Amanda Berry Smith

Amanda Berry Smith (January 23, 1837 – February 24, 1915) was a former slave who became an inspiration to thousands of women, both black and white. She was born to slaves in Long Green, Maryland, a small town in Baltimore County. Her father's name was Samuel Berry and her mother's name was Mariam Matthews. The Smiths had thirteen children. Her father was a well-trusted man, and his master’s widow trusted him enough to place him in charge of her farm. After his duties for the day were done, Mr. Berry was allowed to go out and earn extra money for himself and his family. Many nights he would go without sleeping because he was busy making brooms and husk mats for the Baltimore market to make extra cash. He was devoted to the goal of freedom. After first purchasing his freedom, he made it his mission to buy his family's. After his family's freedom was secured, the Smiths settled in Pennsylvania.

Growing up, Amanda had the advantage of learning to read and write. “Her father made it a regular practice on Sunday mornings to read to his family from the Bible. Her mother helped her to learn reading before she was eight and was sent to school.” Unlike many other enslaved children and adults, Amanda had the privilege of learning at an early age. Amanda and her younger brother attended school at the age of eight. The school only held summer sessions and after six weeks of attending, the school was forced to close. Five years later, at the age of 13, they had been given another option of attending school. However, the school was five miles from their home and they would only be taught if there was time after the teachers gave the white kids their lesson. The Smith siblings felt that it was not worth traveling in the cold to receive lessons only if time was permitted. After two weeks of attending school, they dropped out and were taught at home by their parents and sometimes taught themselves. With only having three and a half months of formal schooling, Amanda went to work near York, Pennsylvania, as the servant of a widow with five children. While there, she attended a revival service at the Methodist Episcopal Church.

Amanda worked hard as a cook and a washerwoman to provide for herself and her daughter after her husband was killed in the American Civil War. By the time Smith was thirty-two, she had lost two husbands and four of her five children. Attending religious camp meetings and revivals helped Smith work through her grief and avoid depression. She immersed herself in the African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church.

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