Locating Slavery's Legacies @ University of Virginia

Memorial Artwork

Visual Work of Art

Enslaver

Basil Manly, the second president of the University of Alabama.

Portrait of Basil Manly (1798-1868)

This portrait depicts Basil Manly, the president of the University of Alabama from 1837-1855. Before serving as president, Manly was a Baptist minister and educator. He was a popular evangelist, and his sermons and essays were published for distribution. In 1826, he helped found Furman University in Greenville, South Carolina. Manly enslaved over 40 people. He oversaw a plantation along the Black Warrior River in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. He brought enslaved people to the university to work for him and the campus, where he strongly advocated for the institution of slavery. Manly acknowledged the humanity of enslaved African Americans in his sermons, but he still believed in and practiced corporal punishment. During his time at the University of Alabama, Manly continued preaching across the state and helped lead the first Baptist Church in Tuscaloosa. He was a leader in local and national Baptist conventions. Manly argued before a national convention that ministers could own slaves, which contributed to a schism between northern and southern Baptists. Manly also served as chaplain at the Alabama Secession Convention, and he was later appointed as the Confederacy's first chaplain. Manly opened Jefferson Davis's presidential inauguration with a prayer.

This is a portrait of Basil Manly on canvas. The portrait hangs in a wooden frame with ornate gold details, and there is a plaque on the bottom inscribed with his name and the years he served as president of the University of Alabama. He is wearing a white shirt with a tall collar under a simple black jacket. In the bottom right corner, the painting is signed "Coleman."

Basil Manly, 1837-1855

"Coleman"'s identity is unknown, and the University has no documentation of the artist of this portrait. However, there was a popular artist named William Frye that often traveled to Alabama to create portraits. His trademark style includes intricate clothing and backgrounds, as well as distinct eyes. Although this portrait has distinct eyes, its other details are not intricate. The signature of "Coleman" could refer to Frye's daughter, Minnie Frye Coleman, who was interested in preserving her father's legacy. It is possible that this portrait could have been inspired by William Frye, or copied by Minnie Coleman after an original by him.

1820-1865: Slavery, Anti-Slavery, and Civil War

The University of Alabama presumably commissioned the portrait.

University of Alabama; Tuscaloosa, Alabama

https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4867212

William Frye online exhibition

Encyclopedia of Alabama, Manly entry

Minnie Frye biography of father

1886 biography of Manly