The First National Convention: The Meeting that Launched a Movement

This is a depiction of Mother Bethel AME church from 1829. The first Colored Convention was held in Philadelphia at this church, which served as a spiritual and cultural center for a robust free African American community. 

In the late 1820s, Philadelphia had the largest free Black community of any northern city. It was considered a hub of elite black culture and intellectualism. In 1828, The Colored American reported, “should a stranger desire to see the elite of our people, he must visit Philadelphia which contains a larger number of them than any other city.” Because of this reputation, Philadelphia would not have been a surprising choice as the location for the first national colored convention.

The free Black community in Philadelphia, like many other cities, had previous experience organizing itself into myriad intellectual societies. These already established literary societies had their own meetings, committees, and constitutions, before the first national convention took place. One such society was titled, “The Reading Room Society for the Men of Color, who are Citizens of the City and Liberties of Philadelphia” [1]. In 1828, a young William Whipper served as this literary society’s secretary; he authored the address that proclaimed its objective. Two years later, Whipper, who would soon become a wealthy entrepreneur who would continue his reform activities and activism, was also delegate to the 1830 national convention at Bishop Richard Allen’s AME church. Philadelphia’s culture and the individual African Americans that shaped it made the city an excellent space in which to bring together African American leaders from across the country.

Sources:

[1] Richard P. McCormick, "William Whipper: Moral Reformer," Pennsylvania History, 1976.