Skip to main content

The Rollin Sisters | Sisterhood: SC Suffragists - Episode 1

Kaltura

Frances Rollin was propelled into the national spotlight with the Pilot Boy steamship incident, in Charleston, South Carolina, where the captain refused her service due to the color of her skin. Frances Ann “Frank” Rollin was the oldest of five daughters, born into an elite, aristocratic, free Black family.

Carole Ione Lewis, the great-granddaughter of Frances Rollin Whipper, has written extensively about the history of the Rollin family, whose origins trace back to the island of Santo Domingo. Frances’ father, William Rollin, was a wealthy business owner in the lumber industry. William Rollin taught his daughters lessons on how to matriculate and have influence in a system of which they cannot be a part. The Rollin sisters tirelessly advocated for activism and civil rights following the Civil War.

In 1859, Frances Rollin travels to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where she furthers her education at the Quaker Institute of Colored Youth. The other Rollin sisters also further their studies in higher education.

Frances Rollin was propelled into the national spotlight with the Pilot Boy steamship incident, in Charleston, South Carolina, where the captain refused her service due to the color of her skin. Frances Ann “Frank” Rollin was the oldest of five daughters, born into an elite, aristocratic, free Black family.

Carole Ione Lewis, the great-granddaughter of Frances Rollin Whipper, has written extensively about the history of the Rollin family, whose origins trace back to the island of Santo Domingo. Frances’ father, William Rollin, was a wealthy business owner in the lumber industry. William Rollin taught his daughters lessons on how to matriculate and have influence in a system of which they cannot be a part. The Rollin sisters tirelessly advocated for activism and civil rights following the Civil War.

In 1859, Frances Rollin travels to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where she furthers her education at the Quaker Institute of Colored Youth. The other Rollin sisters also further their studies in higher education.

Resources

You need to be logged in to listen to view this content. Create an account now; it's quick, easy, and free!

Log In to View

More in this Series

Sisterhood: SC Suffragists / Rollin Sisters--Reconstruction Through 1895

Rollin Sisters

Lesson

Grades

  • 8
Rollin Sisters

The students will learn about the importance of the Rollin Sisters in history.

 The Rollin Sisters | Sisterhood: SC Suffragists 2

Video

Grades

  • 4
  • 5
  • 8
  • 11
The Rollin Sisters | Sisterhood: SC Suffragists
Episode 2
The Civil War brought an abrupt change to the Rollin Family, ending a period where, according to Frances Rollin, “free people of color were at the zenith of their prosperity”. The Rollin family’s...
 The Rollin Sisters | Sisterhood: SC Suffragists 3

Video

Grades

  • 4
  • 5
  • 8
  • 11
The Rollin Sisters | Sisterhood: SC Suffragists
Episode 3
During this period, there were many people, including African Americans, who felt the issue of women’s suffrage was much less important than civil rights for Blacks. In the 1868 Constitutional...
 The Rollin Sisters | Sisterhood: SC Suffragists 4

Video

Grades

  • 4
  • 5
  • 8
  • 11
The Rollin Sisters | Sisterhood: SC Suffragists
Episode 4
The South Carolina Woman Suffrage Association was founded in Columbia in 1870, with Charlotte Rollin as the Chair. A charter is created and sent to Lucy Stone, one of the founders of the American...
 The Rollin Sisters | Sisterhood: SC Suffragists 5

Video

Grades

  • 4
  • 5
  • 8
  • 11
The Rollin Sisters | Sisterhood: SC Suffragists
Episode 5
The Rollin Sisters are essentially silenced after Reconstruction, and are forced to move away from South Carolina due to the increasing violence by “Red Shirts”, and Ku Klux Klan members. In the fight...