This abolitionistsong sheet depicts the undergroundrailroad as a freedom train. Abolitionists demanded"Immediate Emancipation" and warnedopponents to "GetOff the Track." Courtesy, Libraryof Congress.

28 UndergroundRailroad Activists in Washington,D.C.

by Hilary Russell

Underground Railroad was a existed except in legend, but more localized series of efforts, whether highly networks did. Their operationswere partic- organized, spontaneous, successful, ularly important in the border states or failed, to assist those fleeing from slav- between slave and free lands. Men and ery by providing them with forged passes, women from almost all walks of life partici- transportation,shelter, and other necessary pated in these local networks, though the resources.Such efforts, in violation of state participation of , both and federal laws, occurred everywhere free and enslaved, was especially crucial to existed. An estimated 100,000 their success. In the antebellum period, the bondsmen and women successfully assistance that such networks provided to escaped to freedom between the Revolu- runaways undermined the institution of tionaryEra and the Civil War,though some slavery and profoundly unsettled slave- did so with little or no covert assistance. holders, contributingto widening divisions The metaphor "undergroundrailroad" between North and South and the passage came into being in the 1830s as a potent of the Fugitive Slave Act in 1850. Such weapon in the propaganda war to win operations also pro- hearts and minds to the cause of abolition. duced a diverse pantheon of American It conjured up a clandestine and highly heroes, one that extends from millionaires organized national network of "conduc- like GerritSmith and Louis Tappan to for- tors" and "station masters" ever ready to mer runaways like and offer assistance to the runaways who were FrederickDouglass. the railroad's "passengers." A powerful The District of Columbia was a center and centralized network may not have of abolitionist activity during the decades before the Civil War. While most of these efforts centered on to Hilary Russell moved to Washington after a long influencing Congress careeras an historianwith Parks Canada. This article abolish chattel slavery and the slave trade is part of her recently completedstudy of the under- in the nation's capital, some courageous a ground railroad in Washington, D.C., funded by local abolitionists sought more concrete cooperative agreement between the National Park and immediate results. undermined Service and the Historical Society of Washington, They D.C and attacked slavery by assisting escapes,

29 WashingtonHistory, Fall/Winter 2001-2002

runaways and to undermine the slave sys- tem. The best known of Washington's underground railroad activists were two white men, Charles T. Torrey and William L. Chaplin, who successively attractedcon- siderable national attention after each was jailed for assisting escapes from slavery. In the early 1840s and 1850s, each master- minded hundreds of such escapes, with the help of a far-flungbiracial network and the financial backing of radical abolitionist GerritSmith of Peterboro,New York. Torreywas the most active and influen- tial of the two. Born in Massachusettsand educated at Yale and as a Congregationalist minister, he had helped to organize the biracial Vigilance Committee and the New Yorkwing of the LibertyParty. He relocated to from in CharlesTurner radicalabolitionist, who Washington Albany Torrey, to become editor and local claimedto have helped 400 people escape from slavery 1841, ostensibly in theWashington, D.C., area between his arrival in correspondent of the Albany Patriot. 1841and his arrest in 1844.From L.C. Lovejoy, Almost immediately, he attracted press Memoirof Rev.Charles T. Torrey, 1847. attention when he was jailed for disrupting a slaveholders' convention in Annapolis.2 This publicity attracted Thomas Small- engaged in dangerous and covert actions, wood, who would soon become a key asso- and risked their own freedom. These local ciate for Torrey's covert underground rail- activists attempted to remain hidden fig- road work. ures, known perhaps only to those commit- Smallwood had been freed from slav- ted to the same goals. Their full picture has ery in Prince George's County, Maryland, not emerged from the historicalrecord, but in about 1831, and was working as a shoe- they were clearly a diverse group - men maker in the District in 1842.3He asked his and women, black and white, free and wife Elizabeth, a free-born Virginian, to enslaved. introduce him to Torrey, as she was the Among them were freed men like laundress for Mrs. Padgett's boarding Thomas Smallwood and Anthony Bowen; house on 13th Street, N.W., where Torrey free-born African Americans like Leonard resided. Smallwood described their collab- Grimes, Elizabeth Smallwood, and John oration in a narrativepublished in Toronto Bush; a Mrs. Padgett and Mrs. Ann Sprigg, in 1851. He claimed that his wife Elizabeth two white women who ran anti-slavery and "the lady with whom [Torrey]board- boarding houses; and such respected local ed" were "the only assistance we had for white men as retired lawyer Jacob Bigelow some time in the execution of our under- and Interior Department clerk Ezra L. ground railroad plans."4 Their network Stevens.1They did not all work together, later expanded to include another local nor were they necessarily aware of one African-Amercan couple, John Bush and another, but all played a part in the local his wife, as well as William Nichols, a history of the underground railroad and preacher at Israel Bethel AME Church,5 contributed to the public perception of a Ohio CongressmanJoshua R. Giddings and vast continentalconspiracy to aid and abet his landlady Mrs. Ann Sprigg,6 Thomas

30 UndergroundRailroad Activists in Washington,D.C.

Garret, the famous white abolitionist of Wilmington, Delaware, and James J. G. Bias, a black dentist in Philadelphia.7They also had valuable contacts in Troy and Albany, New York, and across the border in Toronto, where the Smallwoods settled in 1843. Between Marchand November of 1842, Smallwood estimated that the "Washington branch" of the underground railroad had helped as many as 150 runaways. Torrey later claimed responsibility for about 400. According to Smallwood, some escaped in groups of ten or fifteen, and he outlined the "mode of our operations" for such large numbers. On the eve of the departure, a unique location would be chosen "on the suburbs of the city." Would-be runaways were instructed to arrive there singly or in groups of no more than two, and from dif- ferent directions. Timing was also a strate- gic concern because any person of color on the streets of Washington risked being Ex-slave ThomasSmallwood described in his pub- apprehended and locked up between 10 lished narrativehis workas an railroad and 4 a.m. the watch underground p.m. (when night conductorin Washingtonduring the early 1840s: retired).8 Runaways then traveled to an would-berunaways were instructedto arrivealone or unidentified "place of deposit" 37 miles in groups of no more then two to secretdeparture from reached another spots selectedthe night before. Thoseassembled head- Washington. They ed at the such 40 miles distant, the for Pennsylvania,stopping safe places along place, following way. Courtesy,Library of Congress. night, and Philadelphia by the third night. The group might be transportedby wagon, especially if it included women and chil- dren. Smallwood complained that team- and wagon through Washington lawyer sters had to be paid "a very high price in David A. Hall, whom he hired to defend order to induce them to risk themselves Bush (and who won his acquittal).10 and [their]teams in so dangerous an enter- In January 1844, Torrey reported that prise," and that he and Torrey had soon he was working with "a shrewd woman" been obliged to purchase a wagon and to free some of the people captured in team of horses.9 Bush's stable.11In June of that year he also In November 1843, the Washington engaged in another plot with a woman- police seized 14 runaways in this wagon at "a most respectablelady of Baltimore"- to John Bush's residence located "in low effect the successful escape of three slaves grounds" east of City Hall. It proved to be in that city. He had already determined to Torrey and Smallwood's last joint under- expand his operations deeper into ground railroad mission, and the pair nar- and Maryland, using the Philadelphia rowly escaped arrest.That Torreyremained home of James Bias as a base, but his reach out of the clutches of the authorities in exceeded his grasp. Following more nar- Washington is all the more remarkable row escapes, in March 1844 Torrey was because he filed a claim to recover the team arrested in Baltimore. He perished in the

