To mark the 100th anniversary of Black History Month, The Royal Gazette is publishing three profiles a week of outstanding Black Bermudians from history. Today’s profile is of Joseph Henry Thomas, one of the founders of The Berkeley Institute and a leader of the friendly societies

Joseph Henry Thomas made a major contribution to education and to the formation of friendly societies in Bermuda in the years following Emancipation.

He was headteacher of the Lane School, the first chairman of the Berkeley Educational Society, and helped to bring the first Oddfellows lodges to Bermuda. He was also instrumental in establishing the British Methodist Episcopal Church, the forerunner of the AME Church, in Bermuda.

Little is known about his early life or even whether he was born in Bermuda. His name first appears in print in an 1844 article in The Royal Gazette, which lists him as a member of the founding committee of the Industrious Man’s Library.

The Industrious Man’s Library was one of two libraries established in the 1840s by prominent Black men who were committed to improving social conditions and raising the literary levels of Black Bermudians. The Industrious Man’s Library and the Useful Knowledge Library, founded in 1843, existed at least until 1853.

Teacher

In May 1846, when he was in his early twenties, Thomas succeeded Augustus Swan to become the second headteacher of the Lane School. The Lane School, which opened in 1836, was one of the first two schools established for the newly freed enslaved by the Anglican Church, and funded by the British-based Society for the Propagation of the Gospel.

Thomas was headteacher until 1853, when he resigned to open the Chester School at his residence. He ran the Chester School for 5½ years in partnership with his wife Ann, who taught needlework. He returned to his old position at the Lane School briefly in January and February 1859.

Thomas lived during a time when schools were springing up all over the Island. He was involved with the formation of at least two, St Paul’s College and The Berkeley Institute.

He was known for his fervent opposition to segregated schools and was part of a failed attempt in 1874 to repeal the 1870 Devonshire College Act, which had provided funds to establish two schools, one all-White, the other all-Black.

He worked closely with the Reverend William Dowding, an English Anglican minister who sought to revive Bishop George Berkeley’s plan to establish an interracial college in Bermuda. In 1853, Dowding opened the interracial St Paul’s College in Hamilton with 30 boys, most of them Black.

The school, whose curriculum included Latin and Greek, closed three years later in the face of strong opposition from Whites. Thomas was assistant secretary of the Berkeley Club, which had formed to give support to St Paul’s.

Landowner

Continuing to throw his support behind new education initiatives, in 1879, Thomas became one of the 11 founders of the Berkeley Educational Society, which established The Berkeley Institute 18 years later.

He was one of the original group of six who met at Wantley, the brand-new home of Samuel David Robinson on Princess Street, Hamilton, on October 6, 1879, to discuss the feasibility of establishing a high school that would be racially integrated.

Five others joined the original six at a second meeting on October 9. Robinson, a leading businessman and prominent landowner, was Thomas’s son-in-law, the husband of his daughter, Elmira Elitia Dowding. Thomas was the society’s first chairman, having been elected to lead its first three meetings.

Thomas became a founding father of the Oddfellows lodges in Bermuda when he and several other community leaders travelled to New York seeking to join a lodge. The group had been inspired by the efforts of Peter Ogden, a Black Englishman who brought the first Oddfellows lodge to the US.

Slavery

Friendly societies such as the Oddfellows had a long legacy, having originated in England in the 15th century. Their goals of self-development, in-house savings and death benefit plans and financial support of widows, orphans and others in need resonated with people who had recently emerged from enslavement.

Through the efforts of Thomas and others, among them George and John Gilbert Allen, the Somers Pride of India opened in St George’ s on May 4, 1848 as the first Oddfellows lodge in Bermuda. Other lodges Thomas had a hand in establishing were Alexandrina Lodge on Court Street, Hamilton, and Victoria and Albert Lodge in Sandys. Both opened in 1852. In September 1855, Thomas sailed to Philadelphia to represent Bermuda at an Oddfellows convention.

In 1870, inspired by the visit to Bermuda that year of Bishop Willis Nazrey, Thomas and several others instituted proceedings to establish the British Methodist Episcopal Church, the forerunner of the AME church.

Property

Thomas’s other achievements included becoming in 1859 one of the first Blacks in Bermuda to be eligible for jury duty. The main qualification was owning property. According to Bermuda National Trust researchers, the home that he built around 1863 is today the Ex-Artillerymen’s Club.

As a schoolmaster, Thomas won plaudits for his competence both from parents and the parliamentary school committees that oversaw the operation of schools. On August 26, 1846, a few months after he had taken over at the Lane School, the Schools Committee reported: “Mr Thomas is a young man, and gives promise of becoming a valuable teacher … ”

Twelve years later, a visitor to Bermuda, who identified himself in a letter to The Royal Gazette Editor as “A Londoner”, visited the Chester School in 1858 and pronounced it comparable to the best schools in England.

At the Berkeley Educational Society, the Reverend Mark James succeeded Thomas as chairman. In the 18 years between the society’s founding and the opening of The Berkeley Institute, the founders campaigned long and hard to raise funds to get the school off the ground. Thomas was active during the first years of the society’s existence and served on its executive until at least 1887.

Thomas and the Berkeley cofounders remained true to their goal of a non-segregated school, although they were powerless to prevent the establishment of a segregated education system. White members of the society included Mr James. The Berkeley Institute opened at Samaritan’s Hall, Court Street, Hamilton, on September 6, 1897, with 27 students, one of them White.

Only two founders were present at the school’s opening. Thomas was not among them. The Berkeley Institute endured numerous obstacles, but emerged as the leading high school for Black Bermudians for nearly a century.

Influential

The AME church, whose forerunner Thomas helped to establish, became an influential religious denomination while the Oddfellows and other friendly societies were important centres of cultural and social life for more than a century.

Thomas died on April 29, 1908, at age 84 and was buried at St John’s Church, Pembroke. He has numerous descendants in Bermuda and overseas. His life was a testament to his deep-seated commitment to building organisations to benefit Black Bermudians.

As for the Lane School, it is not known how long it was in operation. Its appearance on the 1901 Savage map indicates it was still a school up to that year.

Few in Bermuda were aware that the Lane School building was still in existence until 2009 when owners Moonray Manor Trust applied to the Department of Planning to have Moonray Manor, located on the waterfront next to Fidelity International on East Broadway, rezoned. The application was rejected and the building was listed as a Grade III listed building because of its historical significance. The building has since been restored.

Meanwhile, Wantley, the birthplace of The Berkeley Institute, was purchased by the Government in 2008. The building became unoccupied and eventually fell into disrepair. Protests by Berkeley alumni prevented its demolition. Today, its future remains uncertain.

• Meredith Ebbin is a former journalist and founder and editor of bermudabiographies.com, where this article can be found