A Ghanaian chief started a quest to send back slave descendants from the U.S. to the West African country in 1913 after he saw their suffering during his travels there.
Chief Alfred Sam, born in Gold Coast, Ghana in 1880, was a trader in rubber and other goods when he started the Back-to-Africa movement that sent a ship to carry slave descendants back to Africa.
Sam visited the U.S. and began organizing meetings in Oklahoma and throughout the country in an attempt to convince African Americans to purchase $25 worth of stock in his company, the Akim Trading Company.
The Back-to-Africa movement aimed to embolden those of African descent to return to Africa. Sam was supported by African Pioneer, a journal dedicated to chronicling the movement.
In 1914, 500 Americans were geared to set sail to Africa on the Curityba, a former German steamer. Sam renamed the ship, S.S. Liberia and they all reconvened at Galveston, Texas.
They sailed off in August that year and eventually reached their destination, Saltpond in January 1915, where they were initially welcomed graciously.
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The returnee’s joy was short-lived after the local leaders did not allow them to own land.
They also faced other difficulties such as official restrictions, shortage of materials and malaria. Some experienced financial and physical problems and others felt misled by Sam’s promises.
