Ebenezer
Don Carlos Bassett
Black History
Last week's highlight on Black History was the story of Quash and Roswell Freeman.
Quash was born in Ghana, was captured and sold into slavery, traveled the Middle Passage, and received his freedom in Derby. He would then become Derby's first Black Governor.
This week, we take a look at Ebenezer D. Bassett, our Nation's first Black ambassador to Haiti and the Dominican Republic. The story of the Black Governors ties into this week's highlight since there were two families in Derby that held the office of Governor.
Tobias was the second Black Governor and was the father of Eben Tobias who was the fourth Black Governor - Eben Tobias was the father of Ebenezer D. Bassett who was our Nation's first Black Minster Resident and this week's highlighted historical figure.
This week, we take a look at Ebenezer D. Bassett, our Nation's first Black ambassador to Haiti and the Dominican Republic. The story of the Black Governors ties into this week's highlight since there were two families in Derby that held the office of Governor.
Tobias was the second Black Governor and was the father of Eben Tobias who was the fourth Black Governor - Eben Tobias was the father of Ebenezer D. Bassett who was our Nation's first Black Minster Resident and this week's highlighted historical figure.
The term ambassador did not come into use until the very late 19th-c (Mycek et al., 2008).
The other family would be the Freeman family who we introduced in last week's post.
Orcutt and Beardsley (1880) differentiate between the two families on page 550 of “The History of the Old Town of Derby, Connecticut, 1642-1880”.
Ebenezer D. Bassett was born in 1833 in Litchfield, Connecticut, and was brought to Derby by his parents when he was an infant. His education and experiences in Derby would prepare him for the adventures of a lifetime as a pioneer Black educator and our Nation's first Black diplomat.
Ebenezer D. Bassett was born in 1833 in Litchfield, Connecticut, and was brought to Derby by his parents when he was an infant. His education and experiences in Derby would prepare him for the adventures of a lifetime as a pioneer Black educator and our Nation's first Black diplomat.
The life of this extraordinary American has been researched and presented by the Valley Research Committee in print. Mary J. Mycek, Marian K. O'Keefe, and Carolyn B. Ivanoff share their work here: https://connecticuthistory.org/ebenezer-bassetts-historic-journey/
The City of Derby has a link here to its Hall of Fame page on Bassett.
Ebenezer Bassett, Minister to Haiti and the Dominican Republic (1869-1879) – US Diplomacy Center at the US Department of State
The back cover of the aforementioned book by the Valley Research Committee is from the Library of Congress and is titled Distinguished Colored Men, A. Muller & Co., ca. 1883, chromolithograph.
Ebenezer Bassett is pictured directly under Frederick Douglass.
Bassett was a friend and Secretary to Douglass in 1889.
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