African Healing

Early American caregiving practices were also influenced by African healing traditions, brought to the American colonies through the transatlantic slave trade and preserved within both enslaved and free Black communities. African remedies used herbs, roots, leaves, bark and certain vegetables prepared as teas or soups, but these were also often combined with spiritual practices. Charms, talismans, and spiritual ornaments played an important role in both preventing and curing illness. As a marketable skill, practicing medicine could offer opportunities for free or freedom-seeking Black men and women. Click here to learn more and to see all the materials in this collection.