Enslaved People and British Freedom Offers

In May 1780 the British army took the city of Charleston, South Carolina. Soon after, a young man named Boston King walked into the city. He was about twenty. He was enslaved. An enslaved person is owned by someone else and works for no pay. He had run away to escape a harsh punishment. He asked the British for work. He later wrote that they "received me readily."

Slavery in the Colonies

In 1775 about 500,000 Black people lived in the colonies. That was about one person in five. About 450,000 of them were enslaved. Most lived in the South. In Virginia, four of every ten people were enslaved. In South Carolina, more than half were. Many Patriot leaders enslaved people. Thomas Jefferson wrote "all men are created equal." In his life he enslaved more than 600 people.

Lord Dunmore's Offer

Lord Dunmore was the king's governor of Virginia. In 1775 he lived on a ship near Norfolk. On November 7, 1775, he made an offer. Enslaved men who left Patriot owners could be free. But they had to be able to fight. They had to join the king's army. The offer did not help women, children, or old people.

About 800 men came to Dunmore in the first month. He made them into a unit. He called it the Ethiopian Regiment. Then smallpox spread through his ships and camps. Many of the men died.

The Offer Grows

In 1779 the top British general made a bigger offer. Any enslaved person who left a Patriot owner could come to the British. No one could sell them or claim them. About 20,000 people reached the British during the war. Some guesses are much higher.

Boston King's War

King got smallpox soon after he joined the British. Then he carried messages for British officers. Later he went to New York. There he married a woman named Violet. She had run away too.

The war ended in 1783. A rumor spread in New York. It said the Black people there would be sent back to their owners. King wrote that the rumor filled them with fear. But the British general said they could leave. British clerks wrote down their names in a book. It is called the Book of Negroes. It lists about 3,000 people. Most of them sailed north to Nova Scotia. King and Violet sailed in July 1783.

After the War

Not everyone went free. A woman named Betty was sent back to her owner. In 1792 King was one of almost 1,200 people who sailed to Africa. They started the town of Freetown in Sierra Leone. Back in the United States, some Northern states began to end slavery. In the South, slavery grew. King died in Sierra Leone in 1802.

In May 1780 the British army captured Charleston, South Carolina. Soon afterward a young enslaved man named Boston King walked into the city and asked the British for work. He was about twenty years old. He had grown up on a plantation near Charleston and had been sent to a carpenter to learn the trade. The carpenter beat him, and when the British took the city, King ran to them. He later wrote that the British took him in right away.

Slavery in the Colonies

In 1775 about 500,000 Black people lived in the thirteen colonies, about one person in five, and about 450,000 of them were enslaved. Most lived in the South. Enslaved people were about 40 percent of Virginia's population and more than half of South Carolina's. Many Patriot leaders enslaved people themselves. Thomas Jefferson wrote that "all men are created equal," and over his lifetime he enslaved more than 600 people.

Dunmore's Proclamation

The first offer of freedom came from the British side. Lord Dunmore was the royal governor of Virginia. By the fall of 1775 he was living on a merchant ship, the William, off Norfolk. On November 7, 1775, he signed a proclamation, an official public announcement. It said that enslaved people and servants of rebels who were "able and willing to bear Arms" would be free if they joined the king's troops. The offer did not cover women, children, or the old, and it did not cover people owned by Loyalists.

About 800 men reached Dunmore within a month, and he formed them into a unit he called the Ethiopian Regiment. Then smallpox and typhus spread through his crowded ships and camps, and many of the men died.

The Offer Grows

In June 1779 the British commander, Sir Henry Clinton, made a wider offer from his headquarters in New York. Any enslaved person who left a Patriot owner and reached British lines, the area the British army controlled, could not be sold or claimed by anyone. Historians estimate that about 20,000 enslaved people reached the British during the war, and some estimates are much higher. The Patriots also used enslaved people's labor, and some states freed enslaved men who served as soldiers.

Boston King's War

King caught smallpox soon after he joined the British. After he got well, he carried messages for British officers. Once he walked through Patriot country with a letter that brought help to 250 British soldiers who were surrounded. Later he reached New York, the main British base, and married a woman named Violet, who had run away from an owner in North Carolina.

When news of peace came in 1783, a rumor spread that the Black people in New York would be sent back to their owners. King wrote that the rumor filled them all with fear. But the British commander ruled that they could leave. British clerks recorded their names in a ledger now called the Book of Negroes. It lists about 3,000 people, and most of them sailed to Nova Scotia. King and Violet sailed on July 31, 1783, and landed at Birchtown, Nova Scotia, in August.

After the War

Not everyone who reached the British went free. A woman named Betty was handed back to her owner in 1783. Others were sold again or died of disease in the camps. In January 1792 nearly 1,200 of them, King among them, sailed to West Africa and founded Freetown, Sierra Leone. In the United States, Pennsylvania passed a law in 1780 to end slavery slowly, and Massachusetts courts ended it there by 1783. Most states left slavery in place, and in the South it grew. King died in Sierra Leone in 1802.

