The Provincial Freeman
In 1853, Shadd founded an anti-slavery newspaper, called the Provincial Freeman. The paper's slogan was "Devoted to antislavery, temperance and general literature."[12] It was published weekly and the first issue was published in Toronto, Ontario, on March 24, 1853.[16] It ran for four years before financial challenges ended its publication. Shadd was aware that her female name would repel some readers, because of the gender expectations of 19th-century society. Therefore, she persuaded Samuel Ringgold Ward, a black abolitionist who published several abolitionist newspapers, including Impartial Citizen, to help her publish it.[17][18][19] She also enlisted the help of Rev. Alexander McArthur, a white clergyman. Their names were featured on the masthead, but Shadd was involved in all aspects of the paper.
Her brother Isaac Shadd managed the daily business affairs of the newspaper. Isaac was also a committed abolitionist, and would later host gatherings to plan the raid on Harper's Ferry at his home.
Shadd traveled widely in Canada and the United States to increase subscription to the paper, and to publicly solicit aid for runaway slaves. Because of the Fugitive Slave Act, these trips included significant risk to Shadd's safety; free blacks could be captured by bounty hunters seeking escaped slaves.[17]
As was typical in the black press, the Provincial Freeman played an important role by giving voice to the opinions of black Canadian anti-slavery activists.
The impact of African-American newspapers from 1850 to 1860 was significant in the abolitionist movement. However, it was challenging to sustain publication. Publishers like Shadd undertook their work because of a commitment to education and advocacy and used their newspapers as a means to influence opinion. They had to overcome financial, political, and social challenges to keep their papers afloat.[20][21][22]
Carol B. Conaway writes in "Racial Uplift: The Nineteenth Century Thought of Black Newspaper Publisher Mary Ann Shadd Cary" that these newspapers shifted the focus from whites to blacks in an empowering way. She writes that whites read these newspapers to monitor the level of dissatisfaction among African Americans and to measure their tolerance for continued slavery in America.
Black newspapers often modeled their newspapers on mainstream white publications. According to research conducted by William David Sloan in his various historical textbooks, the first newspapers were about four pages and had one blank page to provide a place for people to write their own information before passing it along to friends and relatives. He also discussed how the newspapers during these early days were the center of information for society and culture.[23][24][25][26][27]
In 1854, Shadd changed the masthead to feature her own name, rather than those of McArthur and Ward. She also hired her sister to help edit the paper. There was intense criticism of the change, and Shadd was forced to resign the following year.[16]
