Skip to content 
But he radically changed working conditions. He did not own slaves himself, but instead employed free black workers and poor whites, paying them fair wages. This decision provoked fierce hostility from other plantation owners.
He was accused of undermining the economic system of the South and of instilling bad ideas in the slaves. Many tried to boycott him, but Samuel diversified his investments. He had interests in Northern companies, merchant ships, and textile mills. He was no longer solely dependent on the plantation.
With Sarah, he turned the Beaumont estate into a secret hideout for escaped slaves. Men and women arrived discreetly at night, handcuffed, escorted by Underground Railroad conductors. Samuel offered them food, clothing, and money to continue their journey north. He risked his life and fortune for each escapee he helped. In 1854, Sarah gave birth to their first child, a boy they named Jacques, in honor of Elizabeth’s late husband. The name was a symbolic gesture—a recognition that they would not have made it this far without the wealth Jacques had amassed.
Beaumont, however immoral the source, would not have allowed this to happen. Between 1854 and 1860, Samuel became the primary target of South Carolina slaveholders. A free, wealthy, and educated black man who employed free laborers and secretly helped runaway slaves.
Her mere existence called into question the entire system of slavery. Political tensions in the country increased. Kansas was embroiled in an undeclared civil war between abolitionists and slaveholders. Elizabeth’s cousins, Édouard and Guillaume, made one last attempt to reclaim the inheritance.
In 1856, a judge was called to reopen the probate case. Mr. Harper succeeded in having the case transferred to a federal court, beyond the reach of local corruption. Enraged, Édouard organized a direct attack. One August night, ten masked men attempted to burn down Samuel’s property, but he had anticipated this threat and had his employees set up a surveillance system.
The arsonists were beaten back. One of them was arrested and confessed that Édouard had paid him. This time Édouard himself stood trial. Guillaume was sentenced to ten years in prison for arson and attempted murder, leaving Charleston in ruins and disgrace. The election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860 caused panic in the South.
South Carolina was the first state to secede in December. In April 1861, the bombardment of Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor marked the beginning of the Civil War. For Samuel, the war was both a personal disaster and a loss of hope for the eventual abolition of slavery. Confederate authorities considered him a dangerous northern sympathizer. In July 1861, a militia seized part of his property to set up a military camp there. The soldiers looted his supplies, stole his cattle, and terrorized his workers. Samuel realized he could not stay. Sarah was expecting their third child.
In September, he secretly sold his assets to Northern brokers and wired the money to banks in Boston and New York. In November, the family fled north on the Underground Railroad, which Samuel had so often used to transport refugees. The journey was dangerous. Sarah gave birth on the way on an abolitionist farm in Virginia. Their daughter was born free on the land of a state loyal to the Union.
They reached Boston in December, where Mr. Harper gave them a warm welcome. In Boston, Samuel discovered a different world, where free black people, although still victims of discrimination, had real rights. He invested his fortune in textile factories, shipping companies, and banks, and became a respected businessman. Sarah opened a free school for black children, where she not only taught them subjects but also instilled in them a sense of pride in their heritage.
In 1863, Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation. Samuel worked actively to recruit black soldiers for the Union and used his wealth to equip entire regiments. He wanted black people to take an active part in their own liberation. In April 1865, the war ended with the surrender of General Lee. Slavery was abolished.
In 1866, Samuel returned to Charleston. The city was unrecognizable, ravaged by war. The Beaumont estate had been taken over by the Confederacy and used as a hospital, later as a barracks. Now occupied by Union soldiers. Samuel gave up his title…