31 Washington History, Fall/Winter 2001-2002

This "Listof Negroes capturedon boardthe Pearl"shows the names of the runawaysand those holding them to service.Several families had attemptedto escapetogether, including Mary and Emily Edmonsonand theirsib- lings, who are listed abovewith "Miss Culver."Alfred Pope, whose name appearson the right page, remainedin

32 UndergroundRailroad Activists in Washington,D.C.

slavery in Washingtonuntil 1851, when he wasfreed by the termsof ColonelCarter's will. After the Civil War, Pope was a successfulbusinessman in Georgetown;in the 1870s he sold to Mt. Zion United Methodist Church the land on which it now stands. Courtesy,National Archives.

33 WashingtonHistory, Fall/Winter 2001-2002

The most audacious of these mass escape attempts became known nationally as "ThePearl Affair"in April 1848.Chaplin conceived of the plot after meeting a free African-American carpenternamed Daniel Bell, who feared that his enslaved wife and children would be sold away by heirs who were contesting their promised manumis- sions. Chaplin worked with Bell to plot the escape of his family, hiring Philadelphia supercargoDaniel Drayton and the trading schooner Pearlfor this purpose. Bell recruit- ed other passengers for the voyage, as did Paul Jennings, an enslaved valet to Daniel Webster,14and Samuel Edmonson, one of eleven siblings, who hired his time as a but- ler to local attorneyJoseph H. Bradley.15At the last minute, Jennings decided not to embark, but Samuel Edmonson went on board as planned, accompanied by two of his brothers and two sisters, Emily and Mary, who would become the most famed of the Pearlcaptives. That Chaplinwas the main organizerof the venture on the Pearl is confirmed in his March25 letter to GerritSmith: WilliamL. Chaplin,radical abolitionist who helped many escapefrom slavery, masterminded"The Pearl The number of persons here, who are anx- Affair"in which 77 enslavedAfrican Americans ious to immigrate[sic] is increasingon my attemptedto gain theirfreedom by sailing out of hands daily- I believe there are not less Washingtonon the schoonerPearl in April 1848. than 75 now importunatefor a passage. I FromThe Case of WilliamL. Chaplin,1851. am every day expecting the arrival of a vesil from Philadelphiaon purpose to take off 50 or more.16 Maryland penitentiary in May 1846 while Daniel Bell seems to have been the one serving his sentence for "slave stealing."12 to make contactin Philadelphiawith super- By this time, William L. Chaplin,anoth- cargo Daniel Drayton, who, the previous er native, had moved to summer, had transporteda woman and her Washington to become correspondent of children out of slavery from the Seventh the Albany Patriot. He also assumed Street wharf in Washington. Drayton Torrey's role as the principal white orga- explained this action as an impromptu nizer of underground railroad operations response to the request of a "coloredman" in the city, again with the financialbacking who approachedhim at the dock,17though of radical New York abolitionist Gerrit he was likely well paid for the risk. The Smith. Like Torrey,Chaplin plotted daring prospect of further monetary gain enticed mass escapes by forging extraordinary Draytonand ship owner EdwardSayres into coalitions. Among his associates were "an becoming "conductors"for the largest mass obscure black couple named Luke and escape attempt in underground Railroad SarahCarter and the famous white couple history. Bell, his wife Mary, their six chil- Johnand Peggy O'Neale Eaton."13 dren, and one grandchild were included

34 UndergroundRailroad Activists in Washington,D.C. among the 38 "men and boys/' 26 "women and girls/' and 13 children who crowded below the deck of the 52-tonschooner by the earlyhours of Sunday,April 15.18 The Pearl's voyage to freedom was beset with wind problems;by about 4 a.m. the next day, the schooner was overtakenat the mouth of the Chesapeakeby the steam- er Salem, carrying 30 volunteers com- manded by Washington magistrate H. C. Williams. On April 18, 1848, the Salem towed the Pearlback to the Seventh Street wharf, where a waiting mob menaced its passengers and crew. Washington authori- ties managed to protect the distraught cap- tives as they marched them up 4/4 Street to the jail located at JudiciarySquare.19 None of the conspiratorsadmitted that Chaplin was behind the venture, though Drayton promised "if his employer let his family suffer it might make a difference," and later claimed that he had been "offered one thousand dollars cash" to turn state's Of the threewhite men aboardthe Pearl, Daniel evidence.20He to Drayton was the most responsiblefor arranging the acknowledged Magistrate mass escape,though he insisted to his captorsthat he Williams that his "employers" were "per- did so for pecuniarygain. He serveda four-yearjail sons of high standing," but that he was sentence beforereceiving a presidentialpardon. He "only a mite or small fry in the matter." becamea hero to the abolitionistmovement, but com- Further,he testified that he was "no aboli- mitted suicide in 1857. FromDray ton's Personal Memoir,1855. tionist";he had only taken on the venture because of his poverty.21 Drayton and Sayres suffered a four- defense fund, whose main contributorshad year imprisonment before receiving presi- been, once again, and local dential pardons. Of the two, only Drayton lawyer David A. Hall, a defender of was lionized: he published his memoirs Drayton as well as John Bush.23 and appeared on anti-slavery platforms, After Chaplin's departure from but, dogged by poor health and poverty, he Washington, another Massachusettsnative, committed suicide in New Bedford, Jacob Bigelow, took on the leading role in Massachusetts,in 1857. Washington's underground railroad. In Following the capture of the Pearl, Washington since 1843, Bigelow was a Chaplin continued to organize daring retired lawyer who lived alone in a room escapes from slavery. He was arrested in next to his office on E Street,N.W. Over the August 1850 after a gun battle with police years he had been engaged in various aboli- in Maryland,just beyond the District line. tionist efforts in the capital, including He had two runaways named Allen and attemptsto ransom the Pearlcaptives and to Garland concealed in his carriage; both establish an antislavery church. As he were wounded, but Garland managed to proudly recalled, "I have, for years, cheer- escape.22Chaplin escaped the harsh prison fully regardedone half of my time as appro- conditions that had led to Torrey'sdeath by priated to aid the oppressed in some form, jumping the $19,000 bail posted by his or to oppose the oppressor."24Unlike Torrey

