Item
Agent
Pierre Toussaint (1781-1853)
- Name
- Pierre Toussaint (1781-1853)
- Date of Birth
- June 27, 1781
- Date of Death
- June 30, 1853
- State Assigned Gender
- Male
- Hometown or Region
- St. Marc Parish, Saint Domingue
- Freedom Status
- Free
- Occupation
- Hairdresser
- Biography
- Famous Haitian hairdresser in New York City during the nineteenth century.
- Pierre Toussaint was born enslaved on the Bérard plantation (St. Marc Parish) in Saint-Domingue on November 2, 1781. In 1797, during the height of the Haitians Revolution, Toussaint was taken to New York City by his enslavers, Jean-Jacques Bérard and Marie Elisabeth Bossard Roudanes, in the summer of 1797. There he was apprenticed to learn Hairdressing. In 1807, Pierre Toussaint was manumitted by his enslaver Madame Roudane on her deathbed. Pierre Toussaint became fiscally prominent, participating within an industry in high demand. In 1833, his net worth was $900,000 in 1833. He has an immense network throughout the Atlantic World through his prestige. Due to his work within the Catholic Community, he is currently nominated for sainthood, reaching the venerable status.
- Click here to review primary sources related to Pierre Toussaint.