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A. Hunt was an enslaver who resided in Sussex County, NJ, in the early 19th century. This person submitted two birth certificates for enslaved children to the Sussex County Clerk, both signed only "A. Hunt." These documents do not list a specific locality within Sussex County and do not indicate whether this enslaver was a man or a woman.
Aaron was a Black man born circa 1792. He was enslaved by Aaron Borden or Allentown and then by Elijah Blackwell of Princeton, NJ. Evidently, he labored for Blackwell under an agreement that he should serve until approximately 1823 (when Aaron would be about 31 years old). He ran away from his enslavers twice by the time he was 19 years old.
He may have fathered a child with a white woman (whose name is not known). Elijah Blackwell's runaway ad related to Ben's second escape in 1811 noted that Ben was followed by a white woman (whose name was not mentioned) and the woman's child (who was described by Blackwell as a "mulatto child"). They were accompanied also by Aaron, who was also enslaved by Elijah Blackwell.
Aaron was born in 1804, the child of Kate (enslaved by John Van Nuis of North Brunswick, NJ). Under the provisions of New Jersey's Gradual Abolition Act of 1804, he was considered a slave for a term of 25 years and would become eligible for emancipation upon reaching that age.
Aaron was born in 1805, the child of a woman enslaved by Elijah Voorhies of West Windsor, NJ. Under the provisions of New Jersey's Gradual Abolition Act of 1804, he was considered a slave for a term of 25 years and would become eligible for emancipation upon reaching that age.
Aaron, son of Peggy, was born around 1805 and was enslaved by Henry Suydam, a resident of New Jersey. In 1818, when Aaron was 13, Henry Suydam sold or otherwise transferred Aaron to an enslaver named Stephen Mundy of Piscataway, Middlesex County, New Jersey. Stephen Mundy then moved to the village of Caneseraga in Allegany County, New York, and took Aaron with him. This relocation separated Aaron from his mother.
Aaron Burr Sr was an enslaver and the second president of Princeton University (then called the College of New Jersey). Born in 1716, he was a Presbyterian minister who pastored a congregation in Newark, New Jersey. He was elected president of the college in 1748 and served until his death in 1757. He initially taught students at his parsonage in Newark, and then in 1756, he oversaw the college's move to its new and permanent campus in Princeton.
Aaron Gulick was a resident of Middlesex County, New Jersey. He served as the Justice of the Peace for the county in the early 19th century. In this official capacity, he issued manumission certificates for residents of South Brunswick whose enslavers agreed to set them free.
Abigail was an enslaved woman who lived in New Jersey in the early 19th century and was manumitted by Ephraim Pyatt of Piscataway, NJ. Her certificate of manumission was issued on August 8, 1808. Abigail was aged 21 to 40 at the time of manumission.
Abigail was born in 1805, the child of Margaret (enslaved by Oakey Vanosdol of West Windsor, NJ). Under the provisions of New Jersey's Gradual Abolition Act of 1804, she was considered a slave for a term of 21 years and would become eligible for emancipation upon reaching that age.
Sussex County Births of Enslaved Children microfilm contains a birth record for Abigail (or Abegel).
The locality is not specified on the birth certificate, but Abigail's enslaver Severyn Westbrook was known to be a resident of Montague, and it is likely that the child was born around that area.
Abner was a Black man born circa 1759. He was enslaved by Isaac Tunnell of Dagsborough, Delaware, and escaped from his enslaver in 1799. His enslaver thought that Abner may have gone to Pennsylvania or New Jersey and advertised for him in a Trenton newspaper.
Abraham was an enslaved man, born around 1782, who was manumitted by John Runyon Jr. of Piscataway, NJ. The deed of manumission was executed on March 14, 1812. Abraham was aged 30 at the time of manumission.
Abraham was an enslaved man, born around 1784, who was manumitted by Charles Smith of North Brunswick, NJ. The certificate of manumission was issued on June 27, 1823. The deed of manumission was executed on the same day. Abraham was aged 39 at the time of manumission.