35 WashingtonHistory, Fall/Winter2001-2002

the White House and went with her by car- riage to Philadelphia, and Charles B. Ray and Amos N. Freeman, African-American clergymen who welcomed her in New York City, along with Lewis Tappan, a wealthy New York merchant who was even more influential in the antislavery movement than GerritSmith.27 Relatively few primary sources give detailed accounts of the clandestine deeds of white abolitionists like JacobBigelow in the capital,but even fewer exist that tell the stories of free African Americans upon whom those escaping bondage more often depended. Black churches, magnets for runaways, regularly offered crucial assis- tance. Often, only oral tradition testifies to the underground railroad work of such Ann Marie Weemsdressed as a male carriagedriver congregations as Israel Bethel AME (at when she successfullyfled slavery in Rockvillevia South Capitol and B streets, S.W.),Mt. Zion Washington,D.C., in 1855. Peopleof both racesand United Methodist Church (then at 27th and variousclass backgroundsassisted in her escape, demonstratingthe diversity of the undergroundrail- roadactivists. From Still, The Underground Railroad,1871. and Chaplin, Bigelow maintained a low profile and managed to keep out of jail.25 Among his close allies was of Philadelphia, an African American and VigilanceCommittee member.26 One of their famously successful joint ventures was the flight in November, 1855 of fifteen-year-oldAnn Marie Weems, who was dressed as a male carriage driver in transit from Washington to Philadelphia. (Fromthere, she traveled to New York City and on to the Buxton Settlement, Canada West). Others involved in the effort were Ann Marie's father,John, a free man living in Rockville, Maryland, Ezra L. Stevens, a white abolitionist and an Interior De- partment clerk in Washington, and unnamedblack families who sheltered Ann WilliamStill, a prominentPhiladelphia activist, Marie in the District for two months until describedWeems' 's escapein his 1871 book,The to move her north were in UndergroundRailroad: A Recordof Facts, arrangements AuthenticNarratives . . ., and thecentral En route to she was assist- proved place. freedom, role in organizing it played by his main Washington ed by a Philadelphia college professor ally JacobBigelow, a retiredlawyer. From Still, The known as "Dr. H." who met her in front of UndergroundRailroad, 1871.

36 UndergroundRailroad Activists in Washington,D.C.

Anthony Bozvenhad beenfreed from slavery in Prince George'sCounty in 1830 and becamean undergroundrailroad activist in the District. He is said to have met runawaysat the Washingtonwater- front and shelteredthem in his homeon E Street, S.W. From Shaw Ad-Hoc Coalitionto Save the " AnthonyBowen Y",A Community Response.M982].

A little more is known about the covert activities of Leonard Grimes, a "light mulatto" born free in Leesburg, Virginia, and later a militant antislavery pastor in Boston involved in the most notorious fugi- tive slave cases. In October 1839, Grimes was arrested for allegedly transporting an enslaved woman named Patty and six chil- dren to the District from Loudoun County.32He could do this easily because he was an owner and driver of hacks- the only licensed occupation that free African Americans could legally pursue by an 1836 city ordinance, but one that proved very useful for the underground railroad work of Grimes and many others. A biographicalsketch of Grimes in the P streets in Georgetown), St. Paul AME (on 1887 publicationMen of Markstated that he Eighth Street, S.W.), and Union Wesley had "resolved to do all he could to aid the AMEZion (on 23rd StreetN.W.).28 slaves in any attempt they might make to Oral tradition is also the main source escape from bondage. This disposition was for the covert activities of individuals like known, and the slave who wished to run Anthony Bowen, freed from slavery in away sought Mr. Grimes for advice, which Prince George's County in 1830, whose he never failed to give. Slaveholdersbegan home on E Street, S.W., has been described to suspect young Grimes as an enemy to by Charles Blockson as "a station on the their traffic in human flesh and blood. He underground railroad."29The Guideto Black was watched, detected, arrested,tried, con- Washingtonasserts that Bowen "often met victed and imprisoned."33In March 1840, incoming boats from the South on the Sixth Grimes was fined $100 and sentenced to StreetWharf on the Potomac River, leading two years in the penitentiaryin Richmond, the fugitives to the sanctuary of his resi- though the evidence against him was flim- dence."30The particularsof Bowen's opera- sy and he was ably defended by General tions and the names of his contacts have Walter Jones, the former U.S. Attorney for not survived, but he was clearly an inde- the District of Columbia who had impor- fatigable and caring "race man," and one tant family connectionsin Leesburg.34 likely to have made every effort to free Jones probably arranged many of the those in bondage. He was an organizer of testimonials and pardon petitions that an 1846 fundraiser to buy a woman out of referred to Grimes's unblemished personal slavery, a founder of St. Paul AME Church history, "formergood character,"and "the and its Sunday Evening School, and of the decency and respectability of him and his 31 "colored"YMCA in the District. family in their class." These were endorsed

