1809-05-24 Abandonment: 2 Black boys and 6 Black girls

Identifier
NJS-EVE-01011
Source
Overseers of the Poor of Bedminster seek to bind out 8 abandoned Black children, by Abraham I. Van Arsdale and Abraham Brown

Overseers of the Poor of Bedminster seek to bind out 8 abandoned Black children, by Abraham I. Van Arsdale and Abraham Brown, Trenton Federalist, May 29, 1809, p. 3.
Event Description
In May 1809, Overseers of the Poor of Bedminster, Somerset County, published a notice seeking to bind out eight Black children, i.e. to place them as indentured servants into white households until age 21 (for girls) or age 25 (for boys). These children were abandoned to the Overseers pursuant to the abandonment provision of New Jersey's gradual abolition law, which allowed enslavers to take 1-year-old infants away from their enslaved mothers and give them up to the Overseers of the Poor to be treated as paupers.

The Overseers announced that any individual who wanted to take a Black child as an indentured servant could come forward and apply to take the child away. The notice listed the age and sex of each child, but did not provide the children's names. The names of the two Overseers of the Poor were listed as Abraham I. Van Arsdale and Abraham Brown.

Note that the abbreviation "do." in the source document means "ditto," meaning "the same as above." In other words, the line "1 do. 4 do. 3 do." means 1 child aged 4 years 3 months.

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Transcript of the source document:

"IN conformity to a supplement
of an act of the legislature of N. J. passed at Trenton on the 26th November 1808, for the gradual abolition of Slavery,
We the undersigners, overseers of the poor of the township of Bedminster in the county of Somerset, do certify the following a correct list of the abandoned black children born in said township, since the 4th day of July 1804. Persons wishing to take any of said children agreeably to law, can apply to the said overseers.

MALES
1 aged 4 years 7 months,
1 do. 4 do. 3 do.
FEMALES
1 aged 4 years 6 months,
2 do. 4 do. 4 do.
1 do. 4 do. 2 do.
1 do. 3 do. 4 do.
1 do. 2 do. 11 do.

ABM. I. VAN ARSDALE, }
ABM. BROWN, } Overseers of the poor.
May 24, 1809.

35-4 w.pd."
Event Type
Abandonment
Date
May 24, 1809
Location of Event
Bedminster
Primary Participants

Black boy born Oct. 1804
Role: Abandoned Person
Age: 4
Status: Enslaved
Verbatim description from source:
"MALES...aged 4 years 7 months"
Comment: to be bound out until age 25

Black boy born Feb. 1805
Role: Abandoned Person
Age: 4
Status: Enslaved
Verbatim description from source:
"MALES...aged 4 years 3 months"
Comment: to be bound out until age 25

Black girl born Nov. 1804
Role: Abandoned Person
Age: 4
Status: Enslaved
Verbatim description from source:
"FEMALES...aged 4 years 6 months"
Comment: to be bound out until age 21

1st Black girl born Jan. 1805
Role: Abandoned Person
Age: 4
Status: Enslaved
Verbatim description from source:
"FEMALES...aged 4 years 4 months"
Comment: to be bound out until age 21

2nd Black girl born Jan. 1805
Role: Abandoned Person
Age: 4
Status: Enslaved
Verbatim description from source:
"FEMALES...aged 4 years 4 months"
Comment: to be bound out until age 21

Black girl born Mar. 1805
Role: Abandoned Person
Age: 4
Status: Enslaved
Verbatim description from source:
"FEMALES...aged 4 years 2 months"
Comment: to be bound out until age 21

Black girl born Jan. 1806
Role: Abandoned Person
Age: 3
Status: Enslaved
Verbatim description from source:
"FEMALES...aged 3 years 4 months"
Comment: to be bound out until age 21

Black girl born June 1806
Role: Abandoned Person
Age: 2
Status: Enslaved
Verbatim description from source:
"FEMALES...aged 2 years 11 months"
Comment: to be bound out until age 21
Additional Participants

Abraham I. Van Arsdale
Person identifier: NJS-PER-02403
Role: Overseer of the Poor
Comment: Overseer of the Poor of Bedminster

Abraham Brown
Person identifier: NJS-PER-02404
Role: Overseer of the Poor
Comment: Overseer of the Poor of Bedminster
Record Contributor
Jesse Bayker
Resource class
Event