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In William Woodward's mural, Paul Jennings brings a ladder as first lady Dolley Madison directs the rescue of George Washington's portrait at the White House on Aug. 24, 1814.
Paul Jennings wrote the first White House memoir.
Daniel Webster noted that he paid $120 to free Paul Jennings, and Jennings promised to repay him.
Descendants of Paul Jennings gather in February on the front steps |
BY CLINT SCHEMMER
A rider galloped up to the White House with a message for the first lady from her husband, President James Madison.
"Clear out, clear out!" he advised. British troops were on Washington's doorstep, breaking through the city's defenses at Bladensburg, Md., in the War of 1812.
Dolley Madison, who had been overseeing removal of Cabinet documents while also hopefully preparing dinner for guests, gave the order: Break the frame around George Washington's full-length portrait and remove the canvas, lest the enemy make a prize of it.
Paul Jennings, one of the Madisons' slaves, was among the staff who accomplished that task and spirited the Gilbert Stuart painting to safety in a Virginia farmhouse.
Tomorrow, his descendants will return to the president's house for a private tour and a rendezvous with history.
Curator William G. Allman will lead Jennings' kin into the East Room and show them the portrait, considered the White House's most valuable historical object. It's the only item on display that was present when the residence--built with slave labor--opened in 1800.
Margaret Hayes Jordan, Jennings' great-great-great-granddaughter, looks forward to the visit.
"It's a very profound feeling to know that your great-great-great-grandfather was a slave in the White House and that we now have an African-American president and first family living in that same home," she said yesterday.
The Obamas will be settling in on Martha's Vineyard, Mass., this afternoon for their vacation. Tomorrow will be the 195th anniversary, to the day, of the moment in 1814 when Mrs. Madison, Jennings and a few others saved Stuart's imposing portrait of the Father of Our Country from disgrace. That night, British troops feasted on the Madisons' dinner before torching the White House. They reportedly looted a portrait of Dolley, showing it off back in London and bragging about their exploits.
One reason that historians know a good bit about the events of that day--a favorite story of White House guides and visitors--is that Jennings left the first insider's account of life at the White House.
JENNINGS TOLD HIS STORY
"A Colored Man's Reminiscences of James Madison" was published in 1865. A friend of Jennings wrote down his recollections "in almost his own language." Montpelier--which organized tomorrow's special White House visit--sells a copy of Jennings' memoir to support research into his life.
It is the rarest of documents from the period; few records exist about the black men and women who lived and worked at the Executive Mansion. Generally, slaves' owners paid little heed to their stories, and barred them from learning to read and write, curator Allman has noted.
But Jennings was remarkable for other reasons, according to Beth Taylor, a research associate at Montpelier, the Madisons' home in Orange County.
As James Madison's manservant, Jennings was in his orbit from age 10, when he first set eyes on the White House, until Madison died in 1836 at Montpelier at the age of 85. He shaved Madison every other day for 16 years, and said Madison was kind to his slaves. He recalled Madison as a frugal and sober man who owned only one suit and probably never "drank a quarter of brandy in his whole life."
When visitors to Montpelier hear the vivid account of Madison's final moments, it's Jennings they hear quoting the Father of the Constitution's dying words, as he tended him on his deathbed.
Jennings--who had a long life--later bought his freedom, helped plan a unsuccessful slave escape from Washington, and aided Mrs. Madison during her impoverished decades after her husband's death and the sale of their estate.
SLAVE'S LIFE BEING STUDIED
"I delight in his courage and his successful pursuit of the 'right to rise' that America promises," Taylor said yesterday. "He had what I've come to see is a remarkable set of abilities. And I admire his sensibilities."
Taylor is writing the first scholarly treatment of Jennings' reminiscences and life, to be published next year.
As did Jennings' friends, who included U.S. Sen. Daniel Webster, she praises his smarts, honesty, tact and compassion for others.
"He had a native intelligence he drew on," she said. " but he was also influenced by James Madison and his world of ideas to appreciate that his yearning for freedom was a right of man, a gift of nature."
Jennings was 48 when he finally gained his freedom, more than 10 years after Madison's death.
One account, published in an abolitionist newspaper, said Mrs. Madison wouldn't free Jennings as her husband had desired. Increasingly strapped for money, she sold him to an insurance agent, who then sold him to Webster. The New England statesman immediately freed Jennings, allowing him to work off the debt as his household servant, Taylor said. Jennings worked for the U.S. Pension Office, bought property, and reunited his children in the capital.
About this same time, Jennings helped one of Mrs. Madison's slaves try to escape, hidden aboard the schooner Pearl with 75 others. The failed attempt and the trial of the ship's crew prompted leading Americans to debate slavery. President Millard Fillmore pardoned the operators of the Pearl.
KIN PRAISE CHARACTER
Discovering such stories has been a revelation for some of Jennings' descendants.
Yet Jordan, his great-great-great-granddaughter, believes they all fit with his character. "He had a generosity of spirit, kindness, compassion," she said. "He continued to see Mrs. Madison for years after he was freed, even though she had hired him out to earn money for her."
When Dolley Madison moved back to Washington from Orange County and was forced to depend on friends such as Webster for food and finances, Jennings helped support the former first lady with "small sums from own pocket," his memoir states.
Jordan, 66, is proud that her ancestor's deeds are being recognized by the nation's historians.
Hearing people's recent reactions to his life story has been "wonderful," she said.
"I hope it helps fill in the blanks, and inspires lots of African-Americans to write down their stories," Jordan said. "It's really important for people to record these incredible examples so that people have an in-depth understanding of what it's taken to build our country and our society."
ON THE NET: montpelier.org whitehousehistory.org
Clint Schemmer: 540/368-5029
Email: cschemmer@freelancestar.com