37 WashingtonHistory, Fall/Winter 2001-2002

charged with assisting escapes from slavery (though none appear to have been con- victed of the offense).36 Jane Steiner, "a spinster,"was charged with assisting "by advice & donation of money the transportationof a certainnegro woman slave" on September4. The money in question, two dollars and fifty cents, paid for a ticket in the railroad car from Washington to Baltimore.Steiner was said to have "falselyand fraudulentlyrepresent- ed herself as the owner," who was actually George W. P. Custis, builder of Arlington House, adopted son of George Washington, father-in-lawto RobertE. Lee, and, in 1830 census returns,holder of 57 slaves. Perhaps Steiner collaborated with "Free Negro" Alexander Vincent, who was charged with loaning a free pass to another of Custis's slaves on the same day. It is possible,' as well, that they were both part of a larger LeonardGrimes, born free in Leesburg,Virginia, and network of support for runaways from latera notedantislavery pastor in Boston, lived in slavery.37 Washingtonin the late 1830s. He assisted escapes the same and undermined while as a hackdri- During term, "HenryHooper, slavery working a slave" was with "unlawful- ver, one of thefew occupationsthen open tofree blacks negro charged in the District. From Simmons, Men of Mark, 1887. ly taking from the city of Washington a negro woman slave named Mary and her two children,the propertyof Miss Adelaide by "a number of the intelligent and most Douglass." Hooper is said to have taken discreet and respectable people of them "on board a vessel of which [he] had Washington," including Chief Judge charge"and to have conveyed them "to the William Cranch of the U.S. Circuit Court State of Delaware."38 He was the only for the District of Columbia and U.S. enslaved underground railroad activist to CircuitCourt Judge BucknerThruston.35 have emerged in new indexes of the court Cranch and Thruston had first-hand record;others like him were more likely to knowledge of other persons intent on have appeared before local magistratesand undermining the slave system by direct punished by those holding them in slavery. action. A number of people appeared in An examination of the District Court their courtrooms who were charged with record also reveals that schools for African forging free passes, abetting, enabling, Americans were sometimes centers for transporting, and harboring runaways undergroundrailroad activity. At least four from slavery, and spreading seditious teachers at such schools were tried for aid- printed thoughts on the subject of slavery ing runaways. Two of these teachers were and freedom. Three cases that came before African Americans, John W. Prout and their Circuit Court during its November Joseph Farrell,and two were white, Elijah term, 1836, corroboratethe diverse picture Shay and Stephen Potter. of Underground Railroad activists in the The case of U.S. v. Stephen Potter offers District of Columbia. A white woman, a historians a comprehensive file that is free AfricanAmerican, and a slave were all unusually rich in details.39 Potter was

38 UndergroundRailroad Activists in Washington,D.C. charged in May 1818 with "aiding and assisting a certain slave by the name of William in making his escape." The ac- cusedwas a Georgetownresident who may have been related to Henry Potter, an Englishmanwho begana schoolfor African Americans at Seventh and G Streets in 1809.40In 1810Stephen had authoredA New GrammaticalSystem of the EnglishTongue in Three Parts. ..Both in Prose and Verse, Adorned with Cuts in Order to Incline Childrento Studywith Delight. On April 24, 1818, Commodore David Porter advertised a $150 reward for William, "a bright mulatto" about 24 years old and 5'9", who "formerly belonged to GeneralJohn Mason, and was brought up a waiter in his family, where he has a wife residing; his mother lives with Mr. McKenney, at the back of Georgetown."41 William would have waited on descen- dants of George Mason at his son's Georgetown residence, and on the many William Crunch,Chief Judge of the U.S. Circuit eminent summer visitors to Analostan Courtfor the District of Columbia,presided over local Island. William's experience with sophisti- trials of undergroundrailroad activists during his 54 on the bench. cated blue-bloods was no doubt valued by years Courtesy,Library of Congress. Commodore David Porter, a Navy Com- missioner and veteran of the War of 1812, whose lavish country seat, later known as William "confessed to him that a man MeridianHill, became noted for "generous named Potterwho lived in Georgetownhad and constantentertaining. "42 written [a ]paper for him and Porter's runaway advertisement pro- had furnished it to him for a compensation, vided detailed descriptions of some of the which he had made him in some of his clothing William had taken, including a [William's] clothes." Potter vehemently "new livery surtout, trimmed with black denied the charge. He wrote he had found velvet and a strip of gold lace on the col- the "two old coats"in his "necessaryhouse" lar." A plain, dark corduroy coat, along and added, "not knowing who they with a "blue striped coatee or jacket," belong'd to, I threw them into the house, would become part of the primary evi- supposing that they belong'd to some of the dence against Stephen Potter. These coats neighbours & that they would come for were found in Potter's home following the them." Potter attempted to explain his role execution of a search warrant. In his depo- in William's escape in a pleading letter to sition, Mason acknowledged giving them the grandjury from his "loathsome"jail cell: to William "while he belonged to me, and A yellow man cameto my door at a late taken with him when he was delivered to hourin the evening& requestedme to set Commodore which had occurred him acrossthe River.I repliedthat I could Porter," not & that he must to the - he "some time the last fall."43 go ferry during saydit was latein the evening,& he knew Mason continuedthat Porterhad visited not whereto find the ferry-manand again William in the Washington Jail, where requestedme to set him across- sayinghe

39 WashingtonHistory, Fall/Winter 2001-2002

CommodoreDavid Porter'srunaway slave advertise- mentfrom the April 24, 1818, National Intelligencer. "WilliamSmith" was namedin Porter'sApril 22 advertisementin the Alexandria Gazette, which offereda lesser rewardof $100 and added, "Mastersof vessels and othersare warnedfrom him at their as the law will be harboring peril, " enforcedagainst all such offenders. Runawayads are oftengood sourcesof information,like this one is, about the materialculture, occupations,skills, physi- cal appearance,and family ties of enslavedAfrican Americans.

side of the river is unknown. He may have embarked on the unnamed vessel at Alexandria for New York, where he was arrested and returned to Washington. He had forged manumission papers with him, transmitted by his captor to Porter, that attested and certifiedthat George Rinsel, "a yellow man aged about twenty one," had been manumitted on May 10, 1817, by Henry Carberryof Georgetown.The papers were certifiedwith the purported signature of John Ott, a justice of the peace, and wit- " nessed by Nathan Moore,a City constable. Potter denied any complicity, writing, "I know no more who wrote that Instrumentthan the man in the Moon- but what little I saw of it I make no doubt, but that it was written by some one who has been taught by me the use of the Pen." Was was one of the hands belonging to a Potter admitting that his script was suspi- Schooner that was gone to Alexandria ciously similar, or perhaps that his pupils which would sail the next morning,& that were sources for such docu- he had some of the & must likely forged Capt. clothes, ments? Mason took it himself to get on board before she sail'd- Then shew upon me a paper on which was written the closely compare Potter's writing with the names of the Capt.- Mate and Schooner, forgery: and promised me a reward if I would set of the officer him on the other shoar - 1 that I By permission [Constable [sic] repli'd Rezin B. Offutt] I took Potter into another wanted no reward for such a favour, if he room him self & him as to was me the truth- he said he & by questioned telling was, the manner by which he came by the that the Capt. had sent him for his clothe clothes.. . Desirous of his hand writ- that had been in the was - & seeing [sic wash?] ing - I put a pen and Ink before him, and that he had been dillatory [sic], which was - asked him to give me a minute of the facts the cause of the vessel leaving him I in relationto the matter& . . .when he came made no further scruple, but sat him to his of the &c. - he took acrossand returned a small part country, [in boat]. up the pen ... but having wrote his name only he desisted & said he would write no Intriguingly, General John Mason was the more - but told me if I wished to see his owner of in the ferry question. hand writing the constable in the other Whom William contacted on the other room had some accounts...which he had

