Location: St. Stephen, Alabama
Nicholas Said was born Mohammed Ali ben Said in Borno in Sudan in the 1830s. As a captive he traveled through North Africa, Arabia and Turkey and entered the service of Prince Troubetzkoy in Russia. He toured Europe and spoke seven languages. He voluntarily came to the United States, became a teacher and settled in St. Stephens, Alabama. His autobiography, published in 1873 under the name Nicholas Said, ends in St. Stephens.
Resources
Austin, Allan. African Muslims in Antebellum America. New York: Garland Pub., 1984.
Dabovic, Safet. “Out of Place: The Travels of Nicholas Said.” Criticism. Vol. 54, No. 1 (Winter 2012), pp. 59-83.
Said, Nicholas. The Autobiography of Nicholas Said: a Native of Bornou, Eastern Soudan, Central Africa. Electronic Edition. Documenting the American South. University of North Carolina Chapel Hill. Accessed 1/20/2017.
Photo credits: http://www.muslimsofusa.com/featured/bilali/