The New York City Draft Riots and the Colored Orphan Asylum 4th grade · age 9

By Simit Patel · published October 25, 2026

When the mob broke down the front door of the Colored Orphan Asylum, superintendent William Davis and matron Jane McClellan led all 233 children quietly out the back. What were they thinking as they made that choice — what did they believe mattered most in those moments?

The source

Excerpt from "Report of the Committee of Merchants for the Relief of Colored People, Suffering from the Late Riots in the City of New York"

Committee of Merchants for the Relief of Colored People, Suffering from the Late Riots in the City of New York · 1863 · New York City

About this document

As the reading described, during the terrible riots of July 1863, mobs attacked Black New Yorkers all across Manhattan. Thousands of Black men, women, and children fled the city. By the time soldiers arrived and stopped the violence, about five thousand Black people had lost their homes.

Soon after the riots ended, a group of New York merchants came together to raise money and help the Black families who had suffered. They called themselves the Committee of Merchants for the Relief of Colored People. The committee opened an office at 350 Fourth Street in Manhattan, where Black New Yorkers could come to receive money, clothing, and other aid. In 1863 the committee published a report describing what had happened to the Black community during the riots and how the relief effort worked. This document is an excerpt from that report.

Driven by the Tear [fear] of death at the hands of the mob, who the week previous had ... brutally murdered, by hanging on trees and lamp posts several of their number, and cruelly beaten and robbed many others, burning and sacking their houses
these people had been forced to take refuge on Blackwell's Island, at Police Stations, on the out-skirts of the city, in the swamps and woods back of Bergen, New Jersey ... At these places wore scattered some 5,000 homeless and helpless men, women, and children.
The first great point to be gained was the restoring of the confidence of the colored people in the community, from which they had been driven. To do this a central depot was to be established to which they should be invited to come and receive aid with the fullest assurance that they should be protected.

Glossary

sacking v.: destroying and stealing everything inside (excerpt 1)
refuge n.: a safe place to hide (excerpt 2)
depot n.: a central place set up to hand out supplies (excerpt 3)
assurance n.: a strong promise (excerpt 3)

Committee of Merchants for the Relief of Colored People, Suffering from the Late Riots in the City of New York. “Excerpt from "Report of the Committee of Merchants for the Relief of Colored People, Suffering from the Late Riots in the City of New York".” National Park Service (nps.gov), 1863, https://www.nps.gov/common/uploads/teachers/lessonplans/AltDoc2(Draftriots).pdf.

Your turn

Setting the scene

What has happened in our unit story by the time this document was created?

What does it say?

In paragraph one, what does the report say the mob had done to Black New Yorkers?
In paragraph two, where did the Black men, women, and children go to try to stay safe, and how many people had to flee?
In paragraph three, what does the report say was the most important first step to help the people who had been driven away?

What does it mean?

In paragraph one, the author uses the word 'brutally' to describe what the mob did. Why do you think the author chose that strong word instead of just saying the mob 'hurt' people — what does the author want the reader to feel?
In paragraphs two and three, the author first describes 5,000 people hiding in swamps and woods and calls them 'helpless,' and then says the 'first great point' was making Black people feel safe again. Who do you think the author is trying to convince, and what does the author want them to do?

What did the author assume?

Which assumption about the people of New York do you think the Committee of Merchants would agree with?
A. Most people in the community, once they learn what happened, will want to help Black New Yorkers and keep them safe.
B. Most people in the community do not really care what happened to Black New Yorkers and will not want to help.
Which assumption about keeping people safe do you think the Committee of Merchants would agree with?
A. When people are in danger, protecting their lives matters more than protecting their belongings or buildings.
B. When people are in danger, protecting their belongings and buildings matters just as much as protecting their lives.

Write your answer

Use the Committee of Merchants' report on the Draft Riots to answer our question: When the mob broke down the front door of the Colored Orphan Asylum, superintendent William Davis and matron Jane McClellan led all 233 children quietly out the back. What were they thinking as they made that choice — what did they believe mattered most in those moments?

From The New York City Draft Riots and the Colored Orphan Asylum, a 4th grade history lesson on Pallas.