 --> 00:05:24.019 blockade. They demanded exorbitant, artificially 00:05:24.019 --> 00:05:26.839 high prices for their property. And this was 00:05:26.839 --> 00:05:29.560 done to intentionally price Singleton's group 00:05:29.560 --> 00:05:32.199 right out of the market. Just completely shutting 00:05:32.199 --> 00:05:34.839 them out. Yeah. It was a clear refusal to allow 00:05:34.839 --> 00:05:37.720 Friedman to participate fairly in the local economy. 00:05:38.360 --> 00:05:40.639 Singleton and Johnson had the organizational 00:05:40.639 --> 00:05:43.220 structure. They had the community buy -in. Exactly. 00:05:43.259 --> 00:05:45.930 But they were facing... a rigged market. And 00:05:45.930 --> 00:05:48.250 Simleton understands that if the local real estate 00:05:48.250 --> 00:05:50.410 system is structurally designed to keep them 00:05:50.410 --> 00:05:52.930 out, they cannot stay and play a losing game. 00:05:53.149 --> 00:05:54.750 You can't win if the rules are rigged against 00:05:54.750 --> 00:05:57.350 you. Right. Convinced that Friedman absolutely 00:05:57.350 --> 00:05:59.790 had to leave the South to achieve any sort of 00:05:59.790 --> 00:06:02.670 real economic independence, he actually renames 00:06:02.670 --> 00:06:05.410 his group the Edgefield Real Estate and Homestead 00:06:05.410 --> 00:06:07.529 Association. Here's where it gets really interesting. 00:06:07.689 --> 00:06:10.009 If they couldn't buy land in the South, they 00:06:10.009 --> 00:06:12.470 were going to look to the American West. A massive 00:06:12.470 --> 00:06:16.379 pivot. In 1875, Singleton begins exploring the 00:06:16.379 --> 00:06:19.399 idea of planting independent black colonies out 00:06:19.399 --> 00:06:22.939 west. He and Johnson travel to Kansas in 1876. 00:06:23.240 --> 00:06:25.300 To Scoutland, yeah. Right, in Cherokee County, 00:06:25.439 --> 00:06:27.480 which is situated in the southeastern corner 00:06:27.480 --> 00:06:30.540 of the state. He likes the terrain, heads back 00:06:30.540 --> 00:06:33.120 to Nashville, and starts aggressively recruiting. 00:06:33.529 --> 00:06:36.050 And that scouting trip culminates in their first 00:06:36.050 --> 00:06:39.269 major attempt at a colony in the summer of 1877. 00:06:39.509 --> 00:06:42.209 The Baxter Springs attempt. Exactly. Singleton 00:06:42.209 --> 00:06:45.269 leads a group of about 73 settlers to Cherokee 00:06:45.269 --> 00:06:48.610 County near a town called Baxter Springs. They 00:06:48.610 --> 00:06:50.990 begin negotiating with the Missouri River, Fort 00:06:50.990 --> 00:06:53.750 Scott and Gulf Railroad for land to build their 00:06:53.750 --> 00:06:56.629 settlement. There's a problem. A massive macroeconomic 00:06:56.629 --> 00:07:00.660 problem. The year prior, rich lead deposits had 00:07:00.660 --> 00:07:02.860 been discovered in that exact area. Oh, wow. 00:07:02.939 --> 00:07:05.839 Triggering a huge mining boom. It is the ultimate 00:07:05.839 --> 00:07:08.699 nightmare scenario for anyone trying to buy real 00:07:08.699 --> 00:07:11.579 estate. You know, a localized resource rush turns 00:07:11.579 --> 00:07:14.860 cheap, available land into a speculator's paradise 00:07:14.860 --> 00:07:17.660 practically overnight. Overnight? Just like back 00:07:17.660 --> 00:07:20.250 in Nashville. Land prices skyrocket completely 00:07:20.250 --> 00:07:22.529 out of their reach. Their pooled funds simply 00:07:22.529 --> 00:07:24.410 aren't enough to compete with mining speculators. 00:07:24.709 --> 00:07:27.689 So without the ability to secure the land, the 00:07:27.689 --> 00:07:30.170 Baxter Springs colony fails before it can truly 00:07:30.170 --> 00:07:33.670 begin. It's devastating. It is. But Singleton's 00:07:33.670 --> 00:07:37.089 response to failure is always a pivot. Always. 