Freedom Seekers in the Revolutionary Era

By the 1700s, Boston stood as a major seaport town and trading hub. As trade prospered, more merchants participated in and profited from the Transatlantic trade, a network of raw materials, manufactured goods, and enslaved people.

Slavery had existed in Massachusetts since at least the 1630s, with the first known slave ship carrying enslaved Africans, the Desire, arriving in Boston in 1638. While small, the number of enslaved persons in the town steadily grew, reaching a population of 1,541 by 1752.^[1]

As early as slavery came to Boston and New England, enslaved people resisted their bondage. Although the network to freedom known as the Underground Railroad is associated with the 1800s, some enslaved persons in the 1700s also sought their own freedom by running away.

Runaway Slave Ads

Lack of documentation makes it challenging to uncover stories of freedom seekers. However, newspaper runaway slave advertisements can shed light on both the existence of slavery in New England, as well as the resistance to the institution by those enslaved.

Enslavers throughout the region placed runaway ads in Boston newspapers in an effort to reclaim and recapture missing enslaved people who most likely ran away. These advertisements typically described the name, age, physical attributes, and additional identifying information of freedom seekers. Enslavers offered monetary rewards for the retrieval of these individuals.

These enslavers placed runaway ads in Boston papers likely because of the town’s status as a strategic major trading center and strategic location for escape. These papers included the Boston Evening Post, Boston Gazette, and the Boston Post Boy.

This slave ad describes a boy named Goree, 16, who ran away from enslaver Daniel Vose in Milton. The ad describes some of his physical attributes and clothing.

Boston Post Boy, May 23, 1774.

Freedom Seekers in the Revolutionary Era Map

The revolutionary era marked a time where citizens debated the ideals of liberty, representation, and citizenship – their definitions and to whom they applied. This time period also served as an era of political turmoil and chaos, offering potential cover for those looking to escape from bondage.

The map below shows the last known locations of freedom seekers described in Boston newspaper runaway slave ads during the colonial and revolutionary era, from 1757 to 1783. While many of these freedom seekers fled from Massachusetts towns, the expanse across New England shows how enslavers used Boston newspapers to spread the word due to its central location and possible escape route or epicenter for freedom seekers. These ads also illustrate active resistance to slavery during this time. The rhetoric and uncertainty of the era leading up to, including, and just after the American War of Independence offered a prime opportunity for enslaved individuals to seize their own freedom.

Contributed by: Mercedes Cao, Pohanka Intern

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Footnote

[1] Jared Hardesty, Unfreedom: Slavery and Dependence in 18th Century Boston (New York: New York University Press, 2016), p. 22.

References

Hardesty, Jared. Unfreedom: Slavery and Dependence in 18th Century Boston. New York: New York University Press, 2016.

Moore, George Henry. Notes on the History of Slavery in Massachusetts. New York: D. Appleton & Company, 1866.

"The DESIRE and the Beginnings of the Massachusetts Slave Trade." National Park Service. Last updated January 22, 2025.

"The Middle Passage." National Park Service. Last updated March 6, 2025.

"Slave Advertisements." National Park Service. Last updated March 1, 2024.

Triber, Jayne. “Slavery and Law in 17th Century Massachusetts.” National Park Service. Last updated February 20, 2025.