In May 1780 the British army captured Charleston, South Carolina. Soon afterward a young enslaved man named Boston King walked into the city and offered to work for the British. He was about twenty years old and had grown up on Richard Waring's plantation near Charleston. At sixteen he had been sent to a carpenter to learn the trade, and the carpenter beat him. When the British took the city, King ran to them. He later wrote that the British "received me readily."

Slavery in the Colonies

When the war began, about 500,000 of the people in the thirteen colonies were of African descent, about one person in five, and about 450,000 of them were enslaved. Most lived in the South, where enslaved people were about 40 percent of Virginia's population and more than half of South Carolina's. The men who led the Revolution were often slaveholders themselves. Thomas Jefferson wrote in the Declaration of Independence that "all men are created equal," and over his lifetime he enslaved more than 600 people.

Dunmore's Proclamation

The first offer of freedom came from the British side. By the fall of 1775 Lord Dunmore, the royal governor of Virginia, was living aboard a merchant ship, the William, off Norfolk. On November 7, 1775, he signed a proclamation, an official public announcement. It declared free all enslaved people and indentured servants "appertaining to Rebels" who were "able and willing to bear Arms" and joined the king's troops. The offer did not cover the enslaved people of Loyalists, and it did not cover women, children, or the old. Dunmore wrote that its purpose was to bring the colony "to a proper Sense of their Duty."

About 800 men reached Dunmore within a month, and he formed them into a unit he called the Ethiopian Regiment. Smallpox and typhus spread through his crowded ships and camps, and in 1776 Dunmore left Virginia with about 300 of the roughly 2,000 people who had joined him.

The Offer Widens

In June 1779 the British commander in chief, Sir Henry Clinton, issued the Philipsburg Proclamation from his headquarters in New York. It applied to enslaved people of any age or sex who left Patriot owners and reached British lines, the territory the British army controlled. It forbade anyone to sell or claim them, and it promised them "full Security" to follow any occupation they chose. Historians estimate that about 20,000 enslaved people reached the British during the war, and some estimates run much higher. The Patriots also used enslaved people's labor, and some states freed enslaved men who served as soldiers, as Rhode Island did for the men of its First Regiment.

Boston King's War

King caught smallpox soon after he joined the British. The sick were carried a mile from the camp, and he wrote that a soldier from the York Volunteers brought him food and water. After he recovered he carried dispatches for British officers, and once he went on foot through Patriot country with a letter that brought help to 250 British soldiers surrounded at Nelson's Ferry. He later reached New York, the main British base, where he married a woman named Violet who had run away from an owner in North Carolina.

The Book of Negroes

When news of peace reached New York in 1783, a rumor spread that the Black people in the city would be returned to their owners. King wrote that "this dreadful rumour filled us all with inexpressible anguish and terror," and that owners came from Virginia and North Carolina and seized people "in the streets of New-York." The British commander, Sir Guy Carleton, ruled that anyone who had reached British lines before the peace was free to leave, and each person received a certificate. British clerks recorded their names in a ledger now called the Book of Negroes. It holds about 3,000 entries, each with a name, an age, and a short description, and most of the people in it sailed to Nova Scotia. King appears in it as a "stout fellow" of 23. He and Violet sailed on July 31, 1783, and landed at Birchtown, Nova Scotia, on August 27.

Not everyone who reached the British went free. A woman named Betty was handed back to her owner, Thomas Smith, in New York in 1783. Others were sold again or died of disease in the camps. In Nova Scotia the Black Loyalists received small lots of land and little else, and in January 1792 nearly 1,200 of them, King among them, sailed to West Africa and founded Freetown, Sierra Leone. In the United States, Pennsylvania passed a gradual abolition law in 1780 and Massachusetts courts ended slavery there by 1783, but most of the new state constitutions left slavery in place, and in the South it grew. King died in Sierra Leone in 1802.

In May 1780 the British army captured Charleston, South Carolina, and soon afterward a young enslaved man named Boston King walked into the city and offered to work for the British. He was about twenty years old and had grown up on Richard Waring's plantation near Charleston, where his mother worked as a nurse and seamstress and his father had been taken from Africa as a young man. At sixteen King had been sent to a carpenter in a nearby town to learn the trade, and the carpenter beat him "without mercy." Waring sided with the rebels when the war began, and when the British took the city, King ran to them. He later wrote that the British "received me readily" and that he "began to feel the happiness of liberty."

