Anta Madjiguene Jai Kingsley was a woman from Senegal who was enslaved and sold in Cuba. She was purchased as a wife by a plantation owner and slave trader named Zephaniah Kingsley.
After Zephaniah’s death, Anna became a planter and slave owner in her own right, living as a free Black woman in early 19th-century Florida.
Anna’s early life is not well documented, but it is known that she was born into the Wolof people in 1793. When she was 13, she was captured and taken to Cuba where she was sold to Zephaniah Kingsley.
They were married in a native ceremony, had four children, and Anna managed his plantations in East Florida. In 1811, when Anna turned 18, Zephaniah freed her and gave her control of his plantations.
Anna became a successful planter and was given a Spanish land grant for 5 acres and owned 12 slaves. She was later awarded a land grant of 350 acres by the Spanish government after defending her property against invading Americans.
After Zephaniah’s death, Anna returned to Florida to fight against his white relatives who were trying to exclude her and her children from their inheritance.
Despite facing discrimination, Anna was successful in court and settled in the Arlington neighborhood of Jacksonville, where she passed away in 1870 at 77 years old.
The Kingsley Plantation, where Anna and Zephaniah lived, is now part of the Timucuan Ecological and Historic Preserve protected by the National Park Service.
Early Life of Anta Madjiguene
Anta Majigueen Ndiaye was born in 1793 in present-day Senegal, in a region that was torn apart by a fierce conflict between the majority Wolof people and the minority Fula.
The war resulted in many small villages being deserted, as people either fled in fear for their lives or were abducted and sold into slavery.
Unfortunately, Anta Madjiguene was among the unfortunate ones who fell victim to the slave raids when she was captured in 1806 at the young age of 13, most likely by Tyeddo raiders from the Futa Toro.
Anta Madjiguene came from a prominent family, and her father was a leader among the Wolof people. Through her father, Anta was a Ndiaye descendant, and she carried that name.
Her mother also had ancestors who had held the title of the Buurba Jolof, or king of the Wolofs. Although lineages are disputed, some believe that Anta may have been the daughter of a still-ruling branch of the royal family.
Anta was described later as “a very unusual ‘native’—tall, dignified, with well-formed features, and a commanding presence.”
Her regal bearing, combined with her intelligence and determination, would serve her well in the tumultuous events of her life to come.
Anta’s story took a dramatic turn when she was sold into slavery in Cuba and purchased by Zephaniah Kingsley, a plantation owner and slave trader.
In Cuba, Anta was impregnated by Kingsley and married to him in a native ceremony. They went on to have four children together.
In a remarkable act of kindness, Kingsley freed Anta when she turned 18 in 1811, giving her responsibilities for his plantations in East Florida, then under Spanish colonial rule.
For 25 years, Kingsley’s unusual family lived on Fort George Island, part of modern-day Jacksonville, where Anta managed a large and successful planting operation. After gaining freedom, she was given a Spanish land grant for 5 acres (20,000 m2) and owned 12 slaves.
Anta’s story took another twist when the United States took control of Florida and American discriminatory laws threatened the multi-racial Kingsley family.
Most of them moved to Haiti, and Kingsley died soon after. Anta returned to Florida to dispute her husband’s white relatives, who were contesting Kingsley’s will and sought to exclude Anta and her children from their inheritance.
Despite a political climate hostile toward Blacks, the court honored a treaty between the United States and Spain, and Anta was successful in the court case.
She later settled in the Arlington neighborhood of Jacksonville, where she died in 1870 at 77 years old. The National Park Service protects Kingsley Plantation, where Anta and Kingsley lived on Fort George Island, as part of the Timucuan Ecological and Historic Preserve.
Anta Madjiguene and Kingsley on Laurel Grove
Zephaniah Kingsley brought Anta, now called Anna, to Laurel Grove plantation in Florida, which he had been granted by the Spanish colonial government in exchange for bringing 74 slaves to the territory.
Kingsley had become a citizen of Spanish Florida in 1803, which allowed him to continue his international slave trading.
