Grave Spotlight of the Month - August 2021 - Mattie Jacobs Fuller

Martha "Mattie" Susan Pierce was born in April 10, 1856 in Kentucky to slave parents and was the "next-to-the-youngest of eight children".  In an article published in the Bloomington Daily-Telephone after her death, it is said that she told her interviewer that her parents were "Andy Pierce" who "lived with a Shouse family in Boston, KY" and her mother was "Cassie Young" who "lived with the Billy Grier family at Simpsonville, KY".  She said that she came to Indiana from Kentucky on a barge, crossing the Ohio River and that her love of music came from a woman who played a "great, big harp" while on the barge", though another interview states it was a banjo that was being played.  Mattie was six years old when she crossed the river into Indiana.

They settled in the Woodyard neighborhood northwest of Bloomington.  The Woodyard Road area is close to Ellettsville, so I am not sure if this is where they settled or in an area closer to town that no longer bears that name.  Regardless, she and her parents and her siblings made a home for themselves, but not long afterward, her mother died of a heart attack.  It was at this time that Mattie was sent to live with General Morton Hunter and his wife on North Walnut Street.  Was this because her father could not support all of the children after his wife passed away?  We may never know, but it was not an uncommon thing for children to be sent away to live with another, even if they were very young.  

Her home with the Morton's, however, was not a permanent one.  The City of Bloomington's Historic Tour Guide No. 14 talks briefly about her, stating that "following the Civil War, Mattie Jacobs Fuller was indentured to an Indiana physician". She was 12 years old when she was bound to Doctor John J. Durand and his wife.  The Perry Township Trustee, William H. Turner, demanded that she was to be taught "to read, to do sums of math if possible, and to provided with a home, food, and clothing".  Not only were they responsible for her care, they also sent her Louisville to be trained as a beautician and "gave her music lessons from the best music teachers in Bloomington".

The article goes on to say that she was "released when she was 14 years old".  She married a man named Henry Clay Jacobs on December 3, 1873.  He was a woodcutter by trade.

Unfortunately, the ages listed and her birthdate don't line up.  If she was 14 in 1873 when she married Henry Jacobs, then she was probably born in 1859 not 1856.  It's hard to tell what the exact date of her birth was, but it is listed on her headstone as being 1856.

Her husband died on February 17, 1894 and is buried next to her in the Old Spencer Addition in Rose Hill Cemetery.  Their five children preceded her in death. 

I am not sure how long she trained to be a beautician, but after she had completed her training, she sold cosmetics for a while before being able to open her own salon, which may have been out of the front room of her home.  Later, it was located in what is now known as the Allen Building and is located at 108 East Kirkwood Avenue.  The National Historic Register of Places lists it as having opened in 1909 and it was believed to be the first in town.  Now, I know that there were salons that were strictly dedicated to the beauty and care of African American women.  I am not sure if her salon was one of these or if she was just happy to have a salon and catered to all women.  

Image courtesy of IU Mathers Museum

But her salon, was not her claim to fame.  She was a devoted member of the Bethel A.M.E. Church and due to her unwavering desire to help her church, she was able to raise $13,000 to assist in the paying of the mortgage.  She did this by playing her portable organ at fairs and fundraisers for 7 years.  In this photo from the IU Mathers Museum, Mattie plays her portable organ to raise money.  The trophy that sits on top was to hold money she was given for her singing and playing.  She was also listed as having been a suffragist, though I couldn't find anything pertaining to her work in anything other than the church.

She was married a second time in 1906 to Levi Fuller, a cook on a Monon dining car, but their marriage was not a happy one.  They separated and he died in 1931.

In 1937, she was interviewed by WPA (Works Progress Administration) worked named Estrella Dodson.  She noted in her project that everyone knew Mrs. Fuller, but there were few records of her early life.  It is thought that they were lost by the county.  Ms. Dodson accidentally listed her named as Hattie Fuller, but it was later corrected.  The two women discussed "her early childhood as a slave, her visit with her former mistress and her current life in Bloomington".  She lived at 906 W. Kirkwood Avenue at this time.  

She was 82 years old when her story was record by the Federal Writer's Project.  She passed away here in Bloomington, Indiana, at the age of 84 on 23 August 1940.   She is buried in Rose Hill Cemetery in the Old Spencer Addition.

The city of Bloomington have her name on a list for renaming a street in town after.  Her story was told in an exhibit called Breaking the Color Barrier at the Monroe County History Center that ran from June 1 - October 12 2018.

Mattie Fuller's name doesn't come up often in research, but she was a very important member of our community.  Not only did she 'escape' slavery, but she made a life for herself as an entrepreneur and a leading member of the Bethel A.M.E. Church.  She was a strong, independent woman show should not be forgotten.

Mattie Pierce Jacobs Fuller - you are not forgotten.

 

Resources:

A Walk Through Bloomington's African American History - City of Bloomington, Indiana

Bloomington, IU to rename Jordan Avenue after prominent residents who escaped slavery - The Herald-Times

Monroe County Timeline - Monroe County Library

Homeless, Friendless, and Penniless: The WPA Interviews with Former Slaves - Google Books