Early AA presence in South Africa in the 19th century,....Whaaaat?
Posted by Nelson Mandela on 1/15/2026, 3:10 pm
Lawwd, I "Nelson Mandela" never knew that, I wasn't even born yet when they came to my country!! A few AAs migrated to South Africa in late 1800s. Like Joseph Coan(photo below). However despite being Americans they faced opposition and obstacles from KRIS in South Africa.
In the late 19th century, African American missionaries, particularly from the AME Church (African Methodist Episcopal Church), began significant work in South Africa, driven by a "providential design" to uplift fellow Africans, focusing on industrial education (like Booker T. Washington's Tuskegee model) and establishing churches, though they often faced European missionary opposition and navigated complex cultural dynamics, blending their racial solidarity with Westernized reform ideas. Key figures included pioneers like Josephus R. Coan, who served in South Africa from 1896-1908, and John L. Dube, who established the Ohlange Institute after studying in the U.S., fostering self-help through vocational training. Also a small number of African American sailors, adventurers, and tradesmen were in South Africa as early as the 1780s. Their presence became more notable after 1890. For instance, the Orpheus McAdoo's Virginia Jubilee Singers toured South Africa from 1890 to 1898, performing for both Black and white south african audiences.