Abraham was born in 1805, the child of On (enslaved by Jeremiah Van Deventer of Piscataway, NJ). Under the provisions of New Jersey's Gradual Abolition Act of 1804, he was considered a slave for a term of 25 years and would become eligible for emancipation upon reaching that age.
Abraham Blauvelt (c. 1764-1838) was an alumnus and trustee of Queen's College (later Rutgers). He was born in Rockland County, NY, and lived most of his life in New Brunswick, NJ, where Middlesex County records indicate that he held people in bondage. He received a degree from Queen's College in 1789 and was elected to the Board of Trustees in 1800, assuming the position of the Secretary of the Board. From 1808 to 1810 he was the chairman of the Building Committee that oversaw the construction of the college's first permanent building, now known as Old Queens. He maintained the financial records related to the construction of the building, which document the college's use of enslaved labor.
Blauvelt was a printer in New Brunswick. He established a newspaper called the Guardian, or, New Brunswick Advertiser, in 1792 and published it for decades, delivering news and advertisements to the surrounding counties. Many advertisements for runaways and slave sales appeared in his newspaper over the years. Blauvelt helped facilitate slave sales for his subscribers. Some sellers did not want to publish their own name and contact information in the newspaper, preferring to keep the transaction more private. In such cases, Blauvelt acted as a middleman, publishing ads that said "Enquire of the printer," and encouraging prospective buyers to come to Blauvelt for more information about the sale.
Abraham Brown was a white man who served as one of the Overseers of the Poor for the township of Bedminster, Somerset County, in the early 19th century.
Abraham Glasgow was an enslaved man who lived in North Brunswick, New Jersey, in the early 19th century. His enslaver was Andrew Kirkpatrick (1756-1831), the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of New Jersey and a prominent Rutgers trustee. On April 29, 1809, Andrew Kirkpatrick manumitted Abraham Glasgow. Abraham Glasgow was aged 21 to 40 at the time of manumission, but his exact year of birth is not known.
Abraham I. Van Arsdale was a white man who served as one of the Overseers of the Poor for the township of Bedminster, Somerset County, in the early 19th century.
Abraham S. Barkelew was an enslaver and yeoman who resided in North Brunswick, NJ, in the early 19th century. His family was associated with the area of North Brunswick Township known today as South River.
His family name is variously spelled as Barkelew or Buckelew in historical records.
Abraham Schuyler was a resident of Middlesex County, New Jersey. He served as the Justice of the Peace for the county in the early 19th century. In this official capacity, he issued manumission certificates for residents of North Brunswick whose enslavers agreed to set them free.
Abraham Schuyler Neilson (1792-1861) of New Brunswick, NJ, owned at least two enslaved people according to the 1830 federal census. He was the son of Colonel John Neilson (1745-1833), a Revolutionary War hero from New Brunswick. Abraham was the younger brother of James Neilson (1784-1862), a benefactor of Queen's College (Rutgers).
He appears to have been working for a distant cousin named James H. Neilson in the 1820s. A manumission record from 1822 refers to Abraham as "Abraham S. Neilson of the firm of James H. Neilson." The firm of James H. Neilson is not to be confused with the business of Abraham's brother James Neilson (who did not typically use a middle initial). The James H. Neilson referred to here is likely the son of William Neilson (c. 1737–1820), a prominent New York City merchant.
Abraham Shaver (1754-1820) was an enslaver who resided in Stillwater, Sussex County, NJ. He was a prosperous mill owner and a prominent civic leader; he served as an assemblyman in the state legislature in the early 1800s.
His family name was variously spelled Shaver, Shafer, or Schaeffer in local histories and archival documents. He was the son of Casper Schaeffer (1712-1784), a German immigrant who was one of the founders of the village of Stillwater, and Maria Catrina Bernhardt. He married Sarah Armstrong (1761-1827).
