Elizabeth Greenfield, known as “The Black Swan,” was one of the most remarkable vocalists of the 19th century. Born into slavery in Natchez, Mississippi, sometime between 1808 and 1826, she overcame immense racial and social barriers to become the first Black woman to achieve widespread recognition as a concert singer in America and Europe.
Greenfield was born into slavery in Natchez, Mississippi sometime between 1808 and 1826 to Anna Greenfield and a man possibly named Taylor. An 1854 article in The Tri-Weekly Commercial described her mother as being of Native American descent and her father as African. Little is known about her immediate family, though her will referenced a sister, Mary Parker, and several nieces and nephews.
In the early 1820s, her enslaver, Elizabeth H. Greenfield, moved to Philadelphia after divorcing her second husband and manumitted her slaves. While in Philadelphia, Greenfield collaborated with the American Emancipation Society to send 18 formerly enslaved Africans, including Elizabeth’s mother and sisters, to Liberia in 1831. However, Elizabeth remained in Philadelphia, where she lived among upper-class white society.
She briefly attended Clarkson School, a private Quaker institution, where she likely lived with relatives. Encouraged by E.H. Greenfield, she pursued music. In 1836, she returned to live with E.H. Greenfield, possibly as an indentured servant. She remained there until E.H. Greenfield’s death in 1845, at which point she was shut out of her expected inheritance. She then established herself as a music teacher before relocating to Buffalo in 1851.
The Black Swan’s Rise to Fame
Greenfield’s career took off in Buffalo, where she performed at private parties and debuted at the Buffalo Musical Association. She gained the patronage of Electa and Herman B. Potter, which helped elevate her career. Despite her talent, her rise was fraught with racial challenges.
Initially managed by two Black businessmen from Philadelphia, she later came under the control of Colonel J.H. Wood, a promoter notorious for his association with the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850. Wood barred Black audiences from Greenfield’s concerts and financially exploited her. According to an 1853 exposé by Martin Delany, Wood took advantage of Greenfield professionally, handling her money and keeping her in a state of near slavery and isolation
From 1851 to 1853, Greenfield toured the East Coast, Midwest, and Canada. Her presence in Canada was particularly historic—she was likely the first Black woman to perform art music professionally in the country. While abolitionists celebrated her success, racist critics attacked her. Some newspapers accused her of being a minstrel performer in blackface, leading to audiences mocking her during performances. White minstrel performers even created caricatures based on her, continuing the racist parody of her through the 1870s.
Historic Performance at Metropolitan Hall
One of the defining moments of Greenfield’s career came on March 31, 1853, when she performed at New York City’s Metropolitan Hall before an audience of 4,000. The day before the concert, The New-York Tribune announced that no Black patrons would be admitted, sparking outrage. Rumors circulated about potential white supremacist riots and arson threats.
On the night of the concert, as she took the stage, parts of the audience laughed, and even her escort kept his distance. Despite the hostility, she delivered a stunning performance. However, she was criticized afterward for not standing up against the exclusion of Black audiences. In response, she organized a benefit concert for the Home of Aged Colored Persons and the Colored Orphan Asylum.
London Tour and Royal Recognition
A benefit concert in Buffalo helped fund Greenfield’s journey to Europe in 1853. However, upon arrival in London, her manager abandoned her, leaving her stranded. She sought assistance from British abolitionists, including Lord Shaftesbury and Harriet Beecher Stowe, who introduced her to elite society.
The Duchess of Sutherland became Greenfield’s patron, and promoter Robert W. Olliver arranged her concerts. She trained under George Thomas Smart, Queen Victoria’s Chapel Royal organist, and performed at Hanover Square Rooms on May 31, 1853.
While accounts vary on her success in England, her most historic moment came on May 10, 1854, when she became the first African American musician to perform before British royalty. Queen Victoria paid her twenty pounds and covered her return passage to the U.S. Harriet Beecher Stowe documented Greenfield’s London experience in Sunny Memories of Foreign Lands.
Return to America and Continued Struggles
After returning to the U.S., Greenfield briefly reconnected with her exploitative former manager, J.H. Wood, though she took a firmer stance against segregation in her concerts. She devoted much of her time to benefit performances for Black churches, schools, and charities.
By the late 1850s, her philanthropic work became controversial, as she supported African missions and Liberia settlement efforts, which some saw as aligning with colonialist ideals. Nonetheless, she remained an inspiration. In 1855, James McCune Smith remarked that for Black people to gain recognition, they had to be extraordinary: “The colored man must do impracticable things before he is admitted to a place in society. He must speak like a Douglass, write like a Dumas, and sing like the Black Swan before he could be recognized as a human being.”
Civil War Era and Later Years
During the Civil War, Greenfield performed political songs and raised funds for Black Union soldiers. She also sang for Black regiments. After the war, she continued performing, often for charity.
Settling in Philadelphia, she opened a music studio and mentored young Black musicians, including Thomas Bowers, who became a renowned tenor known as “The Colored Mario.” She also directed the choir at Shiloh Baptist Church and launched the Black Swan Opera Troupe, one of the first Black opera companies.
By 1868, Greenfield was recognized as a music critic and a key figure in Philadelphia’s Black intellectual circles. She frequently performed in lecture series featuring Frederick Douglass and other prominent abolitionists.
Elizabeth Greenfield died of paralysis in Philadelphia on March 31, 1876. Her impact on Black musicianship was profound, as she proved that Black artists could excel in classical music despite widespread discrimination.
Sources:
https://theconversation.com/the-story-of-elizabeth-taylor-greenfield-americas-first-black-pop-star-71064
