The story of Maria African Market is multifaceted, encompassing entrepreneurial spirit, cultural impact, and historical context. From the endeavors of African American businesswomen in the 19th century United States to the establishment of thriving markets in Nigeria, and even the dark history of the Barbary slave trade, the name "Maria" resonates with themes of resilience, innovation, and community.
Slave market in Algiers
Jane Maria Robinson Scottron: An Entrepreneurial Pioneer
Jane Maria Robinson Scottron was born in 1824 in Albany, New York, and married Samuel J. Scottron, a barber and baggage master on a boat that linked NYC and Albany via the Hudson River. Like many African American families in the antebellum Northeast, the Scottrons moved among the region’s cities. They were in Philadelphia when son Samuel Raymond was born, but made their way to New York in 1849; between the mid 1850s and 60s, they were mainly in Brooklyn.
Jane Maria Robinson Scottron appears among the more than sixty dressmakers listed in Springfield city directory in the 1870-71 publication-coincidentally (or not) the first year that the publishers of the directory did not flag which of the city’s residents were “colored.” If you didn’t already know that the Scottrons were a prominent, entrepreneurial family of African American barbers, hair dressers, and inventors, the presence of “Mrs. S. J. Scottron” in the long column of names under the heading “Dressmakers” in that year would not attract special notice.
But readers in that year would have known that Jane Maria Robinson Scottron was among the city’s most successful Black businesswomen, present and working in Springfield from the 1860s, when she and her family settled there after the Civil War. The family’s travels conferred a worldliness that the household hoped to parlay into profitable business enterprises.
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In 1867, the columns of the local newspaper noted that Samuel J. The northeast corner of Main and Bridge Streets, ca. The “handsome assortment of Stamps for Braiding and Embroidery, Wreaths and Initials for Pillow Shams” means the physical sale of goods: in the 1860s and 1870s, women purchased wooden stamps with which to transfer patterns on to fabrics. They also provided “braiding and stamping with neatness and dispatch.” Around this time they also advertised their ability to “make switches, chignons, frizettes, curls, etc. Hairstyles in this period were highly elaborate.
This work taken all together apparently generated significant income: Samuel and Jane Scottron were people of influence and means. At least in December 1868, the Springfield Republican reported a break-in at their home, in which thieves took a gold watch worth $250. “The invaders,” the column reported, “had apparently made arrangements to steal several articles of clothing, including Mr. Scottron’s pants with his pocket book,” but were scared off.
Samuel J. Scottron and his son Samuel Raymond Scottron were among the leaders of the city’s Black community in this era, as founding members and officers of the groups including the Sumner Lodge No. A lawsuit that the Scottrons brought against the managers of St. In time, Jane and Samuel J. Scottron left Springfield. Their daughter Cordelia and son Samuel had each settled in Brooklyn, and in time Jane and Samuel joined them.
A “Mrs. L.S. Booth,” who advertised herself as the “successor to Mrs. J. M. Scottron,” advertised in September 1873. Melissa remained in Springfield, having in summer 1873 married James B. Adams, a member of another important African American family in Springfield. (“M’dmes Scottron & Adams” offered “All kinds of Hair Work,” noting “combing” as a “specialty” in their shop at 458 State St. - that is, the Hancock Bank building).
A February 1889 advertisement notes that “Mrs. M. Jane Scottron died in Brooklyn in 1885. But the family would continue to thrive, in a wide array of occupations. Of particular interest might be son Thomas, who became an actor, known in 1880 as “Boston’s Young Colored Tragedian;” a Boston Globe notice after his portrayal of Shakespeare’s Shylock observes that “Mr. T. C.
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Maria Ochefu and the Mammy Markets of Nigeria
Maria Ochefu, the pioneering founder of Nigeria’s ubiquitous Mammy Markets, passed away peacefully in her sleep on Tuesday in Makurdi, Benue State. She was 86 years old. Maria’s journey began in 1959 when she accompanied her husband, Colonel Anthony Aboki Ochefu, to Abakpa Military Barracks in Enugu.
Her refreshing beverage quickly gained popularity, with soldiers regularly lining up to purchase it. What happened next would forever change the landscape of Nigerian military installations. The soldiers, unwilling to lose access to Maria’s popular kunu, protested the decision. With a permanent location established, Maria diversified her offerings beyond kunu to include various drinks and products.
The market’s rapid growth established it as a permanent fixture in the barracks. As military personnel transferred between postings across Nigeria, they brought the Mammy Market concept. The influence of Mammy Markets extended further when the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) scheme launched in 1973.
In previous interviews, Maria Ochefu recalled serving notable figures during their military careers, including former Heads of State General Yakubu Gowon (retd.) and Muhammadu Buhari. Though Maria Ochefu has passed away, the business model she created continues to thrive, providing jobs, convenience, and community support throughout Nigeria.
Maria Ochefu’s life reminds us that innovation often comes from identifying simple needs and addressing them with determination and creativity.