Anna was pregnant when she arrived at the plantation, which was prosperous and grew oranges, cotton, peas, and potatoes.
Over a hundred slaves worked there, from different African ethnic groups, living in two groups of houses. Anna lived with Kingsley in his large house.
The task system was used to manage work, where slaves were given a quota and then allowed to pursue their own tasks. The plantation was very successful and made an extraordinary income at the time, with one year bringing in $10,000.
In 1814, Zephaniah Kingsley bought a plantation on Fort George Island. Unfortunately, the owner’s house had been vandalized and every other structure on the property was destroyed.
Anna took over managing the plantation while Kingsley was away on business. They built a separate kitchen in the 1820s, following the West African custom of wives living separately from their husbands.
Kingsley had three other wives, all slaves, while on Fort George Island. Anna had nine children with him, but he had no white children.
Thirty-two slave cabins were built close to Kingsley’s house, made of tabby, a material created by pounding oyster shells into lime, adding water and sand. The foundation of “Ma’am Anna House” was also constructed of tabby, which proved to be fireproof and more durable than wood.
The slave quarters were arranged in a semi-circular pattern, which was unusual in the South. Some historians think that Kingsley arranged them to keep better watch over his slaves.
However, author Daniel Schafer believed that Anna may have been responsible for the layout of the slave quarters because many African villages had a similar circular pattern.
Anta Madjiguene Marriage to Zephaniah Kingsley
Anta endured a perilous journey to Havana, Cuba, which included traveling through some infamous middle passage.
After being captured in Senegal at the age of 13, she was taken away from her family and friends and brought to Gorée Island, a slave embarkation point from the West African coast to the Americas.
There, she was boarded onto a ship headed for Havana, Cuba, and spent an uncertain and uncomfortable journey across the Atlantic.
Upon arriving in Cuba, Anta was sold to Zephaniah Kingsley, a slave trader and merchant who resided in Spanish Florida. According to Kingsley’s account, he and Anta were married in a traditional African ceremony that was conducted in Cuba.
However, no further information or documentation on this marriage has emerged. Some scholars, like Kathleen Wu, argue that Kingsley’s story of buying Anta in Cuba was false and intended to strengthen her credentials as a free woman.
She suggests that Kingsley sought a wife in Africa and that he needed to establish that Anta had been enslaved for his manumission to be valid.
Regardless of the circumstances of their marriage, Anta and Kingsley shared a cabin on the ship transporting slaves from Gorée to Havana, and by the time they reached Florida, Anta was pregnant with their first son, George.
This marked the beginning of a new chapter in Anta’s life, where she would not only navigate the complexities of being a slave but also those of being a wife and mother in a foreign land.
Despite the challenges, Anta’s strength, dignity, and commanding presence would leave a lasting impression on those around her, and her legacy would continue to inspire generations to come.
Conclusion
In 2003, a History professor named Daniel L. Schafer wrote a book about Anna Madgigne Jai Kingsley, an African princess who became a slave and later a plantation owner in Florida.
Many years later, people from Anna’s homeland of Senegal visited the Kingsley Plantation to connect with their lost princess. Today, some of the land that Anna once owned is now part of Jacksonville University in Florida.
In 2018, the mayor and city council of Senegal organized a celebration to welcome Princess Anta back home. They retold her story and named a street after her that led from the city hall to the market and sea where she was sold into slavery and taken to Cuba.
Today, the Kingsley plantation is a museum located in Jacksonville, Florida. Some of the land that Anna once owned is now part of Jacksonville University. Anna’s daughter Bessie Coleman became the first African-American female pilot in the United States.
Anna’s story is fascinating, as she was born into royalty but was forced into slavery before eventually becoming a successful plantation owner.
Also read: Aqualtune, the Angolan Princess Who Fought Against Slavery
The story is also a fascinating one that offers a glimpse into the history of slavery in America and the incredible resilience and determination of those who were enslaved.
Source
https://discoverafricanews.com/african-princess-anta-became-wealthy-by-elizabeth-ofosuah-johnson/
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