Loyal to the End: The Life of James Page 1808-1883

Abstract

Slaves obey your human masters with fear and trembling; and do it with a sincere heart, as though you were serving Christ... Ephesians 6:5(1) Ever your kind Old Servant and friend till death - Rev. James Page (1868)(2) Religious indoctrination, an age-old practice, was used by many Southern planters to make African slaves fearful, docile, and hard working. Many slaveholders believed that if they could invariably control the mind of the slave, they could in turn control the behavior of the slave, whether on or off the plantation.(3) One major result of the use of religion on the plantation was the emergence of the black preacher.(4) A good black preacher was one who was a strong advocate and believer in the master's dogmatic theology. He exhorted in earnest the doctrine of the master, thus capturing his slave congregation in the rapture of receiving a heavenly reward, after their earthly labors. The ever popular Reverand James Page of Leon County, Florida, was one such preacher. His life is reflective of how oppressive religious doctrine was used by North Florida planters to acquire and maintain the loyalty of some Africans in America, slave or free. Leon County, was a center of the state's social and economic activity. There lay the site of the state's capitol, and the county hosted some of Florida's wealthiest landowners The United States Census of 1860 showed that African slaves constituted 74 percent of Leon County's population.(5) Since Africans constituted a majority in the area, planters were aggressive in making provisions for their personal safety. They realized that, if thorough measures were not taken, a strong possibility existed of rebellion against the sub-human conditions in which Africans were forced to live. Consequently, the purpose of religion on the plantation, for many planters, was not humanitarian, but merely a means to an end. In order to prevent slave rebellion, the Euro-American slave system played on the spirituality of Africans by attempting to condition them to give up their traditional form of worship for the acceptance of Euro-American self-serving religions. Many slaveholders, therefore, erected as pillars in the slave community a highly respected individual who would preach whatever the master desired. Planters knew that no one would be better fit for the job of relaying to slaves and gaining acceptance for their exploitative Christian dogma than a member of the slave community itself. Thus, the black preacher emerged and went about the business of spreading the oppressive doctrine of the master.(6) His duty was to see to it that slaves remained pious, which in turn, would keep the plantation peaceful and safe. The black preacher became a key player in the transformation of Africans in America from human beings to docile laborers for Euro-American exploitation. However, because of the influence he came to wield in the slave community, he was also feared and watched with scrutiny. James Page was among the chosen in North Florida. He was described by his contemporaries as being a large dark-skinned man, who began to bald in his old age. However, a portrait of Page shows him with light colored skin, a full head of straight hair, and thin lips - the standard of beauty at the time.(7) He was born a slave in 1808 in Richmond, Virginia. At the age of twenty he was brought to Bel Air, in Leon County, along with his wife Elizabeth, by his owner, the wealthy Colonel John Parkhill. Under the tutelage of his master, a Presbyterian minister, Page learned to read and write mad developed a fondness for the preaching profession. He was encouraged and given the blessings of Parkhill to preach to his downtrodden brethren on the Parkhill plantation. The conditions of Page's servitude under the Parkhill family were relatively mild in respect to other slaves. His duties consisted of gardening around the Parkhill home, running errands, and traveling with his master. …