In 1784, Abraham inherited from his father a property with a mill along Paulins Kill. This property is now on the National Register of Historic Places and is known as the Casper and Abraham Shafer Grist Mill Complex. See the related place record for the Shafer Grist Mill to learn more about the property and the work performed there. Abraham's work force at the mill included enslaved Black people. Enslaved women and children also performed domestic labor for Abraham and his wife Sarah in their home.
Sussex County birth records of enslaved children contain numerous documents related to Abraham Shaver and the enslaved women, Nance and Betty, who lived in his home in the early 19th century. These county records also mention Betty's husband Nun. Nance and a boy named Bob are also mentioned in Abraham's will, written in 1819, shortly before his death.
The oldest son of Abraham Shaver, Rev. Dr. Casper Schaeffer, wrote a historical sketch about Abraham (and other enslavers in Sussex County). These recollections were penned in 1855 and later published by another descendant William M. Johnson in 1907:
"Slavery formerly existed here to a limited extent. The Van Campens over the mountains, my father and his brothers and my uncles Armstrong, all held slaves of the African race, more or less. My father held at one time, eight or ten of them." (p. 75)
The 1881 book History of Sussex and Warren Counties, New Jersey, by James P. Snell, notes that as many as a dozen enslaved people worked at Abraham Shaver's mill property:
"In 1816 Abraham Shaver and his sons Nathan and Peter had a store, grist-mill, tannery, blacksmith shop, oil mill, carding machines and distillery, at Stillwater, and were largely engaged in farming. They employed a good many people, and among the rest had, in 1816, as many as a dozen slaves. Samuel J. Squires was their blacksmith, and James Beatty their miller." (p. 387)
Abraham Sherrit was a Black man born circa 1794. He was enslaved by a sea captain named Joseph Clark and worked as a steward aboard Clark's brig called Friendship, which sailed between Montserrat (an island in the West Indies) and New York City. In 1817, Abraham Sherrit ran away from his enslaver in New York.
Abraham Staats (1743-1821) was an enslaver who resided in Franklin Township, Somerset County, in the present-day area of South Bound Brook. His wife was Margaret Du Bois (1749-1822). When Abraham and Margaret married in 1770, they moved into a farmhouse that is now known as the Abraham Staats House, and they lived there for the rest of their lives. Several enslaved people lived and worked in the household with the Staats family well into the 19th century.
The Abraham Staats House is now on the National Register of Historic Places and is open to the public for visitation and educational programming. See the Abraham Staats House website for more information about the Staats family and the ongoing historical research and interpretation work at the site.
Abraham Van Arsdalen was an official in Middlesex County, NJ, and held several different positions in the early decades of the 19th century, including County Sheriff and Overseer of the Poor for the Township of North Brunswick. In his role as Overseer of the Poor, his job included examining and certifying manumissions.
Van Arsdalen Papers (1794-1869) contain documents relating to his duties as sheriff of Middlesex County and tax collector for North Brunswick Township. The manuscript collection is held at Special Collections and University Archives, Rutgers University Libraries.
Abraham Veghte (1791-1865) was a farmer from Griggstown in Franklin Township, Somerset County, NJ. According to the 1830 federal census for Franklin Township, Abraham Veghte's household consisted of 5 free white persons, 2 enslaved men between the ages of 24 and 35, and 3 persons who were listed as "free colored persons" under the age of 23. The 3 young persons listed as "free" were probably actually "slaves for a term" who awaited their emancipation under New Jersey's gradual abolition program. Since the federal census did not have a category of "slave for a term," these young people would have been listed as "free" belying the reality of their life in bondage.
In December 1838, Abraham Veghte purchased a 20-year-old enslaved man named Mark Harris Jr. from James Neilson (1784-1862) for $20. Under the terms of the sale, Mark Harris Jr. was bound to serve Abraham Veghte for a partial term of 4 years and 7 months. Mark Harris Jr. was a "slave for a term" and would become eligible for emancipation once he attained the age of 25.
Abraham Woodruff was a white man who resided in Trenton, NJ, in the early 19th century. He had a Black boy named Charles Thompson in his household whom he described as an "apprentice" in an 1817 runaway ad.