40 UndergroundRailroad Activists in Washington,D.C.

The waterfrontlocations of Georgetown,shown here,and Alexandriaprovided access to transportationout of slaveryfor some AfricanAmericans, like William,who could stow away or perhapseven gain employmenton ships headingnorth. Courtesy,HSW.

written a few days before. I applied to tionto informHim where the Negro was if Offutt immediately in the presence of a compensationcould be had - together Potter and received from him the four with otherfacts of a conclusivecharacter accountswhich I have markedwith my couldthey be admitted- butbeing persons initials & I have the paper before men- of colour their testimony could not be tionedpurporting to be the Instrumentof allowed& also frompreexisting transac- manumission. tions of a similarcharacter on the partof the said StephenPotter shewing Him a Mason's actions contributed to Potter's dangerousperson.45 indictment; the decided that a grand jury The did not and returneda ver- "strong similarity" existed between the jury agree, dict of not on June 20, 1818,46but penmanship exhibited on the assembled guilty by documents. The of their was this time Potter had experienced consider- grain papers able He testified from that he also suspiciously similar. hardship. jail Potter'sletter from was "without money and almost without Stephen jail charged and a sick at home almost in William with a rascal,"a trait friends, family being "lying a state of He was "an old feble listed in the runaway ad. But Potter was perishing." [sic] man," he wrote, of life accused of much worse in a prosecution "my lamp documentsubmitted to the almost spent."47Potter's fate after 1818 is grand jury: his name does not in cen- after the advertisement a unknown; appear offering large sus or Whetherhe was "a rewardfor the apprehensionof the said directorylistings. slave... Potter called on a certain dangerous person" to the slave system [Constable]Nathan Moore with a proposi- remains unclear. The "other facts of a con-

41 Washington History, Fall/Winter 2001-2002

Williamused this certificateof freedom to aid in his unsuccessfulescape from slavery. He confessedthat a Georgetownresident and school teachernamed Stephen Potter hadforged the passfor him in exchangefor a few articlesof clothing. Potter denied the chargeand aftera harrowinginvestigation and trial wasfound not guilty. Courtesy,National Archives, D.C. District Court Records.

42 UndergroundRailroad Activists in Washington,D.C. elusive character" and the "preexisting suading him to run away from Miss Lucy transactions of a similar character"noted R. Miller, and assisting his transportation above may reveal a pattern of subversive by horse and gig to Baltimoreon April 19, behavior or associations, and other occa- 1833.50The indictments against Prout must sions when Potter had few scruples about have been a blow to the African-American rowing a person of color across the Potomac community. Since 1825, he had been run- and towardsvessels heading north. ning the ColumbianInstitute, an important Another white teacher of African school for African Americans on H Street, Americans was charged with abetting an N.W. (It had opened as the Smothers escape in U.S. v. Elijah Shay, a case that Schoolhouse, was renamed by Prout and came before the District Court during its taken over by John F. Cook in 1833 after May term, 1826.Shay was indicted for forg- Prout's arrest.) Prout had also been active ing a pass for John, "the property of Major in the cause of black civil rights. He took a George Peter," on December 8, 1825.48The strong public stand against the Coloniza- forged pass used the assumed name of tion Movement in 1831, and served as "Robert Jenkins," described as free born Corresponding Secretary to the 1832 Na- and "a coloured man of dark complexion, tional Negro Convention.51 about twenty six years old and about five Two other African-American men, feet nine inches high." John was enslaved Abraham Johnson and John Allen, were by Major George Peter, another very also indicted for helping Dosier's escape.52 wealthy and powerful man. He was a mili- Johnson was charged with assisting Dosier tary hero who served both in Congress and "by advice" and conveying him in the gig the Maryland General Assembly, and was to Baltimore.On Dosier's testimony, Allen also heir to the fortune of RobertPeter, first was charged with "forging & procuring to Mayorof Georgetown. be forged a certificateof freedom."53 In some histories, Elijah Shay is Another man of color named Henry misidentified as "Daniel" Shay, a teacher Brown was implicated though apparently who is said to have gone to jail for "helping not charged. His name was scribbled onto slaves to freedom" in about 1830.49Shay is the margin of Dosier's forged pass, where further portrayed as an Englishman who an official attempted to explain the foiled had opened "Round Tops" as a school for conspiracy: "John Prout: Col Man got his African Americansin about 1822, and who papers charged him $5. Abram Johnston had formerlytaught with Mary Billings, an [sic] brought him here in a gigg under a Englishwoman who established a similar Bargainwith Prout. Henry Brown, Col Man school in 1810.Elijah Shay was described as gone to Newham [?] has his [unreadable]. a "laborer"in the indictment- but this was Brownbrought it on in the Stage." the common description attached to Johnson and Prout were found guilty accused persons (including Drayton and and each fined $50. Allen may not have Sayres). Few details of his trial are avail- gone to trial, as no verdict was recorded. able. Shay pled guilty; he was imprisoned Johnson's appeal, filed by former U.S. for six months and fined $10. WhetherShay District Attorney Walter Jones (who later had accomplicesand belonged to an under- defended Leonard Grimes), triggered ground railroadnetwork is unclear. precedent-setting rulings that must have A case that involved teamwork and assisted the prosecution of those charged another teacher came before the March with assisting escapes from slavery. The 1833 term of the District court. John W. court opined it was unnecessary "to state Prout, an AfricanAmerican (describedas a what the advice was" to a runaway, nor "laborer"),was initially accused of forging "how it assisted him, nor is it necessary to a pass for Joseph Dosier, enticing or per- state a criminalintent, nor that the accused