00:07:37.129 --> 00:07:39.189 He stops looking at commercial railroad land 00:07:39.189 --> 00:07:42.879 and shifts his focus to government land. specifically 00:07:42.879 --> 00:07:46.519 looking to utilize the 1862 Homestead Act. And 00:07:46.519 --> 00:07:48.779 the Homestead Act was a crucial piece of legislation. 00:07:49.550 --> 00:07:52.529 It allowed individuals to claim 160 acres of 00:07:52.529 --> 00:07:54.910 government land for just a small filing fee. 00:07:55.029 --> 00:07:56.970 A huge opportunity. Right, provided they lived 00:07:56.970 --> 00:07:59.209 on the land and improved it for five years. So 00:07:59.209 --> 00:08:01.310 Singleton locates available, albeit marginal, 00:08:01.550 --> 00:08:04.250 land on the former Kaw Indian Reservation near 00:08:04.250 --> 00:08:07.329 the town of Dunlap, Kansas. Okay. This area sits 00:08:07.329 --> 00:08:09.730 right on the borders of Morris and Lyon counties, 00:08:09.810 --> 00:08:11.970 conveniently situated along the tracks of the 00:08:11.970 --> 00:08:15.550 Katy Railroad. It provided the exact legal loophole 00:08:15.550 --> 00:08:18.350 they needed to bypass those hostile local markets 00:08:18.350 --> 00:08:20.930 and the speculative pricing. And the imagery 00:08:20.930 --> 00:08:23.709 of this specific migration is just incredibly 00:08:23.709 --> 00:08:27.610 vivid. In the spring of 1878, Singleton settlers 00:08:27.610 --> 00:08:31.069 leave Middle Tennessee. They travel via steamboats 00:08:31.069 --> 00:08:33.669 on the Cumberland River. Quite a journey. Leaving 00:08:33.669 --> 00:08:36.110 the lush, familiar southern landscapes for the 00:08:36.110 --> 00:08:39.509 stark reality of the Great Plains. And the records 00:08:39.509 --> 00:08:42.070 detail that their first year was incredibly harsh. 00:08:42.389 --> 00:08:44.629 Extremely harsh. Most of these settlers survived 00:08:44.629 --> 00:08:47.330 by living in dugouts. They were literally carving 00:08:47.330 --> 00:08:49.690 their initial homes right out of the earth just 00:08:49.690 --> 00:08:51.509 to survive the winds and the winter elements. 00:08:51.710 --> 00:08:54.129 Moving from the Cumberland River Valley to a 00:08:54.129 --> 00:08:58.370 dugout in Kansas, I mean, that requires an astounding 00:08:58.370 --> 00:09:00.669 level of resilience. It really does. They were 00:09:00.669 --> 00:09:03.830 battling the elements, the isolation, and just 00:09:03.830 --> 00:09:06.690 the sheer physical toll of breaking untouched 00:09:06.690 --> 00:09:09.269 prairie soil. But they do it. They do. They stick 00:09:09.269 --> 00:09:11.830 it out. They established the Dunlap Colony, officially 00:09:11.830 --> 00:09:15.509 organizing it in 1879, and it turns into a massive 00:09:15.509 --> 00:09:18.509 success. Yeah. Ultimately, over 2 ,400 settlers 00:09:18.509 --> 00:09:20.710 emigrate from the Nashville and Sumner County 00:09:20.710 --> 00:09:24.190 areas to this specific settlement. Seeing 2 ,400 00:09:24.190 --> 00:09:26.710 people successfully relocate and build a self 00:09:26.710 --> 00:09:29.429 -sustaining community, that's a monumental achievement. 00:09:29.750 --> 00:09:34.830 It is. But 1879 is also the year the entire landscape 00:09:34.830 --> 00:09:37.559 of Western migration shifts dramatically. It 00:09:37.559 --> 00:09:39.379 marks the beginning of what becomes known as 00:09:39.379 --> 00:09:42.159 the Great Exodus. Right. Because while Singleton 00:09:42.159 --> 00:09:44.840 was meticulously planning and organizing his 00:09:44.840 --> 00:09:48.580 specific Dunlap colony, a much larger, entirely 00:09:48.580 --> 00:09:50.960 organic movement was taking shape across the 00:09:50.960 --> 00:09:54.820 South. The Exodusters. Exactly. By 1879, roughly 00:09:54.820 --> 00:09:57.679 50 ,000 freedmen who became known as Exodusters 00:09:57.679 --> 00:10:00.820 began a massive, uncoordinated migration out 00:10:00.820 --> 00:10:03.379 of the former Confederacy. 