SOURCES
Item set
- Title
- SOURCES
- Description
- This set contains all sources in our database. To easily browse, sort, and search source records, please use our Explore Sources interface, which is linked below.
- Go to EXPLORE SOURCES interface
Items
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Runaway ad for Harry, by Lambert DeCamp1802-01-19
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Runaway ad for Peter, by John Stevenson1800-12-09
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Runaway ad for Elsy Murray, by Peter Bogart1818-05-14
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Jailbreak notice for Jack, by David Wrighter1802-01-12
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Runaway ad for Jack, by James Parker Sr.1782-03-13
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Runaway ad for Tine, by Barnt DeKlyn1818-06-29
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Receipt issued to Jacob Van Dike related to Harry, a Black man carried away by followers of the British armyReceipt issued to Jacob Van Dike and signed by James Dunn, Joseph Thickstun, David Dunham.
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Bill of sale for Phebe, sold by Shoball Smith to Samuel SmithA partial transcript of the bill of sale for Phebe is reproduced on p. 185 in Joseph W. Dally's 1873 book Woodbridge and Vicinity.
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Runaway ad for Phill, by James Neilson1763-06-16
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Runaway ad for Nell, by Isaac Kingsland1753-04-23
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Will of Charles Hardenbergh, Hurley, NYLast will and testament of Charles Hardenbergh, signed on January 1, 1804.
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Narrative of Sojourner TruthSojourner Truth's autobiographical narrative was originally published in the 1850s and subsequently went through many editions during her lifetime and after. Rutgers researchers who created records about Sojourner Truth in the New Jersey Slavery Records database relied on the full-text digital edition created as part of the North American Slave Narratives collection, published by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. This digital edition is an annotated reproduction of the 1884 edition of Truth's book; the 1884 edition was the first one published after Truth's death and contained a memorial chapter that highlighted her last years of life. A scan of the 1884 edition is also available through Archive.org.
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A Narrative of the Most Remarkable Particulars in the Life of James Albert Ukawsaw Gronniosaw, an African Prince, As Related by HimselfAutobiographical book by Ukawsaw Gronniosaw, alias James Albert. The autobiography is widely recognized as the first book published by an author of African descent in Britain. In his narrative, Gronniosaw recounted his time as an enslaved man in New Jersey, providing a rare glimpse of what life was like for enslaved people on the Raritan in the middle of the 18th century. Rutgers researchers who created records about Gronniosaw in the New Jersey Slavery Records database relied on the full-text digital edition created as part of the North American Slave Narratives collection, published by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
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James Albert Ukawsaw Gronniosaw obituary1775-10-02
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African Association of New Brunswick Minute BookMinute book maintained by the Secretary of the African Association of New Brunswick from 1817 to 1824. This bound manuscript volume includes the constitution of the organization, meeting minutes, member rolls, and dues paid. The book contains copies of two speeches given by guests at the annual meetings of the association: the address delivered by the Rev. Jeremiah Gloucester of the Second African Presbyterian Church of Philadelphia, on January 1, 1820, and the address delivered by Gustavus V. Caesar, then a student at the Parsippany African School, on January 1, 1821. Additionally, a copy of a letter from Gustavus V. Caesar, read at a meeting of the association's standing committee on February 3, 1821, is in the minute book. Related to the minute book are several permission slips from enslavers who allowed enslaved Black persons to join the organization. One permission slip is glued inside the book, and several loose permission slips are kept in an unmarked folder inside the same archival collection. Permission slips have been digitized as separate items in the New Jersey Slavery Records database and are listed under Linked Resources. The full minute book has been scanned by the New Jersey Slavery Records project and is made available using an Archive.org viewer above. Additionally a typed transcript has been created and published as a PDF document and is linked below.
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Abraham Blauvelt, Queen's Building Construction Account BookAbraham Blauvelt used this account book to record the expenses of the Queen's College Building Committee from July 6, 1808, to March 30, 1810. Blauvelt was the chairman of said committee and oversaw the construction of the first permanent building erected for Queen's College (later Rutgers University). This building is now known as Old Queens. There are 148 entries (excluding several corrections) for the building. Entry 15 and entry 130 (see photographs) indicate payment to Jacob Dunham for the labor of Dunham's enslaved man on the construction site. The account book also contains a list of subscribers to the newspaper Blauvelt owned, called the Guardian or New Brunswick Advertiser, for the years 1794-1797. Additionally, the book contains a number of miscellaneous memoranda.
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Letter from John Neilson to Robert Finley regarding JefLetter from Col. John Neilson of New Brunswick to Robert Finley of Princeton, dated February 25, 1794, asking Finley about the possible purchase of an enslaved Black man owned by a Mr. Mattison in Princeton for the price of 90 pounds. This letter does not mention the name of the Black man, but Robert Finley's reply dated February 27, 1794, provides further details about the man and states that his name is Jef.
