People, Locations, Episodes

Theodore Sedgwick, Lawyer and Slave Owner born.

*Theodore Sedgwick was born on this date in 1746. He was a white-American attorney, slave owner, and politician. Born in West Hartford in the Connecticut Colony, Sedgwick was the son of Benjamin Sedgwick. His paternal immigrant ancestor, Major General Robert Sedgwick, arrived in 1636 in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Sedgwick attended Yale College, where he […]

Peter Salem, American Patriot born

The birth of Peter Salem in 1750 is celebrated on this date. He was a Black soldier and patriot.

Though Salem’s birth year is not certain, he was born a slave in Framingham, MA. His owner, Jeremiah Belknap, named him after his hometown of Salem, MA. In America’s early years, Massachusetts, monitoring an insurrection by Blacks, made it illegal for them to serve in the military. When the need for soldiers increased during the French and Indian Wars, Blacks were pressed into military duty. In mid-1775, the Massachusetts Committee of Safety recruited only free Blacks.

Salem Poor, American Patriot born

The birth of Salem Poor around 1750 is celebrated on this date. He was a Black patriot during the Revolutionary War.

Poor was a free Negro in Andover, MA. He left his wife when he went off to war to fight for the American Revolution. He enlisted under Captain Benjamin Ames in Colonel Fryes’ regiment. He fought at Bunker Hill and is credited with shooting down British Lieutenant Colonel James Abercrombie.

Don Miguel Hidalgo, Revolutionary Leader born

*Don Miguel Hidalgo was born on this date in 1753. He was a Criollo Catholic priest, educator, and revolutionary military leader. Commonly known as Don Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla or Miguel Hidalgo, he was the second-born child of Don Cristóbal Hidalgo y Costilla Espinoza de los Monteros and Doña Ana María Gallaga Mandarte Villaseñor, both criollos. On […]

Alexander Hamilton, Slaveowner and Statesman born

*Alexander Hamilton was born on this date in 1755. He was a white-American American revolutionary, slave owner, statesman, and Founding Father of the United States. Alexander Hamilton was born out of wedlock in Charlestown, Nevis, West Indies. He was orphaned as a child and taken in by a prosperous merchant. Hamilton spent his teenage years working […]

Primus Hall, Soldier, and School Master born

*Primus Hall was born on this date in 1756. He was a soldier and schoolmaster. He was born into slavery in Boston to Prince and Delia Hall, a domestic servant and an enslaved man owned by William Hall until his freedom in 1770. His father, Prince Hall, was an abolitionist, Revolutionary War soldier, and founder of […]

Jean Dessalines, Haitian Leader born

*Jean-Jacques Dessalines was born on this date in 1758.  He was a Black Haitian soldier, leader of the Haitian Revolution, and the first ruler of an independent Haiti under the 1805 constitution.   Taking the last name of the owner who owned his mother then, Jean-Jacques Duclos was born into slavery on Cormier, a plantation near Grande-Riviere-du-Nord.  His father had adopted the surname from his owner, Henri Duclose. The […]

Abdul Rahman Ibrahima Sori, African Prince, born.

*The birth of Abdul Rahman Ibrahima Sori is celebrated on this date in 1762. He was a Black African royal and American slave. Abdul Rahman Ibrahima was a Torodbe Fulani Muslim prince from Guinea, West Africa. He was the son of Ibrahima Sori and a Moorish wife. Abdul Rahman studied in a madrasah, speaking several African languages and Arabic. […]

Somerset v. Stewart is Ruled

*On this date in 1772, Somerset v Stewart was ruled.  This was a British judgment of the Court of King’s Bench on labor law and human rights.   It held that chattel slavery was unsupported by the common law in England and Wales, although the position elsewhere in the British Empire was left ambiguous.  James Somerset, an enslaved African, was purchased by Charles Stewart or Stewart, a Customs officer when he was in Boston, Province of Massachusetts […]

The American Declaration of Independence is Adopted

On this date in 1776, the Declaration of Independence was adopted. This document affected Blacks in two significant ways distinct from other U.S. citizens:

Vermont Abolishes American Slavery

On this date in 1777, Vermont abolished slavery.

Vermont was an independent sovereign country that year and did not join the United States of America until 1791.

Vermont was the first country in the modern era to abolish slavery.

James Tallmadge, Abolitionist born

*James Tallmadge, Jr. was born on this date 1778. He was a White American politician and abolitionist.

Born in Stanford, Dutchess County, New York, he graduated from Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island in 1798, and was secretary to Governor George Clinton from 1798 to 1800. He studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1802, after which he practiced in Poughkeepsie and in New York City. He served in the War of 1812 and commanded a company of home guards in defense of New York.

Opothleyahola, Native American Chief, and Slave Owner born

*The birth of Opothleyahola is affirmed on this date in c. 1778. He was a Native American, Muscogee Creek Indian chief, noted orator, and slave owner. Also known as Opothle Yohola, he was from Florida, a Speaker of the Upper Creek Council, and supported traditional culture. Although known as a diplomatic chief and Red Stick […]

The First Rhode Island Infantry is Formed

On this date in 1778, the Black, elite First Rhode Island regiment defeated three assaults by British troops at the battle of Rhode Island (Newport).

The First Rhode Island regiment was the first all-Black unit in America. Most Continental regiments were integrated except this northern regiment.

Micanopy, Seminole Chief born

*The birth of Micanopy is celebrated on this date in c. 1780. He was an ally of African slaves and the leading chief of the Seminole during the Second Seminole War. His name was derived from the Hitchiti terms Miko (chief) and naba (above), meaning “high chief” or the like. Micanopy was born near present-day St. Augustine, Florida, sometime around […]