50 ,000. That is a 00:10:03.379 --> 00:10:05.539 staggering scale. It really is. And they were 00:10:05.539 --> 00:10:08.059 fleeing, crushing. poverty and a severe resurgence 00:10:08.059 --> 00:10:10.620 of racial violence as whites regained political 00:10:10.620 --> 00:10:13.399 control in the South. These exodusters were heading 00:10:13.399 --> 00:10:15.759 in droves to states like Kansas, Missouri, Indiana 00:10:15.759 --> 00:10:18.500 and Illinois, desperately seeking land, better 00:10:18.500 --> 00:10:21.539 working conditions and just basic physical safety. 00:10:22.649 --> 00:10:25.629 almost migrating simultaneously. In Topeka, Kansas, 00:10:25.809 --> 00:10:27.590 they even formed a community that became known 00:10:27.590 --> 00:10:30.509 as Tennessee Town due to the sheer volume of 00:10:30.509 --> 00:10:32.809 migrants arriving from that specific state. Yeah, 00:10:32.850 --> 00:10:35.250 the numbers were overwhelming. And most of these 00:10:35.250 --> 00:10:37.809 exodusters had absolutely no direct connection 00:10:37.809 --> 00:10:40.769 to Singleton's carefully planned colony movement. 00:10:40.970 --> 00:10:43.690 They were simply fleeing. If we connect this 00:10:43.690 --> 00:10:47.009 to the bigger picture, you see Singleton's true 00:10:47.009 --> 00:10:49.450 character emerge during this crisis. How so? 00:10:49.649 --> 00:10:53.100 Well, Singleton planned. The exodusters fled. 00:10:53.299 --> 00:10:56.240 When this massive influx of desperately poor, 00:10:56.419 --> 00:10:59.500 unresourced migrants arrived in Kansas, there 00:10:59.500 --> 00:11:02.600 was significant pushback. Many white Kansans 00:11:02.600 --> 00:11:04.899 began to aggressively object to their arrival. 00:11:05.080 --> 00:11:07.580 That economic strain, I imagine. Economic strain, 00:11:07.840 --> 00:11:10.419 social upheaval. And Singleton could have easily 00:11:10.419 --> 00:11:12.740 distanced himself. He could have pointed to his 00:11:12.740 --> 00:11:15.440 successful Dunlap colony and separated his organized 00:11:15.440 --> 00:11:18.019 settlers from the chaotic mass migration. Kept 00:11:18.019 --> 00:11:20.500 his head down. Exactly. But instead, he stepped 00:11:20.500 --> 00:11:22.860 forward. He became their nationally recognized 00:11:22.860 --> 00:11:25.799 spokesman. He was fiercely defending their right 00:11:25.799 --> 00:11:27.879 to migrate and try to forge better lives in the 00:11:27.879 --> 00:11:30.860 American West. He steps directly into the spotlight 00:11:30.860 --> 00:11:33.080 to become the face of the movement. He does. 00:11:33.379 --> 00:11:35.799 And this visibility leads to a highly dramatic 00:11:35.799 --> 00:11:39.279 moment in 1880 when Singleton is requested to 00:11:39.279 --> 00:11:41.559 appear before the United States Senate in Washington, 00:11:41.720 --> 00:11:44.440 D .C. The Senate hearings? Yeah. He's called 00:11:44.440 --> 00:11:46.940 to testify on the underlying causes of this great 00:11:46.940 --> 00:11:49.860 exodus to Kansas. And the transcripts from those 00:11:49.860 --> 00:11:53.419 Senate hearings reveal a very tense, highly partisan 00:11:53.419 --> 00:11:56.840 affair. What happened? Southern senators actively 00:11:56.840 --> 00:11:59.740 attempted to discredit the Exodus movement. They 00:11:59.740 --> 00:12:01.600 were questioning the motives of the migrants 00:12:01.600 --> 00:12:04.200 and trying to downplay the severity of the conditions 00:12:04.200 --> 00:12:07.100 in the South. Denying the reality. Yeah. But 00:12:07.100 --> 00:12:09.059 Singleton stood his ground against the panel. 00:12:09.629 --> 00:12:12.289 He successfully rebuffed their efforts by pointing 00:12:12.289 --> 00:12:14.909 directly to his own success in setting up independent, 00:12:15.169 --> 00:12:17.269 functioning black colonies. He had the proof. 