Slave Memorial

Introduction

Text-to-speech Audio

The Slave Memorial on the University of Alabama’s campus was dedicated on September 23, 2004. The two slaves whose graves are being honored are Jack Rudolph, who was buried in 1843, and William “Bosey” Brown, a 7-year-old boy who was buried in 1844. The Memorial came several months after the University issued an official apology for its role in the enslavement of Africans and African Americans. The University of Alabama apologized on April 20, 2004.

Images

A photograph of the marker outside of the biology building. Photo from TuscaloosaNews.com.

A photograph of the slave graveyard. Photo from CivilWarAlbum.com (http://www.civilwaralbum.com/misc18/ua7.htm)

Backstory and Context

Text-to-speech Audio

The university’s apology came after the research of law professor Alfred L. Brophy conducted research on the involvement and history of slavery on the campus of the University of Alabama. His findings are published in the book The Age of Apology: Facing Up to the Past.[1] After presenting those findings to the university’s Committee on Diversity and Inclusiveness, Brophy presented his research to the Faculty Senate on March 16, 2004 and asked the university to issue a formal apology for its role in the upholding and practice of the institution of slavery.[2]

The slaves whose graves are honored, Jack and Bosey, belonged to Basil Manly, one of the presidents of the university and the Chaplain of the Confederacy.[3] According to the memorial plaque, Jack Rudolph was born in African around 1791 and passed away on May 5, 1846 from “Bilious Pneumonia.” William “Bosey” Brown was born on April 10, 1838, and died November 22, 1844 from “Whooping Cough.”

On April 15, 2004, a memorial service was held at the site of the graves. This was followed by the University’s apology for its role in the enslavement of African and African American persons on April 20, 2006, specifically offering an apology for its role as a “promoter of proslavery thought.”[4]

[1] Gibney, Mark, ed. “The Age of Apology: Facing Up to the Past.” In The Age of Apology: Facing Up to the Past, 109–19. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2008.

[2] Smith, TuscaloosaNews.com.

[3] Ibid.

[4] Ibid.

Sources

Gibney, Mark, ed. “The Age of Apology: Facing Up to the Past.” In The Age of Apology: Facing Up to the Past, 109–19. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2008.

Jet Magazine, May 10, 2004. Retrieved from African American Registry on February 11, 2016. http://www.aaregistry.org/historic_events/view/university-alabama-apologizes-Blacks.

Harris, Zenobia. “Ceremony Planned to Dedicate Markers for Slave Graves on UA Campus.” The University of Alabama, September 23, 2004. http://uanews.ua.edu/2004/09/ceremony-planned-to-dedicate-markers-for-slave-graves-on-ua-campus/.

Smith, Jamon. “Slavery Marks University’s Past.” TuscaloosaNews.com, April 7, 2006. http://www.tuscaloosanews.com/article/20060407/ua17502/60406005. “The University of Alabama Apologizes to Blacks.”