Rebecca Cox Jackson (1795-1871) was an African-American free woman, best known for her religious activism and for her autobiography.
Born into a free family[1], she married Samuel S. Jackson and worked as a seamstress until she had a religious awakening during a thunderstorm in 1830.[1] She got divorced after her husband failed to teach her to read and write, and later realised she was able to do both anyway.[1] Whilst travelling from church to church, she came upon and decided to join the Shakers in Watervliet, New York[1]. However she returned to Philadelphia to live with Rebecca Perot for six years[1], up until she went back to Watervliet, where she ended her life as Eldress of her own family of (predominately black and female) Shakers in Philadelphia[1].
Her autobiography, although written between 1830 and 1864, was only published in 1981.[2]