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Letter from Robert Finley to John Neilson regarding JefLetter from Robert Finley of Princeton to Col. John Neilson of New Brunswick, dated February 27, 1794, in response to Neilson's letter of February 25, 1794. The letter gives Finley's account of speaking with Samuel Snowden and Mr. Mattison about an enslaved man named Jef. The letter mainly details Jef's personal qualities and skills, as Neilson wishes to purchase Jef but has no prior account of him. The name Samuel Snowden mentioned in the letter likely refers to the Rev. Samuel Finley Snowden (1767-1845), a Presbyterian minister who was studying theology in Princeton at the time and would become the pastor of the Princeton church in 1795.
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Manumission certificate for Miller, manumitted by Abraham S. NeilsonOriginal certificate of manumission for Miller, preserved in Neilson Family Papers. A copy of same can be found in the Middlesex County Book of Manumissions on page 359.
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Runaway ad for Tom, by William Throckmorton1799-12-10
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Runaway ad for unnamed man, by John Trimmer1798-05-24
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Runaway ad for Cato, by William M'Kissick1794-07-03
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Runaway ad for Stephen, by Richard Wescoat1793-05-22
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Runaway ad for Minn, by Jacob Abel1792-11-07
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Runaway ad for Will, by James Fleming1792-10-17
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Kidnapping (report from New Orleans)1818-08-03
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Seizure of the brig Mary Ann in New Orleans1818-06-29
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Report about the slave trade in Louisiana1818-06-29
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Kidnapping (report from Baltimore)1818-06-29
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Kidnapping (opinion piece from Philadelphia)1818-06-05
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Will of Gerardus Beekman, South Brunswick, NJWill of Gerardus Beekman of South Brunswick, Middlesex County, New Jersey, signed on August 18, 1814. A codicil was added on May 27, 1818. The will was proved on March 27, 1822, after the decease of Gerardus Beekman. Item 3 mentions Charlotte, a Black girl who had the status of a slave for a term in the Beekman household. The will stipulated that Charlotte should serve Beekman's wife Jane Beekman until she was eligible for emancipation. Item 5 records Beekman's promise to manumit a Black man named Thomas upon the expiration of a 15 year term which began on March 1, 1802.
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Will of John Bray, New Brunswick, NJWill of John Bray of New Brunswick, Middlesex County, New Jersey, signed on January 10, 1834, and proved on May 8, 1834, after the decease of John Bray. Item 10 enumerated in the will relates to Flora Ann, a Black girl who had the status of slave for a term in the Bray household.
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Runaway ad for Dick, by Alpheus Freeman1807-11-12
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Runaway ad for Sam, by James Stevenson1792-05-01
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Middlesex County Births of Enslaved Children Book, 1804-1844Bound manuscript volume containing records of births for African American children born in bondage in Middlesex County after 1804. Beginning on July 4, 1804, enslavers had to report to the County Clerk when an enslaved mother in their household gave birth to a child. These county records were necessary to prove the child's age and eligibility for emancipation at age 21 (for female children) or age 25 (for male children) under the provisions of the 1804 Act for the Gradual Abolition of Slavery. To browse this book, see the link in the "Browse Records" field. For more information about these records, see also the linked "Middlesex County Slavery Records" research guide.
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Letter from Jacob Rutsen Hardenbergh to his father Col. Johannes HardenberghJacob Rutsen Hardenbergh (1736-1790) mentions an enslaved man in a letter to his father Col. Johannes Hardenbergh (1706-1786). Jacob Rutsen Hardenbergh was one of the chief founders of Queen's College (later Rutgers) and served as the school's first president from 1786 to 1790. In 1777, during the Revolutionary War, in a letter to his father, Jacob Rutsen Hardenbergh mentioned that he was "writing these words in a hurry while the negro is getting ready to leave," suggesting that an enslaved man was working in the Hardenbergh household at this time. The letter was written in Dutch. A Dutch transcript and English translation have been provided by archivist Helene Van Rossum.
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Middlesex County Manumissions and Removals Book, 1800-1825Bound manuscript volume containing copies of legal documents pertaining to slaves in Middlesex County for the period 1800–1825. Legal and historical records often refer to this volume as the "Book of Manumissions." However, only 75% of the records contained in this book are copies of manumissions. The remaining 25% are copies of removal certificates, i.e. documents recording the removal of black children, women, and men out of the State of New Jersey, primarily destined for Louisiana. These records were maintained by the Clerk of the Court of Common Pleas for Middlesex County. The vast majority of the records are written in the hand of William P. Deare, who was the Clerk of the Court from 1801 to 1825, and who was also a long-time trustee of Queen's College. The book contains an alphabetical index by first name of the Black person being manumitted or removed. The index is in the front, followed by 438 numbered pages of legal records. Pages 1-10 and 15-22 are blank. Additionally, page 146 is blank and page 147 was skipped by the Clerk, who resumed pagination with number 148. All non-blank pages of the book have been scanned and processed by the Scarlet and Black Research Center team. See links in the "Research Guide" and "Browse Records" fields for multiple methods of browsing these records.