43 WashingtonHistory, Fall/Winter 2001-2002

IndictmentofAfrican- American school teacher John W. Prout for forging a passfor Joseph Dosier. The jury foundProut not guilty of the forgery, but of ''enticingand persuading'' Dosier to run away. Courtesy, NationalArchives, D.C. District Court Records. knew he was a slave, and intended to run Farrell(or "Ferial")was describedin his away."54 1834 manumission certificate as "a dark The fourth case involving a teacheralso mulatto man about 40 years old, and 5 feet led to precedent-setting rulings by the 3V&inches tall."58He is said to have been "a District Court. The case of U.S. v. Negro baker by trade,"but maintaineda school in JosephFarrell concluded that "slaves are an alley between Duke and Princestreets in competent witnesses in Alexandria County Alexandria, District of Columbia.59 In against Negroes and mulattoes," and that reportingon his trial, the AlexandriaGazette "a sentence for a second offence while in noted, "the prisoner had been for many penitentiary for the first can commence at years acting as a preacher,and the keeper of the end of the first sentence."55 Joseph a school in the town of Alexandria for the Farrell was charged during the May and instructionof colored children."60An histor- October terms of the court in 1837 with ical account of antebellum black schools forging certificatesof freedom.56These were portrayedhim as "a colored man of decided for Sandy and Sam, both of whom were abilities and a leading spirit among the col- enslaved by Thomson F. Mason, a noted ored people... [who was] sent to the peni- attorney in Alexandria and a grandson of tentiary for assisting some of his race in GeorgeMason.57 Sandy, who had been cap- escaping from bondage."61 tured after running away, was permitted to Farrellpleaded not guilty, but reported- be a witness for the United States at ly said nothing in his defense; he was sen- Farrell'sfirst trial. tenced to four years' imprisonmenton May

44 UndergroundRailroad Activists in Washington,D.C.

]oseph Dosier ran awayfrom Lucy Miller of Washingtonin 1833 using thisforged pass. Dosier's escapeevinces the central role of African Americansin the operationof the undergroundrailroad: three blackmen, including school teacherJohn W. Prout, were chargedwith assisting Dosier's escapeto Baltimore. Courtesy,National Archives, D.C. District Court Records.

45 WashingtonHistory, Fall/Winter2001-2002

13, 1837. In early October,he was brought tion of the underground railroad in the back into court from the Penitentiaryof the Districtof Columbia. Districtof Columbia to stand trial for forg- From the historical record of district ing the certificatefor Sam. Farrellhad pro- court cases, newspaper advetisements, and vided the forgery "for the considerationof other primarysources, we can only begin to four dollars," according to Sam, who had piece together a picture of underground run away and been apprehended in the railroad activities in the District of Colum- interim. Farrell was then sentenced to an bia. Uncoveringclandestine activities in any additionalthree years in prison, to begin at period is one of the greatest challenges for the end of his four-yearsentence. historians. The history of the underground The AlexandriaGazette provided details railroadis still cloaked in myth and legend, of both forgeries. They were purportedly and the task of documenting this important issued under the seal of the County Court chapter in our nation's history is far from of Prince William and the signature of the complete. We know that some people, both presiding justice. The seal (a pair of scales white and African American, put them- with a tobacco leaf, and the words "Prince selves at great risk to assist runaways. But William County" in the margin) had been there is much that we don't know about the "tolerablywell executed,"but in both cases incentives that motivated them and the the name of the Justice,Mr. Ewell, was mis- strategiesthey adopted. spelled "Uile."The handwriting, "stiff and Torrey,Chaplin and Bigelow, in succes- labored, but perfectly distinct," was testi- sion, were clearly key figures in an aboli- fied to be Farrell'sby "a gentleman residing tionist network that transcended state in town who had seen him write."62 boundaries and somewhat resembled the Further research on Farrell and on kind of organized nationwide conspiracy other teachers may yield more evidence that gave slaveholders nightmares. But, that African-American schools in Wash- unconnected to this network, a diverse ington, like churches, were heavily group of other Washington residents also engaged in assisting runaways from slav- assisted escapes from slavery, some of them ery. People like Joseph Farrell, John W. long before Charles Turner Torrey moved Prout, and ElijahShay are unlikely to have to Washington.Some of these activists may recorded for posterity the particulars of have become involved spontaneously as their covert activities. District court docu- events unfolded, while others intentionally ments and other archivalrecords can reveal put this work at the center of their lives. only a small part of the activities that these They may have worked together in loose men worked hard to keep hidden. Usually, coalitionsor acted alone. More of these indi- they surfaced only in times of disaster and viduals need to be identified and their activ- at their peril. Still, District court records ities teased out of the historical record. offer information on escape routes and Their stories will contribute to a better strategies, as well as insights into the understanding of the history of the under- courage and strength of characterrequired ground railroad in Washington, D.C., and to assist the enslaved. These records enrich its connections to the long struggle to put and furtherdiversify the story of the opera- an end to slavery in the nation's capital. E