00:12:17.450 --> 00:12:20.929 He did. And he clearly, systematically laid out 00:12:20.929 --> 00:12:23.289 the terrible conditions, the violence and the 00:12:23.289 --> 00:12:25.370 economic suppression that were actively forcing 00:12:25.370 --> 00:12:28.090 freedmen to leave their homes. In his testimony 00:12:28.090 --> 00:12:31.309 notes, there's a quote that is absolutely heartbreaking, 00:12:31.649 --> 00:12:34.950 yet it captures his entire driving force. Oh, 00:12:34.970 --> 00:12:37.950 I know the one. He stated, I have been a slave, 00:12:38.110 --> 00:12:40.409 fled to Canada when my children were small, and 00:12:40.409 --> 00:12:43.269 19 years after when I returned, they were grown. 00:12:43.639 --> 00:12:46.679 It is a devastating summary of exactly what the 00:12:46.679 --> 00:12:50.720 institution of slavery stole from him. 19 irreplaceable 00:12:50.720 --> 00:12:53.799 years of his children's lives. Yeah. And he used 00:12:53.799 --> 00:12:57.720 that profound loss as fuel to ensure others wouldn't 00:12:57.720 --> 00:13:00.200 have their futures dictated by the same oppressive 00:13:00.200 --> 00:13:03.240 system. That was powerful. It is. On a practical 00:13:03.240 --> 00:13:05.639 level, however, this massive wave of migration 00:13:05.639 --> 00:13:08.919 did have severe consequences for his work in 00:13:08.919 --> 00:13:11.299 Kansas. Right. The strain on Dunlap. Exactly. 00:13:11.639 --> 00:13:14.600 The sheer volume. of desperately poor arrivals 00:13:14.600 --> 00:13:17.059 put a massive financial strain on the Dunlap 00:13:17.059 --> 00:13:19.960 colony. It far exceeded what the original, self 00:13:19.960 --> 00:13:22.120 -sustaining settlers could handle. It was just 00:13:22.120 --> 00:13:24.980 too much. By 1880, the situation required outside 00:13:24.980 --> 00:13:28.120 intervention. A Presbyterian church charity had 00:13:28.120 --> 00:13:29.799 to take control of the settlement to provide 00:13:29.799 --> 00:13:32.879 aid, and they eventually planned to build a freedman's 00:13:32.879 --> 00:13:35.879 academy there. Okay. Recognizing that the colony's 00:13:35.879 --> 00:13:38.360 original independent structure had changed, Singleton 00:13:38.360 --> 00:13:40.419 stepped away from his direct dealings with Dunlap. 00:13:40.600 --> 00:13:42.960 So the Dunlap colony is handed... over to a charity, 00:13:43.080 --> 00:13:45.539 and the initial wave of the great exodus begins 00:13:45.539 --> 00:13:48.720 to slow down. Right. You would think a man who 00:13:48.720 --> 00:13:51.860 is now 72 years old, who escaped slavery, ran 00:13:51.860 --> 00:13:54.600 a clandestine boarding house, built coffins and 00:13:54.600 --> 00:13:56.639 moved thousands of people across the country 00:13:56.639 --> 00:13:59.200 would finally rest. You really would think that. 00:13:59.320 --> 00:14:02.120 During 1881, most people are affectionately calling 00:14:02.120 --> 00:14:06.039 him Old Pap. But his focus merely shifts from 00:14:06.039 --> 00:14:09.320 geography to pure economics. He just keeps going. 00:14:09.500 --> 00:14:11.580 He starts a brand new organization right there 00:14:11.580 --> 00:14:14.840 in Topeka called the Colored United Links. or 00:14:14.840 --> 00:14:17.519 the cul his drive to find a solution is just 00:14:17.519 --> 00:14:20.600 relentless the core concept behind the cul was 00:14:20.600 --> 00:14:23.120 economic pooling like what he did in detroit 00:14:23.120 --> 00:14:26.059 very similar but on a larger scale he wanted 00:14:26.059 --> 00:14:28.340 to combine the financial resources of black people 00:14:28.340 --> 00:14:30.679 across the region to build black owned businesses 00:14:30.679 --> 00:14:33.100 factories and trade schools creating