Elizabeth Taylor Greenfield (1817 – March 31, 1876), dubbed "The Black Swan" (a play on Jenny Lind's sobriquet, "The Swedish Nightingale" and Catherine Hayes's "The Irish Swan"), was an American singer considered the best-known Black concert artist of her time. She was lauded by James M. Trotter for her "remarkably sweet tones and wide vocal compass". Trotter described her as the first African American concert singer, which has been repeated through many biographies.
Early life
Greenfield was born into slavery in Natchez, Mississippi, sometime between 1808 and 1826 to Anna Greenfield and a man whose name may have been "Taylor." According to an 1854 article in The Tri-Weekly Commercial, "her mother was of Indian descent, her father an African." Not much is known about her family, though her will referenced a sister, Mary Parker, and nieces and nephews.
In the early 1820s, Greenfield's enslaver, Elizabeth H. Greenfield, a former plantation owner, moved to Philadelphia after divorcing her second husband and manumitted her slaves. E.H. Greenfield worked with the American Emancipation Society to send 18 formerly enslaved residents of the Greenfield plantation, including Anna Greenfield and two of her daughters, to Liberia on August 2, 1831, aboard the brig Criterion. She established herself as a music teacher in Philadelphia before moving to Buffalo in 1851, where she had relatives and friends. According to one biographical account, she was discovered when compelled to sing on the boat ride to Buffalo. According to an 1853 exposé by Martin Delany, Wood took advantage of Greenfield professionally, handling her money and keeping her in a state of near slavery and isolation. Following the tour, Greenfield lived briefly with Hiram E. Howard's family in Buffalo, helping raise their son who was later nicknamed "Greenfield" in her honor (particularly unique for a white child). Allegedly, around this time, Barnum offered to represent Greenfield. Accounts disagree regarding her success in England, with Kurt Gänzl noting "Some versions of 'history' of course, would have it otherwise, and I have read pieces about the lady speaking of her 'popularity' and her 'success' in Britain. It simply was not so. The time of the black vocalist – and certainly not a black vocalist as unprepared as this one – had not yet come."
Sutherland introduced Greenfield to Queen Victoria's Chapel Royal organist, George Thomas Smart. She charmed Smart, who took her on as a student and presented her in concert. Queen Victoria paid her twenty pounds, passage for her to return to the United States. Harriet Beecher Stowe wrote about Greenfield's appearance before the "elite" English society in Sunny Memories of Foreign Lands.
Post-England career
In the United States, Greenfield reconnected with Wood, though with a strong stance against his discriminatory practices, though circumstances still required her to frequently sing at segregated venues. Following her return from England, she performed many charity concerts, many supporting Black churches and schools, which were widely popular and raised considerable funds. By 1855, she was hailed as an inspirational figure for both free and enslaved Blacks. In the late 1850s, some of her charitable work became controversial, as she raised money for African missions, expeditions, and aid for Liberian settlers, largely colonialist causes. She was a member of the Philadelphia Shiloh Baptist Church, and directed its choir. Her repertoire also included "I'm Free," a piece written for her by Charles William Glover.