Sixteen-month-old Joseph Davis died this date, June 8th, in 1841 of a disease of the spine, possibly Spina Bifida a birth defect. Between 1840 and 1841, seventeen children died from Spina Bifida and a total of thirty-one from “Diseases of the Spine,” according to the Philadelphia Board of Health records.
The beautiful penmenship of cemetery manager Shepherd Gibbs reveals that the father of the deceased child was Mr. Mark Davis. I can only find a reference to the family in the 1838 Philadelphia African American Census. Mr. Davis worked as a porter while Ms. Davis (not named) was self-employed as a laundress. Both were not born in Pennsylvania. In 1837, when the census was taken, they had a child who was old enough to attend Sunday school at Bethel A.M.E. Church.
The red pin indicates the location of the Davis home on Lombard Street below 11th Street. The black circle illustrates the location and proximity of Bethel A.M.E. Church where the family attended religious services. The black arrow points to the location of Pennsylvania Hospital at 8th and Pine Sreets.
One of the back breaking jobs that Black men were allowed to grind away at in 1841 was pushing heavily loaded carts of coal, wood, fresh fruits, vegetables and dry goods taken from the newly arrived ships docked on the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. Over cobblestone and rutted dirt streets in the heat and rain, they would push and pull their freight to warehouses and markets all over the city.
In a good week, a Black man working as a porter could earn $5 or the 2021 equivalent of $153.50. According to the 1838 Census, $5 is exactly what the Davis family paid for one month rent of their room on Lombard Street. Mr. Davis’ work was seasonal. During the winter months, when the rivers froze up and the ice stopped ships from reaching the wharves, there was no need for porters.
The above lithograph depicts the Delaware River in the winter of 1856. The sailing ships in the background are immobilized until the river is cleared of ice by warmer weather.
The 1838 Philadelphia African American Census shows twelve Black families living on Lombard Street between 10th and 11th Street. These families totaled thirty-eight men, women, and children. The women were self-employed as laundresses and seamstresses while the men were employed as porters and coachmen. The infants went to either the Shiloh Infant School or the 6th & Lombard Street School. The older children went to the Raspberry Alley School which was also open evenings for adult classes.
In January of 1841, Washington Engine Company, a volunteer fire company, erected a new building on the Davis’ block to house their heavy fire fighting equipment. The building was topped by a brass bell that was rung when the call went out for assistance. I think of the poor Davis family taking care of a very sick child among this racket that could occur night or day.
Mr. and Ms. Davis lost their baby son on an “oppressively hot” day in June where the temperature rose to ninety-one degrees by noon. A violent storm arose in the afternoon, providing a “refreshing shower” to the city. The wind was strong enough to capsize small boats on the Delaware River.
Little Joseph Davis was buried, with dignity, by his parents at Bethel Burying Ground.
Bethel Burying Ground Project 