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Maria Ochefu
The Barbary Slave Trade: A Dark Chapter
The Barbary slave trade involved the capture of Europeans and selling them at slave markets in the largely independent Ottoman Barbary states of North Africa. Most of the captives were seamen and crews who were taken with their ships, but there were many fishermen and coastal villagers who were captured.
The authorities of Ottoman and pre-Ottoman times kept no relevant official records, but observers estimated that around 35,000 European slaves were held throughout the 17th century on the Barbary Coast, across Tripoli and Tunis, but mostly in Algiers. The majority were sailors (particularly those who were English), taken with their ships, but others were fishermen and coastal villagers.
From bases on the Barbary Coast, North Africa, the Barbary pirates raided ships traveling through the Mediterranean and along the northern and western coasts of Africa, plundering their cargo and enslaving the people they captured. From at least 1500, the pirates also conducted raids on seaside towns and villages of Italy, Spain, Greece, Ireland, and as far away as Iceland, capturing men, women and children.
In 1544, Hayreddin Barbarossa captured the island of Ischia, taking 4,000 prisoners, and enslaved some 2,000-7,000 inhabitants of Lipari. In 1551, Ottoman corsair Dragut enslaved the entire population of the Maltese island of Gozo, between 5,000 and 6,000, sending them to Ottoman Tripolitania. In 1554 corsairs under Dragut sacked Vieste, beheaded 5,000 of its inhabitants, and abducted another 6,000. The Balearic Islands were invaded in 1558, and 4,000 people were taken into slavery. In 1618 the Algerian pirates attacked the Canary Islands taking 1,000 captives to be sold as slaves.
On some occasions, settlements such as Baltimore in Ireland were abandoned following a raid, only being resettled many years later. While Barbary corsairs looted the cargo of ships they captured, their primary goal was to capture non-Muslim people for sale as slaves or for ransom.
Famous accounts of Barbary slave raids include a mention in the diary of Samuel Pepys and a raid on the coastal village of Baltimore, Ireland, during which pirates left with the entire populace of the settlement. The attack was led by a Dutch captain, Jan Janszoon van Haarlem, also known as Murad Reis the Younger. Janszoon also led the 1627 raid on Iceland. About 50 people were killed and close to 400 captured and sold into slavery.
Such raids in the Mediterranean were so frequent and devastating that the coastline between Venice and Málaga suffered widespread depopulation, and settlement there was discouraged. The Barbary corsairs attacked a number of different nations in Southern and Western Europe, as well as the Americas.
Armed raids began in the sixteenth century, when the Ottoman states of what is today, Algeria, Tunisia and Libya became de facto independent rogue states that lived on pillage, and persisted as late as the early nineteenth century, when France conquered modern Algeria. From the 16th to the end of the 18th century, the coastal areas of Italy (especially in the south-west) were raided by pirates launched from the coast of North Africa.
The markets declined after Sweden and the United States defeated the Barbary States in the Barbary Wars (1800-1815). A British diplomatic mission to Algiers led to the Dey to agree to release some Sardinian slaves. However, the moment the British left, the Dey ordered the Sardinians massacred.
The same British fleet, joined by some Dutch warships, returned and delivered a nine-hour bombardment of Algiers in 1816, leading to the Dey accepting a new agreement in which he promised to end his slavery operations. Despite this, the trade continued, ending only after the French conquest of Algeria (1830-1847).
North African piracy had very ancient origins. It gained a political significance during the 16th century, mainly through Hayreddin Barbarossa, who united Algeria and Tunisia as military states under the Ottoman Empire and maintained his revenues by piracy. With the arrival of powerful Moorish bands in Rabat and Tétouan (1609), Morocco became a new center for the pirates and for the ʿAlawī sultans, who quickly gained control of the two republics and encouraged piracy as a valuable source of revenue.
The towns on the North African coast were recorded in Roman times for their slave markets, and this trend continued into the medieval age. The Barbary Coast increased in influence in the 15th century, when the Ottoman Empire took over as rulers of the area.
After a revolt in the mid-17th century reduced the ruling Ottoman Pashas to little more than figureheads in the region, the towns of Tripoli, Algiers, Tunis, and others became independent in all but name. Pirate raids for the acquisition of slaves occurred in towns and villages on the African Atlantic seaboard, as well as in Europe.
Robert Davis estimated that between 1 and 1.25 million Europeans were captured by pirates and sold as slaves in Tunis, Algiers and Tripoli during this time period. The slave trade in Europeans in other parts of the Mediterranean is not included in this estimation.
In 1627, a group known as the Salé Rovers, from the Republic of Salé (now Salé in Morocco) occupied Lundy for five years. These Barbary pirates, under the command of Janszoon, flew an Ottoman flag over the island.
María Magdalena: Empowerment Through Entrepreneurship in Ecuador
In Ecuador, María Magdalena is a name known for resilience, determination, and success. As a small business owner and mother of three, her journey to economic independence and empowerment has been shaped by hard work, perseverance, and financial access.
