This Noble Woman: Myrtilla Miner and Her Fight to Establish a School for African American Girls in the Slaveholding South (22)

by Michael M. Greenburg

   Frederick Douglass dismissed Myrtilla’s plan to open a school for African American girls in the slaveholding South as “reckless, almost to the point of madness.” But Myrtilla Miner, the daughter of poor white farmers in Madison County, New York, was relentless. Fueled by an unyielding feminist conviction, and against a tide of hostility, on December 3, 1851, the fiery educator and abolitionist opened the School for Colored Girls—the only school in Washington, DC, dedicated to training African American students to be teachers.
   Although often in poor health, Myrtilla was a fierce advocate for her school, fending off numerous attacks, including stonings, arson, and physical threats, and discouraging local “rowdies” by brandishing her revolver with open displays of target practice. The school would gradually gain national fame and stimulate a nationwide debate on the education of black people. Myrtilla’s School for Colored Girls would slowly flourish through the years, and its mission exists even today through the University of the District of Columbia. This Noble Woman is the first modern biography of Myrtilla Miner for young adults, and includes historic photos, source notes, a bibliography, and a list of resources for further exploration.

Genres: Biography, Nonfiction, History, Education, Race

224 pages, Hardcover

First published August 1, 2018

Reviews

[Sarah · Rating 1 out of 5]

"Her legacy, overshadowed by heroes such as Frederick Douglass, Harriet Tubman, and William Lloyd Garrison, seemed to fade as the years passed."
Hi, maybe don't start off a book complaining about a white savior not getting as much credit as FREDERICK DOUGLASS AND HARRIET TUBMAN.

[Tom · Rating 4 out of 5]

So I'm minding my own business doing some family genealogy research on a paternal great-Grandmother of mine by the name of Mary Elizabeth Catherine Miner, when this book pops up in a goodreads giveaway. Myrtilla Miner,you say? Couldn't be any relation to great granny Mary E.C. Miner (actually spelled Minor in the very German American area where she married into my clan), could she...? It took some digging and verifying of connections, but by golly, it turns out they were indeed related. In fact they were 2nd cousins. Which makes me Myrtilla Miner's 5th cousin, 5 times removed! Isn't that a fun thing to discover in the old family tree? It seems our Myrtilla was a rather remarkable woman. Though in many ways something of a flawed character, she nevertheless had the vision, conviction, and shear force of will to pull off a thing that everyone dismissed as the worst of bad ideas. And in what city did she establish her school? Why Washington D.C. of course. Maybe doesn't sound very southern now, but surrounded as it was by the slave holding states of Maryland and Virginia, the inhabitants of the city at that time considered themselves to be very southern indeed. As such, establishing a school there for children of color (especially girls) was no less inflammatory or outright dangerous than if she'd attempted to do so in a deep south city like Atlanta or Mobile. And there were plenty in Washington who did threaten her and her school with violence. On one occasion a group of ruffians pummeled the school with stones and shouted that they would burn the place to the ground; whereupon Myrtilla leaned out the front window, pistol in hand, and vowed to "shoot the first man who approaches the door". Wow. She may have been a woman, but cousin Myrtle had balls as big as church bells. That may be a rather crass way of putting it, but sometimes you just have the tell it like is...and with no small amount of family pride.

But while the subject matter may be 5-star, the book really isn't. It seems to be quite well researched, but is not particularly well written. This book is certainly intended for children of probably Middle School age, yet I think even most of that audience would find the writing rather clumsy and too repetitive. If I were really being objective, I should dock my rating a star or two for that. I'm not being objective though. It's about family. I'll make some allowances. So yes, I do recommend this book to anyone interested in the lesser known people and events laced through the history of the American Civil War. You probably won't get the same feeling of pride that I got from it, but it is still very much worth the read.

And full disclosure: I did not win the ARC in the goodreads giveaway. It was worth buying, though. After all, it is all in the family, right?

[April eclecticbookworm · Rating 2 out of 5]

I can’t say Myrtilla Miner wasn’t an interesting woman and she certainly persisted despite her own delicate health and how society felt about educating not only people of color but females but after it was established she seemed a little unstable and left it to chance and the outcome of the Civil War ensured survival.

[Edward Sullivan · Rating 3 out of 5]

A biography of the New York-born abolitionist who established and struggled to keep open the School for Colored Girls in Washington, DC, dedicated to training students to be teachers.

[Andréa]

Note: I accessed a digital review copy of this book through Edelweiss.