Biddy Mason (August 15, 1818 – January 15, 1891) was an African-American nurse and a Californian real estate entrepreneur and philanthropist. She was one of the founders of the First African Methodist Episcopal Church [1] in Los Angeles, California.

Bridget Biddy Mason (1818-1891) is an American Hero. Born enslaved, Mason became one of the first prominent citizens and landowners in Los Angeles in the 1850s and 1860s. She also founded the First African Methodist Episcopal Church in Los Angeles in 1872.

Feb 9, 2023 · Biddy Mason's owner nearly tricked her out of freedom but the cavalry rode to her rescue. She later became a self-made millionaire who helped others.

Bridget "Biddy" Mason was born into slavery in the Deep South, walked to California as part of a pioneer caravan, fought for her freedom in court, and died a wealthy real-estate investor in Los Angeles.

Jul 12, 2007 · Bridget “Biddy” Mason, born a slave in Mississippi in 1818, achieved financial success that enabled her to support her extended family for generations despite the fact that she was illiterate. In a landmark case she sued her master for their freedom, saved her earnings, invested in real estate, and became a well-known philanthropist in Los ...

Born enslaved in Georgia, Bridget “Biddy” Mason walked more than 2,000 miles through rugged terrain to California where she eventually won her freedom in a landmark court case and became a celebrated philanthropist.

In 1872, she became the only woman to help co-found the First African Methodist Episcopal (FAME) Church, LA’s oldest Black-founded church that continues to thrive today. Perhaps more impressive than her business acumen was Biddy’s humanitarianism.

Entrepreneur and philanthropist Bridget “Biddy” Mason helped to establish the First African Methodist Episcopal Church of Los Angeles.

That is how Biddy Mason came to petition a California judge to free herself and her children. Mason knew the stakes. She’d been born into Mississippi’s plantation system and feared the tortures of slavery and reprisals her children would face if they were taken to Texas.

The Biddy Mason Collaborative is a project on the life and times of Biddy Mason (1818-1891). Born into slavery in the Georgia cotton belt, Biddy was forcibly transported across the continent – first to Mississippi, then to Utah, and finally to southern California in the early 1850s.