BIDDY MASON
1818–1891
After being freed from slavery, Biddy Mason was employed as a midwife and nurse, using skills she had acquired while enslaved. She saved enough money to buy land in Los Angeles and became a successful property entrepreneur. One of the city’s wealthiest women, she spent her fortune on supporting her local community.
Bridget, nicknamed “Biddy,” Mason was born into slavery in Mississippi in 1818. In 1836, she was given to plantation owner Robert Smith. He converted to Mormonism in 1847 and decided to move his family and slaves from Mississippi to Utah, where the church was establishing ...
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