Today, María runs a highly successful guinea pig farming business, employing women in her community and ensuring her daughters have the education and opportunities she once dreamed of. But this success didn’t come overnight-it started with a small group loan and a vision for a better future.
More than 10 years ago, María took her first group loan of just $400 from Banco VisionFund Ecuador, then called FODEMI. At the time, she was running a small honeycomb business, but she knew she needed to expand her income sources to provide for her family. As she built trust with the bank through three successful loan cycles, she was able to transition to an individual loan, giving her greater flexibility to scale her business.
María saw an opportunity in livestock farming and started raising pigs, a decision that slowly increased her earnings. But it was her boldest move - purchasing 30 guinea pigs - that transformed her business entirely. “That was one of the best decisions of my life,” María recalls with a smile.
With careful planning and reinvestment, María grew her guinea pig farm from 30 to 500 guinea pigs. Through successive VisionFund loans, she was able to build proper infrastructure, including cages and tents to scale her operations. Today, she is the only guinea pig producer in her area, giving her a competitive edge in the local market.
As her business expanded, María created employment opportunities for other women, including her own sister. These women, many of whom struggled to find stable income, now have financial independence and the ability to support their families. María is also deeply committed to her daughters’ futures. As a mother of three - ages 22, 18, and 15 - she is determined to give them every opportunity to thrive.
Maria and her guinea pigs
She eagerly awaits the day her eldest daughter graduates from university, knowing that education and financial independence are the greatest gifts she can provide. Maria has come a long way, but she continues to push forward.
Florence, Lady Baker: From Slave to Explorer
Florence, Lady Baker, or Florence Barbara Marie Finnian: or Florica Maria Sas; or Maria Freiin von Sas; (Hungarian: Sass Flóra) (6 August 1841 - 11 March 1916) was a Transylvanian-born ethnic Hungarian British explorer. She fled with the remnants of the Hungarian army to the Ottoman Empire, settling in Vidin.
There, she was sold as a slave in 1859. Years later, Samuel Baker encountered her during a visit to the Vidin white slave auction. Florence, a white slave girl destined for the Ottoman Pasha of Vidin, caught Baker’s eye. Although outbid by the Pasha, Baker bribed her guards, and the two escaped together. Florence became Baker’s companion and later his wife.
Together, they explored Africa in search of the source of the Nile and discovered Lake Albert. Florence later joined Baker in his efforts to combat the slave trade in Africa. Some sources say that Florence Baker began life in 1841 in Nagyenyed, Principality of Transylvania (today Aiud, Romania) as Barbara Maria von Sas.
The story handed down in the Baker family is that she was the daughter of a Székely officer from a Hungarian noble family, who had estates in Transylvania, called von Sas (a branch of the von Sass family) and whilst she was young, during the Hungarian Revolution of 1848 "her father and brothers had been killed before her eyes".
As an adolescent, she spoke Hungarian, German, Romanian, and Turkish. She was sold as a slave in Vidin, a town and fortified port on the River Danube in what was then the Ottoman Empire and is now in Bulgaria, in January 1859. According to certain accounts, she was destined to be owned by the Pasha of Vidin, but she had been spotted by Samuel Baker. He and Maharaja Duleep Singh were both on a hunting trip. Samuel Baker took her to Africa where he was leading an expedition to find the source of the River Nile.
They travelled up the Nile to Gondokoro in present-day South Sudan where Florence saved the expedition. There was a dispute between her husband's inflexibility and the staff's disloyalty. Florence was able to intercede and find some common agreement. Gondokoro was a base for ivory and slaves, and the point where boats could go no further and where they would need to travel to the source on foot.
There they met Speke and Grant who told them of their explorations. They suggested that they investigate another branch of the Nile. When Speke and Grant both later wrote down accounts of their voyages neither of them mentioned that Baker had Florence with him.
Arriving in England, they lived at Hedenham Hall in Norfolk. When Samuel Baker was knighted she became Lady Baker. In 1869 Samuel was invited by Isma'il Pasha, the Turkish Viceroy of Egypt, to return to Africa to help eliminate or reduce the trade in slaves around Gondokoro. Samuel was made Governor General of the Equatorial Nile. Accepting the invitation, they returned to Africa where they attempted to gain the upper hand.
In 1873 she and her husband started living at their house, Sandford Orleigh, at Newton Abbot in Devon. General Gordon arrived in February 1883 and requested that Samuel assist him in evacuating people from the besieged Khartoum during the Mahdist War in Egypt. Florence would be required on such a journey. However, Florence would not go back to Africa and her husband would not travel without her.
In the 1901 United Kingdom census, Florence B. M. Baker was still living at Sandford, Orleigh, Highweek, and her age was stated as 58, her place of birth as Hungary. She was living with Ethel L. A memorial plaque commemorating her travels was unveiled by László Kövér, Speaker of the Hungarian National Assembly on 4 March 2019.
Florence Baker
Table: Key Figures and Their Contributions