46 UndergroundRailroad Activists in Washington,D.C.

NOTES

1. Much informationwas derived from the publica- and Historic Cases (Washington, D.C, 1894), 29; tions of Stanley Harrold: "On the Borders of Smallwood, Narrative,18. Slavery and Race: Charles T. Torrey and the 9. Smallwood,Narrative, 20-21, 25, 29. Underground Railroad," Journal of the Early 10. Harrold,"On the Bordersof Slaveryand Race,"276. Republic,20, 2 (Summer2000), 273-79; and "Freeing 11. Ibid. the Weems Family: A New Look at the 12. See Joseph C. Lovejoy, Memoirof Rev. CharlesT. Underground Railroad,"Civil WarHistory, 42, 4 Torrey,Who Died in the Penitentiaryof Maryland, (1996),289-96. Harrold's forthcoming book is en- WhereHe was Confinedfor ShowingMercy to thePoor titled Subversionon the Potomac:The Washington (Reprint1847 ed., New York:Negro Universities AntislaveryCommunity, 1828-1865. Press, 1969); William Weston Patton, Freedom's 2. Harrold,Abolitionists and the South(Lexington, Ky.: Martyr:A Discourseon theDeath of theRev. Charles T. UniversityPress of Kentucky,1995), 70-75; "On the Torrey(Hartford, Conn., 1846); Almon Underwood, Bordersof Slaveryand Race,"275. A Discourseon theDeath of theLate Rev. C.T. Torrey, a 3. Thomas Smallwood, A Narrative of Thomas Martyrto HumanRights. Delivered in Nezuark,N.J., Smallivood (Coloured Man:). ..Together with an June 7, 1846 (Newark, 1846); Edmund Worth, A Account of the UndergroundRailroad, Written by Martyrto the Truth:A Sermonin Commemorationof Himself (Toronto, 1851), 13; National Archives, the Deathof Rev. CharlesT. Torrey,in the Maryland Recordsof the United States DistrictCourt for the Penitentiary,May 9, 1846... (Fisherville? N.H.: 1846?). Districtof Columbia[hereafter D.C. DistrictCourt 13. Harrold, "Freeing the Weems Family," 295; Records]Record Group 21, Entry 6, Imparlances, Harrold,The Abolitionists and the South, 70. November1842, Thomas Smallwood v. AbrahamCole, 14. Webster had purchased Jennings in order to free No. 39. Smallwood explained that he had been him, allowing him to "work off" the payment at "bequeathed"to the wife of the Rev. J.B.Ferguson, the rateof $8 a month.The promisedmanumission who was "no friendof slavery."The Ministerpaid was imminent. See G. Franklin Edwards and $500 for Smallwood in order to free him, though Michael R. Winston, "Commentary: the Wash- - not before the payment had been "worked out," ington of Paul Jennings White , Free when Smallwood was about thirty years old in Man and Conspiratorfor Freedom,"White House 1831. Confusing the issue is a record of Small- History,1 (1983),58. wood's manumission in 1842 by John Ferguson 15. John Henry Paynter,Fugitives of ThePearl (Reprint "for a considerationof $5" in FreeNegro Registers. of 1930ed., New York:AMS Press, 1971);Provine, DorothyS. Provine,District of ColumbiaFree Negro FreeNegro Registers, 279; Mary Kay Ricks,"Escape Registers1821-1861, (Bowie, Md.: Heritage Books, on The Pearl,"Washington Post, Aug. 12, 1998, HI, 1996),v. 2, 439-40. H4-5. 4. Smallwood,Narrative, 18. See also the new edition, 16. CatherineM. Hanchett,"'What Sort of People and Richard Almonte, ed., (Toronto: The Mercury Families...':The EdmonsonSisters," Afro-Americans Press,2000). in New YorkLife and History Quly 1982), 586 fn 7. 5. Daniel A. Payne, Historyof the AfricanMethodist 17. Daniel A. Drayton, Personal Memoir of Daniel EpiscopalChurch (Nashville, 1891), 38; John W. Drayton:For Four Years and FourMonths a Prisoner Cromwell, "The First Negro Churches in the for Charity'sSake in a WashingtonJail. Includinga Districtof Columbia,"Journal of NegroHistory, 7, 1 Narrativeof the Voyageand Captureof the Schooner (Jan.1922), 70-71. Pearl(Boston, 1855), 23. 6. See James Brewer Stewart, "Joshua Giddings, 18. DailyUnion (Washington D.C), Apr. 19, 1848. Antislavery Violence and Honor/' in John R. 19. See Samuel Gridley Howe, Narrativeof the Heroic McKiviganand Stanley Harrold,eds., Antislavery Adventuresof Drayton,an AmericanTrader, in The Violence:Sectional, Racial, and CulturalConflict in Pearl, Coasting Vessel, which was Captured by Antebellum America (Knoxville: University of AmericanCitizens, near the Mouth of the Potomac, TennesseePress, 1999), 172-73. Having on BoardSeventy-seven Men, Women,and 7. Harrold, "On the Borders of Slavery and Race," Children,Endeavoring to Escapefrom Slaveryin the 276. Capitalof the AmericanRepublic (London, 1848); 8. See RichardSylvester, comp., Districtof Columbia Harrold,"The Pearl Affair: The WashingtonRiot of Police:A Retrospectof the PoliceOrganizations of the 1848,"Records of the ColumbiaHistorical Society, 50 Citiesof Washingtonand Georgetownand the District (1980),140-60. of Columbia,with BiographicalSketches, Illustrations, 20. D.C. District Court Records, RG 21, Entry 45,