Absalom Brainbridge was an enslaver who lived at the Bainbridge House in Princeton in the 1770s. He was born in Maidenhead (now Lawrence) in 1742 and graduated from Princeton University (then called the College of New Jersey) in 1762. After pursuing medical training in New York, came back to New Jersey to practice medicine in Maidenhead and then in Princeton, where he lived at the aforementioned Bainbridge House on Nassau Street. There he held in slavery a Black man named Prime. Bainbridge was a British Loyalist, and he relocated to Flatbush in Kings County (present-day Brooklyn) during the American Revolution in 1777, taking Prime with him. Prime ran away from Bainbridge in 1778 and eventually attained freedom for his patriotic service during the Revolutionary War.
Adam (or Addom) was an enslaved man who lived in New Jersey in the early 19th century and was manumitted by James Morgan of South Amboy, NJ. The certificate of manumission was issued on May 29, 1815. Adam was aged 21 to 40 at the time of manumission.
Sussex County Births of Enslaved Children microfilm contains a birth record for Adam and for his younger sister Peggy, although their mother's name is not listed on the certificate.
Adam Hill was a Black man held in the Middlesex County jail as a suspected runaway in 1799. He told the jailer that he had been enslaved by William McMurtie of Philadelphia.
Sussex County Births of Enslaved Children microfilm contains a birth record for Albert Francis Grove, son of Jane, enslaved by Mary Coursen of Hardwick township.
Albert P. Voorhees was an enslaver who resided in Somerset County, NJ, in the early 19th century. He lived around the area of Harlingen (in present-day Montgomery Township).
Albert Schenck was an enslaver who resided in Princeton, NJ, in the 18th century. A runaway advertisement for a Black man named Michael published in 1797 noted that Michael was "raised in Princeton in New Jersey, by Captain Albert Scank," using the phonetic spelling of the enslaver's name. The family name in the Princeton area is generally spelled Schenck.
The Historical Society of Princeton holds documents related to the Schenck family, including a land deed for Albert Schenck (100 acres at Stony Brook), which may be related to Michael's enslaver.
Alexander was a French-speaking Black man born around 1774 to 1776. He grew up in Saint Domingue (now Haiti). He was enslaved by Jacques Philipe Rossignol de Grandmont, a French planter who fled the island during the Haitian Revolution. Alexander was brought to Trenton, New Jersey, when Grandmont relocated there in the 1790s. In 1804, Alexander was living and working in the household of Andrew S. Hunter of Flemington, Hunterton County, likely hired out to Hunter by Grandmont. Alexander ran away from Hunter's house in July 1804 and was pursued by Hunter and Grandmont. Prior to Alexander's escape from Hunter's house, three other people ran away from Grandmont's household in Trenton, and it is possible that their escapes (or their assistance) influenced Alexander's decision to run away.
Alexander (also called Ellick) was born in 1805, the son of Elizabeth, enslaved by Jeremiah Manning of Piscataway, NJ. Under the provisions of New Jersey's Gradual Abolition Act of 1804, he was considered a slave for a term of 25 years and would become eligible for emancipation upon reaching that age. In 1806, his enslaver filed an abandonment certificate for Alexander, giving him up to the Overseers of the Poor of Piscataway.
Alexander was born in 1812, the child of Jane (enslaved by Austin D. Blackwell of Mapletown, NJ). Under the provisions of New Jersey's Gradual Abolition Act of 1804, he was considered a slave for a term of 25 years and would become eligible for emancipation upon reaching that age.
Alexander Dunn was a resident of Middlesex County, New Jersey. He served as the Justice of the Peace for the county in the early 19th century. In this official capacity, he issued manumission certificates for residents of Piscataway whose enslavers agreed to set them free.
Alexander Robinson was an enslaver who resided in Morristown, New Jersey, in the late 18th century. In a 1792 newspaper ad, he identified his residence as Belment Farm in Morristown.
