By Yvette Brown
It seems Hannah Elias sought freedom from many things. Freedom from the constraints of life as a woman. Freedom from the barriers that accompanied blackness in the early 1900′s. Even freedom from her Central Park West mansion in which she attempted to recreate an Egyptian palace. Later on she would seek to escape charges of blackmail and fraud.
Elias led an intriguing and interesting life for a black woman at the turn of the Century. Perhaps the reason why you haven’t heard of her is because she seems to be part grifter, seductress and chameleon. What we do about Hannah Elias is cobbled together from published news reports at the time. You can view a few of the articles here, here and here.
According to news reports of the time local officials and New York’s upper class were SHOCKED to find out Hannah was black and not, Cuban, Indian, Greek or any of the other darker hued groups she claimed association with. This to could be part of the reason the black community has not claimed Hannah, she sought not to claim them. But you can call yourself whatever you wish, but you can’t change the facts. Hannah Elias was born in 1865 in a poor neighborhood in… [Click here to read more]
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