John H. Paynter

Paynter (1862-1947) was an African American writer of poetry and nonfiction who wrote the book Fugitives of the Pearl (1930), a popular history of the largest known mass escape attempt of enslaved people in the United States. He was a descendant of the Edmonson sisters, three sisters who attempted to escape slavery on The Pearl, and a grandson of John and Elizabeth Edmonson Brent, who were born slaves and purchased their own freedom before founding the John Wesley A.M.E. Zion Church at 14th and Corcoran streets NW in Washington, D.C. In his autobiographical Joining the Navy, or Abroad with Uncle Sam, Paynter wrote of his experiences after enlisting as a cabin boy in the U.S. Navy in 1884, when there were limited opportunities for advancement for African Americans. DuBois wrote a foreword to the book.