The Nine Enslaved People
The enslaved people who lived and worked at the President's House were integral parts of the complex life in the household. They did not simply react to events; they were dynamic participants in the daily life of the family and the city. President Washington knew and trusted his enslaved house staff enough to buy them tickets for the circus and theater and let them venture out into the city’s markets on their own. These outings allowed the staff to observe the lives of free blacks living in the city and offered opportunities for communication with Philadelphia’s active abolitionist community.
Too often people who are little known as individuals in historical documents are neglected when interpreting the past for modern audiences. Interpretation of life in the President's House gives us an opportunity to give names and faces to a few of the thousands of free and enslaved people of African descent who were part of Philadelphia society.
- Austin, the half brother of Ona Judge, worked as a postillion (a horseman) and stable hand. He died on December 20, 1794, after a fall from a horse, leaving a wife and five children.
- Christopher Sheels became Washington's personal attendant as a teenager after his uncle, who was with the general throughout the Revolution, became incapacitated. A literate man, Sheels attempted to escape in 1799, but was unsuccessful. His fate after Martha Washington's 1802 death is unknown.
- Giles was a driver, postillion, and stable hand. He returned to Mt. Vernon in 1791, after being injured in an accident during Washington's tour of the southern states. He died before 1799.
- Hercules was the chief cook during Washington's stay in Philadelphia. He was celebrated for his mastery of his craft and exacting standards for kitchen workers. Accounts differ about his flight to freedom, but Hercules fled from bondage in 1797. Hercules would have been legally freed by the terms of Washington's will, but his wife and children remained in bondage (they were "dower slaves").
- Joe (Richardson) is mentioned in 1795 records as "Postillion Joe," although his time in Philadelphia is uncertain. He was married to a woman freed (along with their children) after Washington's 1799 death, whereupon the family took the name Richardson.
- Moll was nursemaid to Martha Washington's two grandchildren. Before Martha's marriage and at Mt.Vernon, she had served as nursemaid to Martha's children.
- Ona/Oney Judge was, like her mother, a talented seamstress. She became Martha Washington's personal maid as a teenager. In 1796, Judge escaped to New Hampshire, where she lived until her 1848 death. In New Hampshire, she married a free black sailor named Jack Staines and had three children, who all died before her.
- Paris was a young stable hand. He was returned to Mt. Vernon in 1791 for "unsatisfactory behavior" and died in 1794.
- Richmond came to Philadelphia at the age of 11 with his father, Hercules. Although his father was not a dower slave, his mother was, making Richmond and his sisters dower slaves by association. He worked as a scullion in the kitchen for a year, but returned to Mount Vernon.
Ona Judge Seizes Her Freedom
After Ona Judge escaped from Philadelphia, Washington attempted to recapture her. He found out where she was when a friend of Martha Washington's granddaughter happened to encounter Judge in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Washington wrote to the collector of customs in Portsmouth, requesting that he apprehend Judge and send her back.
The New Hampshire official, after speaking with Judge, declined to do so. Two years later, Washington asked his secretary and nephew, Burwell Bassett, Jr., to seize Judge and her child, born since her escape. Bassett confided his intentions to John Langdon, the governor of New Hampshire, while dining with him, but Langdon sent a warning to Judge. She escaped yet again and fled the town with her child. Near the end of her life, when Judge was old and had outlived all of her family, people who spoke with her were impressed by her dignity, her faith in God, and her abiding love of freedom.
Hercules Seizes His Freedom
As the Washington's chef, Hercules maintained strict discipline in the kitchen and President Washington allowed Hercules to sell the leftovers from state banquets. With this income, Hercules improved his wardrobe. He was seen in clothing made of linen “of exceptional whiteness and quality” with black silk breeches, waistcoat, and stockings. Donning a blue coat with a velvet collar and bright metal buttons, Hercules was known to enjoy his “evening promenade” in Philadelphia with a gold-headed cane in hand.
In 1791, Hercules knew that he was being sent home to Virginia to avoid gaining his freedom legally through Pennsylvania’s Gradual Abolition Act. When Hercules' son Richmond was caught stealing at Mount Vernon in the summer of 1796, Washington took the precaution to leave Hercules in Virginia. While Washington was enjoying his birthday celebration in Philadelphia the next February, it was reported that Hercules went missing from Mount Vernon. Despite efforts to locate and recapture him, Hercules remained free.
