John Grider's Century
African Americans in Solano, Napa, and Sonoma Counties from 1845 to 1925
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A Vallejo newspaper marked the passing of John Grider in 1924 with a front page tribute to this little known veteran of the Bear Flag Revolt, the incident that heralded California’s statehood. The Vallejo Evening Chronicle's article, entitled “Interesting Sketch of a Negro Pioneer,” was both remarkable and ironic in its timing. It was in Grider’s death that many Vallejoans first learned of this former slave’s contributions and connection to both the state and city, whose birth he witnessed. The lone African American listed among the Vallejo Society of California Pioneers - a distinction given to men who came to the state before 1849- Grider lived in near obscurity during his 70 years in Vallejo. More than 160 years ago, Grider was among a group of American settlers who, on the morning of June 14, 1846, took part in the event at Sonoma that launched the struggle for California’s statehood
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About the Book
Sharon McGriff-Payne has spent the past three years of this first decade of the 21st Century mesmerized by African Americans from the 19th Century, especially the insistent voice of John Grider. Grider captured McGriff-Payne’s imagination and guided her to mine largely neglected archives to unearth and compile the stories of African Americans in California’s North Bay counties of Solano, Napa, and Sonoma from the 1840s through the 1920s.
Grider, a former slave, Bear Flag veteran, and hardworking everyman has inspired McGriff-Payne’s research. The indomitable Miss Delilah L. Beasley has also inspired the author. Her 1919 book, The Negro Trail Blazers of California, preserved the names and deeds of many of the North Bay’s African American pioneers. John Grider’s Century seeks to add those black voices to California’s larger historical narrative, with the message, “We were here!”
“Tell my story,” Grider prompted. McGriff-Payne has attempted to fulfill that command and dedicates this volume to him and the other pioneers who founded schools, formed churches and civic organizations, advocated policy, built businesses, raised families and triumphed over daunting odds.
About the Author
Sharon McGriff-Payne is a storyteller and history sleuth. She has written for daily newspapers in New York, California, and Florida, and she has collaborated on articles highlighting the contributions of African Americans to California history. Sharon lives in Vallejo, California with her husband, Clarence Payne.