 | This articleneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Henry Francis Downing" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(January 2014) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
Henry Francis Downing (c. 1846 – 19 February 1928)[1] was anAfrican-American sailor, politician, dramatist and novelist. His cousin wasHilary R. W. Johnson, the first African-born president ofLiberia (1884–92).[2]
Henry Francis Downing was born inNew York City and named for his father Henry. His paternal grandfather was noted caterer and oyster seller Thomas Downing. Among Downing's uncles was noted caterer and abolitionistGeorge T. Downing, who ran successful businesses in New York,Newport, Rhode Island, and Washington, DC.
In 1864 Downing joined theU.S. Navy at theBrooklyn Navy Yard.[1] According toBlackPast.org, "Navy records listed him as having deserted in 1865, though it was later revealed he left the ship to attend his stepfather’s funeral, and his mother had obtained his discharge so that he could assist her".[1] After theUS Civil War, Downing started on a journey around the world, and reached the American colony ofLiberia, where he lived for three years.[1] On his return to the US in 1872, he again enlisted in the navy, serving until 1875.[1]
In 1887,Grover Cleveland appointed Downing asconsul toLuanda,Angola, but he resigned in 1888. In late 1890, he led theAfrican Americans ofNew York City to tender to theComte de Paris.[3] In early 1891, Judge William H. Amoux, Chairman of the Committee of 200 Pan-Republican Congress, appointed Downing, along with other prominent men, to the Committee of Plan and Scope.[4]
The next month, Downing became one of the first African Americans to dine withReform Democrats.[5] In June 1892, Downing, a lifelongDemocrat, joined other African Americans at the Democratic headquarters. They believed they had to look for alternative alliances than the Republican Party.[6] Meanwhile, he sued Sils and Son, the proprietors of aBrooklyn restaurant, for $10,000 over the spread ofcholera. By then, Downing had become the editor of theBrooklyn Messenger.[7][8] On 4 November 1892, the newspaper editor joined C. Holliday ofTopeka and George P. H. McVay ofHarlem, editor of theUptown Press, at the College Street Chapel for a discussion.[9]
In 1895, Downing traveled with his wife toLondon. They chose to stay and lived there for 22 years.[2] He was a participant in theFirst Pan-African Conference there in 1900.
While in London, Downing concentrated on creative writing, publishing several plays and a novel,The American Cavalryman: A Liberian Romance (1917).[10] Downing was inspired by the life of American actorIra Frederick Aldridge, who developed a career in performing Shakespeare in London and Europe.[11] Downing was "probably the first person of African descent to have a play of his or her own written and published in Britain."[12]
Returning to the US in 1917, Downing lived in New York City during his final years. He died on 19 February 1928, at theHarlem Hospital.[1]
BlackfilmmakerOscar Micheaux based two films on Downing's literary work. Micheaux'sThirty Years Later (1928) is based on a story/novella by Downing, and the filmA Daughter of the Congo (1930) is based on Downing'sThe American Cavalryman.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