a whole 00:14:33.100 --> 00:14:36.500 ecosystem exactly the idea was to create an internal 00:14:36.500 --> 00:14:39.860 self -sustaining economy a cooperative economic 00:14:39.860 --> 00:14:42.000 blueprint where the community controlled its 00:14:42.000 --> 00:14:44.649 own supply chains and capital that's And the 00:14:44.649 --> 00:14:47.529 group actually held several conventions. They 00:14:47.529 --> 00:14:49.929 gained enough local traction that Republican 00:14:49.929 --> 00:14:53.070 Party officials in Kansas started eyeing their 00:14:53.070 --> 00:14:55.570 political strength. They were making waves. Singleton 00:14:55.570 --> 00:14:58.429 even held meetings with James B. Weaver. The 00:14:58.429 --> 00:15:00.669 presidential candidate for the Greenback Party. 00:15:00.830 --> 00:15:03.169 The Greenback Party. Yeah. At the time, they 00:15:03.169 --> 00:15:06.649 were an anti -monopoly political faction. They 00:15:06.649 --> 00:15:09.690 advocated for an unbacked fiat currency, which 00:15:09.690 --> 00:15:12.330 strongly appealed to working class folks and 00:15:12.330 --> 00:15:15.169 farmers who are being completely crushed by the 00:15:15.169 --> 00:15:17.429 mainstream financial system and the gold standard. 00:15:17.529 --> 00:15:20.110 Right. They actually discussed a potential fusion 00:15:20.110 --> 00:15:22.750 between their groups to amplify their political 00:15:22.750 --> 00:15:25.570 and economic leverage. The ambition there to 00:15:25.570 --> 00:15:28.269 link a localized cooperative. economic movement 00:15:28.269 --> 00:15:30.929 with a national anti -monopoly political party 00:15:30.929 --> 00:15:33.909 is incredibly forward -thinking. Decades ahead 00:15:33.909 --> 00:15:36.090 of its time. Unfortunately, the momentum did 00:15:36.090 --> 00:15:40.029 not hold. After 1881, CUL membership faltered. 00:15:40.399 --> 00:15:42.320 And the organization eventually dissolved. And 00:15:42.320 --> 00:15:45.179 this particular failure seems to trigger a massive 00:15:45.179 --> 00:15:48.039 shift in his perspective. He becomes convinced 00:15:48.039 --> 00:15:49.840 that African -Americans will never be allowed 00:15:49.840 --> 00:15:53.080 to truly succeed or integrate within the existing 00:15:53.080 --> 00:15:55.580 power structures of the United States. Right. 00:15:55.620 --> 00:15:57.659 He hits his limit. He pivots away from domestic 00:15:57.659 --> 00:16:00.659 strategies entirely and shifts his focus to global 00:16:00.659 --> 00:16:02.960 ambitions. The strategies become increasingly 00:16:02.960 --> 00:16:05.200 radical as his frustration with the American 00:16:05.200 --> 00:16:08.720 system grows. Tell us about Cyprus. Yeah. In 00:16:08.720 --> 00:16:12.370 1880. he teams up with a businessman from St. 00:16:12.509 --> 00:16:15.070 Louis and a black minister to propose a migration 00:16:15.070 --> 00:16:17.730 of American blacks to the Mediterranean island 00:16:17.730 --> 00:16:21.960 of Cyprus. Wow. Cyprus. It was a very bold geographical 00:16:21.960 --> 00:16:24.360 leap, though the idea never really gained practical 00:16:24.360 --> 00:16:26.779 traction. But he doesn't stop there. No. Two 00:16:26.779 --> 00:16:29.600 years later, in 1885, he moves to Kansas City 00:16:29.600 --> 00:16:32.200 and turns his focus toward Pan -Africanism. The 00:16:32.200 --> 00:16:34.440 Back to Africa movement. Exactly. The idea of 00:16:34.440 --> 00:16:37.139 global solidarity and return to the African continent. 