Anarcha Jackson (1826-1869)

Summary Label

Anarcha Jackson was an enslaved woman most notable for the thirty surgeries she endured while remaining awake. Her role as a patient has helped shape modern medicine and allowed many advancements to be made in gynecology.

Name

Anarcha Jackson (1826-1869)

Date of Birth

1826

Date of Death

1869

State Assigned Gender

Female

Hometown or Region

Montgomery, Alabama

Freedom Status

Enslaved

Occupation

Nurse

Biography

Enslaved whose surgeries laid the foundation for modern gynecology.

Anarcha’s life was split between various Alabama and Virginia cities. She was a slave at the Westcott plantation in Montgomery, Alabama, and while she was there, she was taught numerous African medicinal methods. She worked for the Westcotts until 1845. During her first pregnancy she began to experience severe complications after giving birth, and this made her price decrease significantly. Due to this her owner, William Westcott, leased her to Dr. J. Marion Sims for experimentation. This period of her life is the most known because Sims performed approximately thirty surgeries on her while she remained awake. These experiments happened over the course of five years (1845-1849), but once Sims deemed her “cured”, Anarcha was able to return to the plantation. However, she had been sold during her lease to Sims, and her new owner was called Lieutenant Maury. After being sold, Anarcha was relocated to Virginia where she began to go by a different name. In Virginia she was referred to as Ankey or Anky. Once again her skills as a nurse were utilized, and she was also a household worker. Anarcha even shared her methods with the young enslaved girls in the Maury House –“Old Mansion”. In the fall of 1857, Anarcha met the man she would marry at one of the horse races hosted at Old Mansion. His name was Lorenzo Jackson, and they would be married for the next 12 years. Her final move before her death was to King George, Virginia. Anarcha was leased her to Charles Mason, the owner of the Alto Plantation. By this point, America was approaching emancipation, so the conditions Anarcha lived in were much better than previously. She lived in and managed her own cabin with Lorenzo and their children, and her duties to the family were housekeeping duties. Anarcha resided at the Alto Plantation until she died in 1869, and her grave remains on the property today.

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Student Researcher

Lily Boston