Alfred was born in 1832, the child of Caroline (enslaved by Robert Adrain of New Brunswick, NJ). Under the provisions of New Jersey's Gradual Abolition Act of 1804, he was considered a slave for a term of 25 years and would become eligible for emancipation upon reaching that age.
Alfred's mother died when he was a baby.
All was an enslaved man, born around 1787, who was manumitted by David Dunn of Piscataway, NJ. His certificate of manumission was issued on May 4, 1808. All was aged about 21 at the time of manumission.
Allen Reynolds was an enslaver who resided in Palmyra, Mississippi (present-day Davis Island). Removal certificates issued in Middlesex County, New Jersey, show that his associate Lewis Compton intended to bring a group of enslaved people from New Jersey to Allen Reynolds as part of a slave trading operation assisted by the legal machinations of Judge Jacob Van Wickle.
Alpheus Freeman was an enslaver in New Brunswick, NJ. He was born in 1766, probably in Metuchen, NJ (which was part of Woodbridge Township at the time). He attended Queen's College (now Rutgers University), receiving his degree in 1788, after which he established a law practice in New Brunswick. He married Mary Parker in Philadelphia in 1803. He owned several properties in New Brunswick, including a large building on the corner of George Street and Prince (now Bayard) Street. He died suddenly on December 29, 1813, aged 47, and was interred with military and masonic honors. Archival documents show that he was the enslaver of a young man named Dick (who ran away) and a young woman who was sold by the executors of his estate to settle Freeman's accounts.
Ambo was a woman of African descent enslaved by John Neilson in New Brunswick, NJ. Her exact date of birth is unknown, but she was likely born in the 1790s.
She married an enslaved man named Mark Harris in 1811 and gave birth to four children between 1812 and 1818: Clara, Ann, Eliza, and Mark Jr. In 1822, Ambo was manumitted by John Neilson and became a free woman.
Amey was one of the victims of Jacob Van Wickle's slave trading ring in Middlesex County, New Jersey, in 1818. The legal documents related to the removal of Amey from the state of New Jersey to Louisiana suggest that she was born around 1796 and was aged 22 at the time of these events. However, Jacob Van Wickle falsified the age of some of his victims, making young children appear older than they really were and listing some children as adults in order to circumvent parental consent rules. For this reason, the birth year for Amey is questionable.
Amy was a Black woman enslaved by Joshua D. Austin of Sussex County, NJ, in the early 19th century. She was married to a Black man named Dr. Edward Cook. They had at least two children together, Rosannah and Mary.
Amy (or Amey) Cheston née Walker was an enslaver who resided in Stony Brook, in the vicinity of Princeton, New Jersey, in the early 19th century. She was the widow of John Cheston.
Andrew Bray was an enslaver who lived in Hunterdon County, NJ, in the early 19th century. His exact place of residence is unclear from the historical records. Several men known as Andrew Bray lived in Hunterdon County at that time, all grandsons and great-grandsons of the Baptist minister Rev. John Bray. The Bray family was associated with Kingwood, Locktown, and Lebanon localities in Hunterdon County, and primarily engaged in farming.
Andrew Elston was a resident of Middlesex County, New Jersey. He served as the Justice of the Peace for the county in the early 19th century. In this official capacity, he issued manumission certificates for residents of Woodbridge whose enslavers agreed to set them free.
Andrew Kirkpatrick (1756-1831) was a prominent New Brunswick lawyer and politician with deep ties to Queen's College (later Rutgers University). He enslaved multiple people in his household. In the first two decades of the 19th century, he manumitted several individuals.
In the 1780s, Andrew Kirkpatrick was a teacher at the Queen's College grammar school. In 1783, he was the first person to receive an honorary degree from Queen's College. In 1797 be became a member of the New Jersey General Assembly, and a year later he was appointed as a judge to the New Jersey Supreme Court. He served as the Chief Justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court from 1804 to 1825.
