Ada Copeland King
Encyclopedia
Ada Copeland was the common law wife of American geologist Clarence King
. Copeland was presumed born a slave on or around December 23, 1860, and moved to New York in the mid 1880s where she worked as a nursemaid. In about 1887,
she became involved with Clarence King, a white man who passed himself to her as a black railway porter under the name of James Todd. They married in September, 1888, with King living as Todd with her but as Clarence King while working in the field. Before his death from tuberculosis in 1901, he wrote her confessing his true identity. After he died, Copeland embarked on a thirty-year battle to gain control of the trust fund he had promised her. Her representatives included notable lawyers Everett J. Waring, the first black lawyer to argue a case before the Supreme Court of the United States
, and J. Douglas Wetmore, who contested segregation laws in Jacksonville, Florida.
Eventually, in 1933, the court determined that King had died penniless, and no money was forthcoming. Ada had received a monthly stipend from John Hay
, a friend of King's, and from Hay's daughter Helen Hay Whitney after Hay's death in 1905. The stipend eventually stopped, though Copeland continued to live in the house Hay had bought for her until her death. She died on April 14, 1964, one of the last of the former American slaves.
Clarence King
Clarence R. King was an American geologist, mountaineer, and art critic. First director of the United States Geological Survey, from 1879 to 1881, King was noted for his exploration of the Sierra Nevada. He was born in Newport, Rhode Island.-Career:...
. Copeland was presumed born a slave on or around December 23, 1860, and moved to New York in the mid 1880s where she worked as a nursemaid. In about 1887,
she became involved with Clarence King, a white man who passed himself to her as a black railway porter under the name of James Todd. They married in September, 1888, with King living as Todd with her but as Clarence King while working in the field. Before his death from tuberculosis in 1901, he wrote her confessing his true identity. After he died, Copeland embarked on a thirty-year battle to gain control of the trust fund he had promised her. Her representatives included notable lawyers Everett J. Waring, the first black lawyer to argue a case before the Supreme Court of the United States
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
, and J. Douglas Wetmore, who contested segregation laws in Jacksonville, Florida.
Eventually, in 1933, the court determined that King had died penniless, and no money was forthcoming. Ada had received a monthly stipend from John Hay
John Hay
John Milton Hay was an American statesman, diplomat, author, journalist, and private secretary and assistant to Abraham Lincoln.-Early life:...
, a friend of King's, and from Hay's daughter Helen Hay Whitney after Hay's death in 1905. The stipend eventually stopped, though Copeland continued to live in the house Hay had bought for her until her death. She died on April 14, 1964, one of the last of the former American slaves.
Bibiliography
- Martha A. Sandweiss, Passing Strange: A Gilded Age Tale of Love and Deception across the Color Line (2009)