47 WashingtonHistory, Fall/Winter2001-2002

Appearances, June Term 1848, U.S. v. Daniel Bedford,Massachusetts (Amherst: University of Drayton, No. 119; ' Paper MassachusettsPress, 2001), 189. (Rochester,N.Y.), Oct. 15, 1852. 33. William J. Simmons, Men of Mark: Eminent, 21. D.C. DistrictCourt Records, RG 21, Entry45, Trials, Progressiveand Rising (Reprint of 1887ed., Chicago: OctoberTerm 1848, Daniel Drayton v. TheU.S., No. JohnsonPublishing Co., 1970),663; see also Carter 428. G. Woodson, The History of the Negro Church 22. TheCase of WilliamL. Chaplin:Being an Appealto All (Washington,D.C.: Associated Publishers, 1921), Respectersof Lawand Justice,Against the Crueland 180-81. OppressiveTreatment to which,Under Color of Legal 34. AlexandriaGazette and WeeklyAdvertiser, Mar. 17, Proceedings,He has beenSubjected, in the Districtof 1840, 3. See also Fanny Lee Jones, "WalterJones Columbiaand the Stateof Maryland(Boston, 1851); and His Times/7 Recordsof the ColumbiaHistorical Daily NationalIntelligencer, Aug. 10, 1850. Garland Society,5 (1902),139-50. and Allen were each enslaved to a powerful 35. Library of Virginia, Virginia Executive Papers, Georgia congressman who would rise to great Letters Received, Rejected Claims, 1842; Pardon heights in the Confederategovernments: Garland Petition for Leonard Grimes. Philip Schwarz of to Robert A. Toombs and Allen to Alexander Virginia Commonwealth University generously Stephens. made available transcribeddocuments relating to 23. Ralph Harlow, Gerrit Smith, Philanthropistand Grimes'strial and incarceration. Reformer(New York:Russell & Russell,1972), 292. 36. D.C District Court Records, RG 21, Entry 2, 24. Quoted in Harrold,"Freeing the Weems Family/' Minutes,November Term 1836. 294. 37. D.C. District Court Records, RG 21, Entry 6, 25. See Wilbur H. Siebert, The UndergroundRailroad NovemberTerm, 1836, Criminal Appearances, U.S. from Slavery to Freedom(New York: Russell & v. AlexanderVincent; No. 126, U.S. v. jane Steiner, Russell, 1898, 1967), 117; Harrold, "Freeing the No. 127. WeemsFamily," 294. 38. D.C. District Court Records, RG 21, Entry 6, 26. WilliamStill, The Underground Rail Road. A Recordof NovemberTerm, 1836, Criminal Appearances, U.S. Facts,Authentic Narratives, Letters, &c... (Reprintof v. HenryHooper, No. 167. 1871 ed., Chicago:Johnson Publishing Co., 1970), 39. D.C. District Court Records, RG 21, Entry 6, 150. Criminal Appearances June term 1818, U.S. v. 27. See BertramWyatt-Brown, Lewis Tappanand the StephenPotter, No. 80. Evangelical War Against Slavery (Baton Rouge: 40. See Lillian G. Dabney, The History of Schoolsfor LouisianaState University Press, 1997), 330. Negroes in the District of Columbia, 1807-1947 28. Afro-AmericanBicentennial Corporation, A Study (Washington: Catholic University of America of HistoricalSites in theDistrict of Columbiaof Special Press,1949), 16. Significanceto Afro-Americans(Washington, D.C, 41. Clipping of April 24, 1818 runaway ad from the 1974), 54-55; Nina Honemond Clarke, History of NationalIntelligencer (included in the case papersof Nineteenth-CenturyBlack Churches in Marylandand U.S.v. StephenPotter). Washington,D.C. (New York:Vantage Press, 1983), 42 Of the two, Mason (a militia general,banker, and 17, 40; CharlesL. Blockson,Hippocrene Guide to the businessman) was the more considerable slave- UndergroundRailroad (New York: Hippocrene holder: in the 1820 census returns he had 32 to Books, 1994), 38; James Oliver Horton, "The Porter'snine. See Harold Donaldson Eberleinand Genesis of Washington's African American Cortlandt Van Dyke Hubbard, HistoricHouses of Community,"in FrancineCary, ed., UrbanOdyssey: George-townand WashingtonCity (Richmond:Dietz A Multicultural History of Washington, D.C. Press,1958),451; CharlesPaullin, "Virginia'sGlebe (Washington,D.C: SmithsonianInstitution Press, near Washington,"Records of theColumbia Historical 1996),33, 37-38. Society 42-43, (1940-1), 229; 1820 U.S. Census, 29. Blockson,Hippocrene Guide, 35. Districtof Columbia. 30. Sandra Fitzpatrick and Maria R. Goodwin, The 43. This quotationand those that follow are from doc- Guide to BlackWashington (Rev. ed., New York: uments included in the case file of U.S. v. Stephen HippocreneBooks, 1999), 45. Potter. 31. Provine, FreeNegro Registers,185; Shaw Ad-Hoc 44. FrederickP. Todd, "TheMilitia and Volunteersof Coalitionto Save the AnthonyBowen "Y",A Com- the Districtof Columbia,1783-1820," Records of the munityResponse [Washington, D.C, 1982?];Clarke, ColumbiaHistorical Society, 50 (1948-50),427; Judah Historyof Nineteenth-Century Black Churches, 16. Delano, The WashingtonDirectory... (Washington, 32. JohnBlassingame et al, eds., TheFrederick Douglass D.C., 1822); Ronald Vern Jackson et al., eds., Papers,Ser. 1, Vol. 1 (New Haven:Yale University District of Columbia1810 CensusIndex (Salt Lake Press, 1979),441n; KathrynGrover, TheFugitive's City, Utah: Accelerated Indexing Systems, 1981); Gibraltar:Escaping Slaves and Abolitionismin New District of Columbia Census Index, 1820-1830

48 UndergroundRailroad Activists in Washington,D.C.

(Bountiful, Utah: Accelerated Indexing Systems, Districtof Columbia,1790-1846 (New York:Oxford 1976,1977). UniversityPress, 1972), 75-76. 45. District Court Records, RG 21, Entry 6, Criminal 52. D.C. District Court Records, RG 21 Entry 6, AppearancesJune term 1818, U.S. v. StephenPotter, CriminalAppearances, March Term 1833, U.S. v. No. 80. AbrahamJohnson, Nos. 93, 95, 101;see also Provine, 46. D.C. DistrictCourt Records, Entry 2, Minutes,June FreeNegro Registers, 70, 146. Term1818. 53. National Archives, RG 21, Entry 6, Criminal 47. District Court Records, RG 21, Entry 6, Criminal Appearances,March Term 1833, U.S. v. NegroJohn AppearancesJune term 1818, U.S. v. StephenPotter, Allen,No. 113. No. 80. 54. Cranch,Vol. 4, 303. 48. D.C. District Court Records, RG 21 Entry 6, 55. Ibid.,Vol. 5, 311. Criminal Appearances, May Term 1826, U.S. v. 56. Ibid.,311. ElijahShay, No. 56. 57. AttorneyThomson F. Masonof Alexandriawas the 49. Lillian Dabney attached the name "Daniel" to grandson of both George Mason of Gunston Hall Shay,a name she acknowledgedthat she locatedin and WilliamCranch, Chief Justiceof the District's an 1830Georgetown directory. Dabney, The History CircuitCourt. He becameJudge of the newly estab- of Schools,7, 16. See also Jane Freundel Levey, lished CriminalCourt of the Districtof Columbia "Segregationin Education:A Basisfor JimCrow in in 1838,but died six monthslater. Washington,D.C, 1804-1880,"M.A. Thesis,George 58. DorothyS. Provine,Alexandria County, Virginia Free WashingtonUniversity, 1991, 119. Negro Registers, 1797-1861 (Bowie, Maryland: 50. D.C. DistrictCourt Records, RG 21, Entry6, March HeritageBooks, Inc., 1990), 61 Term 1833,Criminal Appearances, U.S. v. JohnW. 59. U.S. Office of Education, Special Report of the Prout, Nos. 92, 94,100. See also William Cranch, Commissionerof Educationon the Condition and Reportsof Cases Civil and Criminalin the United Improvementof Public Schools in the District of StatesCircuit Court of the Districtof Columbia,from Columbia,(Washington, 1871), 283-4. 1801to 1841(New York,1852-53), Vol. 5, 301. 60. AlexandriaGazette, Oct. 17, 1837. 51. ConstanceMcLaughlin Green, Washington:Village 61. SpecialReport of theCommissioner of Education,284. and Capital 1800-1878 (Princeton: Princeton 62. AlexandriaGazette, Oct. 17,1837;see also Districtof UniversityPress, 1962),146; Howard Holman Bell, Columbia Circuit Court for Alexandria County Minutes of the Proceedingsof the National Negro Minute Books, Arlington [Alexandria] County Conventions1830-1864 (New York: Arno Press, Records,Library of Virginia. Extractskindly pro- 1969)8-9; Letitia Woods Brown,Free Negroes in the vided by Tim Dennee.

49