Andrew Kirkpatrick served as a trustee of Queen's College from 1792 to 1809. During his time as a trustee, he was instrumental in reviving the struggling college. He worked with the Reverend Ira Condict to raise funds for the erection of a new building for the college (now called Old Queens building). Andrew Kirkpatrick then sent his son John Bayard Kirkpatrick to study at the college in the 1810s.
Andrew Kirkpatrick's oldest son Littleton Kirkpatrick carried on his father's legacy in supporting the college; he served as a trustee of the college from 1841 until his death in 1859. Having no surviving heirs when they died, Littleton Kirkpatrick and his wife Sophia Astley Kirkpatrick left their fortune to the college. Their donation was used to build the Kirkpatrick Chapel on campus.
Andrew McDowell was a resident of Middlesex County, New Jersey. He served as the Justice of the Peace for the county and the Overseer of the Poor of South Brunswick in the early 19th century. In this official capacity, he issued manumission certificates for residents of South Brunswick whose enslavers agreed to set them free.
Middlesex County records indicate that Andrew McDowell was an enslaver.
Andrew Rowan was a resident of Middlesex County, New Jersey. He served as the Justice of the Peace for the county in the early 19th century. In this official capacity, he issued manumission certificates for residents of East Windsor and West Windsor whose enslavers agreed to set them free.
Ann was an enslaved woman, born around 1799, who was manumitted by Henry Cotheal and David Cotheal both of Woodbridge, NJ. The certificate of manumission was issued on November 20, 1823. The deed of manumission was executed on the same day, signed jointly by Henry Cotheal and David Cotheal. Ann was aged 24 at the time of manumission.
Ann was a girl of African descent and the daughter of Flora, born circa 1780s. In January 1787, Flora's enslaver Anthony L. Bleecker of New York City sold Flora together with her daughters Phillis and Ann to John Neilson of New Brunswick, NJ. Ann's age at the time of this sale is not known.
Ann Henderson was an enslaver who resided in Alexandria, Hunterdon County, NJ, in the early 19th century. She died circa 1805, and her will (written in 1802) required that her estate should be sold off and proceeds divided among her heirs. There was at least one enslaved Black woman in her household at the time of her death, whose name has not been confirmed.
Ann Henderson was the widow of Nathaniel Coleman, who died circa 1756, and widow of James Henderson, who died in circa 1792.
Ann was a woman of African descent who was born in New Brunswick, NJ, on June 23, 1814, to parents Ambo and Mark Harris Sr. Ann's parents were both enslaved at the time of her birth, but Ambo would eventually become free when enslaver John Neilson manumitted her.
Ann's birth was reported to the Middlesex County Clerk by enslaver John Neilson, who was the legal owner of her mother Ambo. Under New Jersey's gradual abolition law, Ann was considered a "slave for a term" of 21 years, and she was bound to serve John Neilson and his heirs until the year 1835 when she would become eligible for emancipation.
Ann was the second child of Ambo and Mark Harris Sr. Her older sister was Clara, and her younger siblings were Eliza and Mark Jr.
Ann Berrien (née Hepburn) was the wife of Samuel Berrien (c. 1766-1830) of East Windsor, NJ. Jointly with her husband, she manumitted a woman named Martha Richards in 1805.
Middlesex County records contain several birth certificates and manumission certificates for an enslaver named Ann Parker, who was listed as a widow and dowager in the 1810s, residing in the City of New Brunswick within North Brunswick Township. These county records likely refer to Ann Parker née Lawrence (daughter of John Lawrence), the wife of John Parker (1763–1801). By marriage to John Parker, she was related to the prominent Parker family of Perth Amboy: she was the sister-in-law of U.S. Congressman and Rutgers University benefactor James Parker Jr. (1776-1868), and the daughter-in-law of James Parker Sr. (1725–1797) and Gertrude Parker née Skinner (1739-1811).
Anna Manning was an enslaver who resided in Piscataway in the early 19th century. She was the wife of William Manning. The Mannings had at least 8 enslaved people in their household in 1814 (as enumerated in the will of William Manning who died that year).