00:16:37.340 --> 00:16:40.200 He founds the United Transatlantic Society, or 00:16:40.200 --> 00:16:43.580 UTS, advocating for all blacks to relocate to 00:16:43.580 --> 00:16:46.740 colonies like Sierra Leone and Liberia. And the 00:16:46.740 --> 00:16:50.399 UTS manages to last until 1887. but never actually 00:16:50.399 --> 00:16:53.639 succeeds in sending anyone to Africa. The logistics 00:16:53.639 --> 00:16:55.940 and funding required for transatlantic migration 00:16:55.940 --> 00:16:58.820 were simply too steep. It was a monumental task. 00:16:59.200 --> 00:17:02.480 It was. Finally, in 1889, in poor health and 00:17:02.480 --> 00:17:05.119 mostly retired from daily activism, he raises 00:17:05.119 --> 00:17:07.670 his voice one last time. The Oklahoma proposal. 00:17:08.049 --> 00:17:10.950 Yeah. He calls for a portion of the newly opening 00:17:10.950 --> 00:17:13.910 Oklahoma territory to be reserved strictly as 00:17:13.910 --> 00:17:15.930 an all -black state, completely separate from 00:17:15.930 --> 00:17:18.450 white governance. He was trying everything. So 00:17:18.450 --> 00:17:20.750 what does this all mean? We look at this final 00:17:20.750 --> 00:17:23.829 era of his life from 1881 to 1889 and we see 00:17:23.829 --> 00:17:26.690 a string of ventures. The COL, the Cypress proposal, 00:17:27.150 --> 00:17:29.789 the Back to Africa UTS, the Oklahoma statehood 00:17:29.789 --> 00:17:33.150 idea. Right. On paper, these all ultimately fail. 00:17:33.690 --> 00:17:35.869 How should we view this final stretch of his 00:17:35.869 --> 00:17:51.759 career? That's a great way to put it. Right. 00:18:04.299 --> 00:18:07.019 seemed entirely uncompromising. He looked to 00:18:07.019 --> 00:18:10.079 Cyprus. He looked to Africa. He looked to carving 00:18:10.079 --> 00:18:13.279 out a brand new territory entirely. He possessed 00:18:13.279 --> 00:18:16.160 a relentless flexibility. He never stopped trying 00:18:16.160 --> 00:18:18.900 to engineer a way out of oppression, constantly 00:18:18.900 --> 00:18:21.500 theorizing new blueprints for autonomy when the 00:18:21.500 --> 00:18:23.920 old ones were blocked. And that relentless flexibility 00:18:23.920 --> 00:18:26.859 is exactly why this history is so deeply relevant 00:18:26.859 --> 00:18:29.329 to you today. Benjamin Pabst Singleton's life 00:18:29.329 --> 00:18:32.289 is a brilliant study in the necessity of pivoting 00:18:32.289 --> 00:18:34.569 when a door slams in your face. Absolutely. Think 00:18:34.569 --> 00:18:37.190 about his trajectory. Blocked by landowners in 00:18:37.190 --> 00:18:39.950 Nashville, priced out by a lead mining boom in 00:18:39.950 --> 00:18:42.950 Baxter Springs, he immediately finds a legal 00:18:42.950 --> 00:18:45.210 loophole with the Homestead Act in Dunlap. He 00:18:45.210 --> 00:18:48.619 never got stuck. Never. He demonstrates the immense 00:18:48.619 --> 00:18:51.779 power of pooling resources, starting from his 00:18:51.779 --> 00:18:54.440 days as a scavenger in Detroit all the way to 00:18:54.440 --> 00:18:56.660 his vision for the colored United Links. Most 00:18:56.660 --> 00:18:59.799 importantly, his life underscores the realization 00:18:59.799 --> 00:19:03.259 that true autonomy often requires the exhausting 00:19:03.259 --> 00:19:06.809 work of creating your own spaces entirely. rather 00:19:06.809 --> 00:19:08.690 than just asking for a seat at a table where 00:19:08.690 --> 00:19:10.950 the game is already rigged against you. His legacy 00:19:10.950 --> 00:19:14.069 is undeniably profound. He passed away on February 00:19:14.069 --> 00:19:18.210 17, 1900, in Kansas City, Missouri. Over a century 00:19:18.210 --> 00:19:21.910 later, in 2002, the scholar Maleficent Asante 00:19:21.910 --> 00:19:25.369 rightfully included Pap Singleton in his biographical 00:19:25.369 --> 00:19:27.970 list of the 100 Greatest African Americans. Well 00:19:27.970 --> 00:19:30.210 deserved. The structural impact he had on Western 00:19:30.210 --> 00:19:32.930 migration is cemented in history. But the most 00:19:32.930 --> 00:19:35.490 striking and personal part of his legacy is actually 00:19:35.490 --> 00:19:37.829 found by tracing