Rose Fortune

Rose Fortune (March 13, 1774 – February 20, 1864) was a child born in or around Philadelphia of runaway slaves. Her parents became Black Loyalists during the American Revolutionary War when they pledged to be loyal to the British Army in exchange for their freedom. At around the age of 10, Rose was among the approximately 3,000 Black Loyalists who sailed from New York City to Nova Scotia in 1783. She had at least three children and is thought to have been married twice. At about 50 years of age she began a business transporting luggage in a wheelbarrow from the Annapolis ferry docks to hotels and houses. By the early 1840s, she was using horse-drawn carriages to convey the luggage. She acted as the first female police officer in North America when she chose to institute and enforce curfews to keep the streets safe at night. Fortune is remembered for her business sense, strength, and courage.

Early life Rose Fortune was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania but her parents ran away from Virginia in 1773. of African, Madagascarian, and South American descent.

She was well known by the town's leaders and she had limited competition due to her reputation. For instance, she created and imposed curfews at the wharves (She is also said to have died of February 20, 1867 Created by sculptor Brad Hall, it uses a stylized wheelbarrow made of iron and stone to evoke her work and the business she founded on the waterfront.) The wheelbarrow forms a memorial bench.

Descendants The business she founded was continued by family for several generations as a stevedore and cartage company, later led by her grandson-in-law Albert Lewis as the Lewis Transfer Company, remaining in business until 1960 Albert was married to Fortune's granddaughter Amberzene Lewis. In May 2015, Rose Fortune's first name was bestowed upon the new ferry, the to operate between Digby, Nova Scotia, and Saint John, New Brunswick.

Fortune was named a National Historic Person on January 12, 2018. The plaque was installed by the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada on July 20, 2019, at the waterfront of Annapolis Royal where Rose once worked. It is mounted on a granite boulder donated by Fred Bailey, one of Fortune's descendants, which came from the family's land in Lequille, just outside of Annapolis Royal.

A scholarship, Peter Butler III–Rose Fortune Scholarship Program, was established by the Association of Black Law Enforcers in memory of the initial black police officers in Canada.

In popular culture Fortune, a play inspired by the life of Rose Fortune, written by playwright George Cameron Grant, has been performed through the United States and the Maritimes. Grant was inspired by a Candlelight Graveyard tour in 2013, led by Annapolis Royal historian Alan Melanson which featured the unmarked resting place of Rose Fortune. Grant resolved to write the play and start the campaign for the grave monument. The film Rhythm Stick to Freedom is the story of her life.