1818-10-15 Removal Registration: Sam

Research Tips

To learn about the removal registration system in New Jersey, see What Is a Removal Certificate? You can use the Removal Records Index to review all removal registrations by origin, destination, and other criteria.

This event is related to a notorious slave trading ring in Middlesex County, New Jersey. See our guide to the Van Wickle Slave Trading Ring for more information.
Identifier
NJS-EVE-00272
Source
Middlesex County Manumissions and Removals, page 289

Removal certificate for Sam (1818-10-15) recorded in Manumissions and Removals Book, p. 289. Middlesex County (N.J.) Records, 1688-1929, Vol. XI (MC 784.1). Special Collections and University Archives, Rutgers University Libraries.
Event Description
A removal certificate authorizing enslaver Lewis Compton to remove Sam, an enslaved man aged 21, from the State of New Jersey was issued by the Court of Common Pleas of Middlesex County on October 15, 1818. The certificate was signed by two judges (Jacob Van Wickle and John Smith). The document stated that Sam was examined by the judges and consented to move to Mississippi, "there to serve Allen Reynolds as a servant for six years." The certificate was recorded by the County Clerk (William P. Deare) on December 29, 1818.

The language used in the certificate suggests that Sam was considered an indentured servant (or a so-called slave for a term of years) and would become eligible for emancipation in 6 years. However, going to Mississippi would likely deprive him of the opportunity to gain freedom because enforcing his legal rights under northern abolition laws would be nearly impossible in the Deep South.

The certificate mentioned Mississippi, but did not list a specific locality. According to other related removal certificates, Allen Reynolds was a resident of Palmyra, Mississippi, so it can be inferred that this was Sam's intended destination.

Sam was one of the victims of the slave trading ring that revolved around Judge Jacob Van Wickle. Van Wickle and his associates exploited loopholes in New Jersey law in order to enrich themselves through the interstate slave trade. In 1818, Van Wickle falsified many removal certificates, signing the certificates without the consent of the enslaved people named in the documents.
Event Type
Removal Registration
Keywords
Removal signed by Judge Jacob Van Wickle
Date
October 15, 1818
Date Certainty
Questionable
Location of Event
Middlesex County
Palmyra (Davis Island), Mississippi
Primary Participants

Sam (b. ca. 1797)
Person identifier: NJS-PER-00720
Role: Relocated Person
Age: 21
Status: Enslaved
Enslaver(s) of this participant:
- Lewis Compton
- Allen Reynolds
Verbatim description from source:
"servant named Sam aged twenty one years"
Additional Participants

Jacob Van Wickle (1770-1854)
Person identifier: NJS-PER-00068
Role: Judge

John Smith {Judge of Common Pleas}
Person identifier: NJS-PER-00635
Role: Judge

William Philips Deare (d. 1826)
Person identifier: NJS-PER-00008
Role: County Clerk

Lewis Compton
Person identifier: NJS-PER-00480
Role: Enslaver
Comment: obtained removal certificate in New Jersey

Allen Reynolds
Person identifier: NJS-PER-00487
Role: Enslaver
Comment: prospective enslaver in Mississippi
Record Contributor
Jesse Bayker
Resource class
Event