Wentworth Cheswell was a teacher, auditor, assessor, selectman, and Justice of the Peace in New Hampshire. When he was elected town Constable of Newmarket, New Hampshire in 1768, he became the first African American elected to public office in the United States. Cheswell, born on … Read MoreWentworth Cheswell (1745-1817)
“Image Ownership: Public Domain” Jocko Graves was a young African American boy whose service during the American Revolutionary War earned him the commemorative statue, the “lawn jockey.” Graves’s story is a short and tragic one. It begins on Christmas Eve, December of 1776, with General … Read MoreJocko Graves (1764–1776)
“Image Ownership: Public Domain” Jean-Baptiste Belley-Mars, who represented Saint-Domingue in the French National Convention in Paris in 1794, is widely credited with persuading that body to abolish slavery in France and its overseas colonies. Belley-Mars as a boy was kidnapped by slave catchers on the … Read MoreJean-Baptiste Belley-Mars (1747?–1805?)
Backpage of the Book of Negroes “Image Ownership: Public Domain” “The Book of Negroes” is series of documents listing persons of African ancestry who were evacuated from the United States at the end of the American Revolution. One copy is held with the Guy Carlton … Read MoreThe Book of Negroes (1783)
It is presumed that Silas or Cyrus Tiffany, an African American, was the son of Nathan Tiffany and Sarah Harvey and was born in 1738. Little is known of Cyrus Tiffany’s early life. Historic references show that Tiffany was a Revolutionary War Fifer, perhaps as … Read MoreCyrus Tiffany (1738-1818)
Jacob Francis Revolutionary War Pension Claim, 1834 Image Ownership: Public Domain Jacob Francis, Revolutionary War veteran, was born on January 15, 1754 in Amwell, New Jersey. His mother was African American and his father’s race was unknown. What is known of Francis’ childhood is found … Read MoreJacob Francis (1754-1836)
1780 Document Indicating Wills’ Service in the U.S. Army During the American Revolution Image Courtesy of Anita Wills Charles Lewis was a sailor and soldier during the American Revolutionary War. Lewis was born sometime around 1760 in Spotsylvania County, Virginia on Bel Aire, the Lewis … Read MoreCharles Lewis (ca. 1760-1833)
Fighting for Emancipation in the War of Independence Image Courtesy of University of Chicago Press Alan Gilbert, University of Denver political scientist and anti-racist activist, is the author of Black Patriots and Loyalists: Fighting for Emancipation in the War for Independence, one of the … Read MoreFighting for Freedom on Both Sides of the American Revolution
The 1st Rhode Island Regiment was a Continental Army regiment during the American Revolutionary War. The 1st Rhode Island Regiment became known as the “Black Regiment” due to its allowing the recruitment of African Americans in 1778. This decision, designed to help fill dwindling ranks … Read More1st Rhode Island Regiment
Boston King Book Cover Image Courtesy of History Collection, Nova Scotia Museum Boston King, one of the pioneer settlers of Sierra Leone, was born enslaved on the Richard Waring plantation near Charleston, South Carolina around 1760. Through the age of 16, King was trained as … Read MoreBoston King (c. 1760-1802)