Case file · Folklore / legend
Igbo Landing and the flying Africans
In May 1803 Igbo captives brought to St. Simons Island, Georgia, took control of their ship and walked into Dunbar Creek rather than be enslaved; many drowned.
1803 CE · 31.17, -81.40 · status: account
The account
Gullah Geechee tradition remembers them as walking back to Africa across the water, or flying home. The story was gathered in 'Drums and Shadows' (1940) and inspired Toni Morrison and others.
The sceptical view
The mass drowning is documented in contemporary letters; the flying is a tradition of resistance, not a claim about history.