his family line. This is my 00:19:37.829 --> 00:19:39.670 favorite part of the source material. Yeah, the 00:19:39.670 --> 00:19:42.069 excerpt provides this incredible, almost cinematic 00:19:42.069 --> 00:19:44.750 glimpse into his descendants. We know his son, 00:19:44.849 --> 00:19:47.750 Joshua W. Singleton, eventually settled in Ellensworth, 00:19:47.869 --> 00:19:50.210 California. Which itself was an independent black 00:19:50.210 --> 00:19:53.609 agricultural settlement. Right. The instinct 00:19:53.609 --> 00:19:56.089 to seek out independent spaces clearly passed 00:19:56.089 --> 00:19:59.089 down. But the story takes a fascinating turn 00:19:59.089 --> 00:20:01.470 in The Next Generation. Joshua's grandchildren, 00:20:01.809 --> 00:20:04.349 who are Benjamin Singleton's great -grandchildren, 00:20:04.549 --> 00:20:07.630 were John Jr., Midge, Charles, and Robert Williams. 00:20:07.829 --> 00:20:09.710 The Williams family. As young adults, they formed 00:20:09.710 --> 00:20:12.750 a vocal group. Initially, they performed as the 00:20:12.750 --> 00:20:15.690 Williams Quartet in the Bay Area, and by 1928, 00:20:15.910 --> 00:20:18.410 they were touring widely as the Williams Four. 00:20:18.690 --> 00:20:21.970 Wow. Midge Williams also broke out as a highly 00:20:21.970 --> 00:20:25.890 successful swing jazz soloist. By 1933, this 00:20:25.890 --> 00:20:28.660 group The direct descendants of a man who escaped 00:20:28.660 --> 00:20:30.759 slavery on foot and lived in a dugout on the 00:20:30.759 --> 00:20:33.180 plains were successfully touring the globe. It's 00:20:33.180 --> 00:20:35.420 unbelievable. Performing in places as far away 00:20:35.420 --> 00:20:37.420 as Shanghai and Japan. It is a stunning trajectory 00:20:37.420 --> 00:20:40.559 over just two generations. A man who carried 00:20:40.559 --> 00:20:43.359 the heavy regret of never learning to read. who 00:20:43.359 --> 00:20:45.559 spent his entire life trying to carve out just 00:20:45.559 --> 00:20:48.740 a few safe acres of land for his community set 00:20:48.740 --> 00:20:51.299 a powerful precedent of geographic mobility and 00:20:51.299 --> 00:20:54.000 fearless exploration. A huge precedent. And that 00:20:54.000 --> 00:20:56.200 precedent resulted in his grandchildren crossing 00:20:56.200 --> 00:20:59.119 oceans to become international jazz stars. This 00:20:59.119 --> 00:21:02.119 raises an important question. How does the bravery 00:21:02.119 --> 00:21:05.839 of taking one single localized step toward freedom 00:21:05.839 --> 00:21:08.859 today echo across the globe generations later? 00:21:09.519 --> 00:21:12.220 Singleton couldn't possibly imagine his grandchildren 00:21:12.220 --> 00:21:15.539 singing in Shanghai, but his willingness to walk 00:21:15.539 --> 00:21:18.200 away from bondage, to build a life from scratch, 00:21:18.440 --> 00:21:21.099 to sit before the U .S. Senate and demand recognition. 00:21:22.029 --> 00:21:24.190 it fundamentally broke a generational chain. 00:21:24.369 --> 00:21:26.250 It changed their entire trajectory. It leaves 00:21:26.250 --> 00:21:28.890 you to mull over how your own difficult pivots, 00:21:28.950 --> 00:21:31.470 the times you were forced to abandon a failing 00:21:31.470 --> 00:21:34.450 plan, reinvent yourself, or step into the unknown, 00:21:34.569 --> 00:21:36.329 might just be setting up your descendants for 00:21:36.329 --> 00:21:38.690 heights you can't even fathom. A powerful reminder 00:21:38.690 --> 00:21:41.650 that our pivots reverberate far beyond our own 00:21:41.650 --> 00:21:43.690 lifetimes. Thank you for taking this journey 00:21:43.690 --> 00:21:46.329 with us today. Keep asking those big questions. 00:21:46.490 --> 00:21:48.430 Keep looking for those surprising connections. 00:21:48.549 --> 00:21:51.069 And as always, keep diving deep.