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.

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 ...

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.

On 22 January 1856, Bridget “Biddy” Mason and twelve members of her extended family left the Los Angeles courtroom of Judge Benjamin Hayes as free people. She had lived as an enslaved person in California, a supposedly “free” state , for nearly five years.

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.

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.

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.

Bridget “Biddy” Mason was one of the most influential Black women in California, and her wealth, leadership, and philanthropy made a lasting impact in Los Angeles. Born a slave in Georgia, Mason and her children moved west with her master, Robert Smith, from Mississippi to Utah, until Smith settled in San Bernardino in 1851.[1]

She was a Black slave woman who worked as a nurse/midwife. From Mississippi, she was born on a plantation owned by Robert Marion Smith and Rebecca (Crosby) Smith. In 1847, they became Mormon converts. During her teenage years, she learned domestic and agricultural skills.