Slavery in the Colonies

When the war began, about 500,000 of the people in the thirteen colonies were of African descent, about one person in five, and about 450,000 of them were enslaved. Most lived in the South, where enslaved people were about 40 percent of Virginia's population and, by the count of 1770, about 60 percent of South Carolina's. The men who led the Revolution were often slaveholders themselves. Thomas Jefferson wrote in the Declaration of Independence that "all men are created equal," and over his lifetime he enslaved more than 600 people. Vermont's constitution of 1777 banned adult slavery, and Massachusetts courts used the words of the state's 1780 constitution, "all men are born free and equal," to end slavery there by 1783, but most of the new state constitutions left slavery in place.

Dunmore's Proclamation

The first offer of freedom came from the British side. By the fall of 1775 Lord Dunmore, the royal governor of Virginia, was living aboard a merchant ship, the William, off Norfolk, where his printers set up a press he had seized from a Norfolk newspaper. On November 7, 1775, he signed a proclamation, an official public announcement, and it was made public on November 14 and 15. It declared martial law, rule by the army in place of the ordinary courts, and it declared free all indentured servants and enslaved people "appertaining to Rebels" who were "able and willing to bear Arms" and joined the king's troops. The offer did not cover the enslaved people of Loyalists, and it did not cover women, children, or the old. Dunmore stated its purpose in the same sentence: "the more speedily reducing this Colony to a proper Sense of their Duty."

About 800 men reached Dunmore within a month, and he formed them into a unit he called the Ethiopian Regiment. Virginia's Patriot leaders answered on December 14, 1775, with a declaration of their own, which warned that enslaved people who joined Dunmore would be punished and promised a pardon to any who surrendered to Colonel William Woodford. Dunmore's regiment fought at Great Bridge, near Norfolk, in December 1775 and lost. Smallpox and typhus then spread through his crowded ships and camps, and in 1776 Dunmore left Virginia with about 300 of the roughly 2,000 people who had joined him.

The Offer Widens

On June 30, 1779, the British commander in chief, Sir Henry Clinton, issued the Philipsburg Proclamation from his headquarters at Philipsburg, New York. It applied to enslaved people of any age or sex who left Patriot owners and reached British lines, the territory the British army controlled. The proclamation never used the word free. It forbade anyone to sell or claim "any NEGROE" who had deserted the rebels, and it promised "full Security to follow within these Lines, any Occupation" the person chose, which in practice meant freedom. Historians estimate that about 20,000 enslaved people reached the British during the war, and older estimates run far higher. The Patriots also used enslaved people's labor, and some states freed enslaved men who served as soldiers, as Rhode Island did for the men of its First Regiment.

Boston King's War

King caught smallpox soon after he joined the British. The sick were carried a mile from the camp and left with little care, and he wrote that a soldier from the York Volunteers brought him food and water. After he recovered he worked as a servant to officers and carried dispatches for them. Once his commander sent him with a letter through Patriot country and offered him a horse, but King wrote that "I refused going on horse-back, and set off on foot," and the letter brought help to 250 British soldiers surrounded at Nelson's Ferry. He later reached New York, the main British base, where he married a woman named Violet who had run away from an owner in Wilmington, North Carolina. A Patriot whaleboat crew captured him once and enslaved him again, and he escaped by wading across a river at night.

The Book of Negroes

When news of peace reached New York in 1783, a rumor spread that about 2,000 Black people in the city would be returned to their owners. King wrote that "this dreadful rumour filled us all with inexpressible anguish and terror," and that owners came from Virginia and North Carolina and seized people "in the streets of New-York, or even dragging them out of their beds." The British commander, Sir Guy Carleton, ruled that anyone who had reached British lines before the peace was free to leave, and each person received a certificate from the commanding officer. From April to November 1783, British clerks recorded their names in a ledger now called the Book of Negroes. It holds about 3,000 entries, each with a name, an age, a short description, and the ship the person sailed on. Most sailed to Nova Scotia, while smaller groups went to Quebec, the Bahamas, England, and Germany. King appears in it as a "stout fellow" of 23. He and Violet sailed on the ship L'Abondance on July 31, 1783, and landed at Birchtown, Nova Scotia, on August 27. By January 1784 Birchtown held 1,521 Black settlers, the largest free Black settlement in North America.

Not everyone who reached the British went free. A woman named Betty was handed back to her owner, Thomas Smith, in New York in 1783. Others were sold again, some in the Caribbean, or died of disease in the camps. In January 1792 nearly 1,200 of them, King among them, sailed in a fleet of fifteen ships to West Africa and founded Freetown, Sierra Leone. Violet died of fever soon after they landed.

How We Know

Two kinds of records tell this story. The Book of Negroes survives, and the Nova Scotia Archives has published every entry online. King's own account survives because the Sierra Leone Company sent him to England in 1794 to study at Kingswood School near Bristol, where he wrote his memoir. The Methodist Magazine printed it in 1798 as "Memoirs of the Life of Boston King, a Black Preacher." He returned to Sierra Leone in 1796, taught in Freetown, and then moved to a company post among the Sherbro people on the coast. He died there in 1802.