The City of Boston Archaeology Program has updated its available list of known enslaved residents from the 17th and 18th centuries. This step deepens public understanding and opens doors for further ancestral research.
Mayor Michelle Wu stressed the significance of documenting and publicizing Boston’s slavery records, which helps us reflect on our city's history.
The first list was composed using 18th-century probate records gathered by Dr. Jared R. Hardesty, and 17th-century data compiled by the City Archaeology Program staff. Aabid Allibhai added further information stemming from research on race and slavery at Roxbury's First Church during 1631-1775, bringing total names in the list to 1,365, with 723 people identified by name.
Wayne Tucker's extensive research as part of the Eleven Names Project contributed new data. This independent study begun in August 2021, logging enslaved individuals across multiple Massachusetts towns, using baptism, marriage, birth, death, and other vital records from several churches from the 17th and 18th centuries.
City Archaeologist, Joe Bagley's expressed his admiration for Tucker’s meticulous work. “He really saved us years of hard work and we are grateful for the sharing of his information,” Bagley stated.
Then, Tucker's data were compiled into a spreadsheet by Archaeologists E. Nadia Kline and Lauryn Sharp. This spreadsheet contains 2,552 individual records of Bostonians of color before 1783, including enslaved and free Blacks and Native Americans, and previously unknown enslavers.
The new data shed light on the lives of enslaved residents in a novel way, as Bagley highlighted reluctantly, "We see them be born, baptized, married, and die. It's a remarkable snapshot of their lives."
An important revelation for ancestry researchers is the inclusion of last names in 296 entries on the list. Records show that some individuals' last names changed over time, and only three enslaved individuals shared their enslaver's last names. The origins of other last names remain a mystery but serve as an area for further exploration.
Bagley expressed hope that this expanded data would help people trace their families back to Boston in the 18th and 17th centuries. "Discovering that their ancestors were enslavers may also be a reality for some," he added.
The City Archaeology Program has made the collected data available in the “List of Known Enslaved People in Boston” database. This database includes a list of individuals, Tucker's complete vital records data, and the probate data gathered by Hardesty and the Program staff.
Finally, the City Archaeology Program has encouraged contribution of any additional data on enslaved individuals in Boston. This ongoing historical preservation work aims to acknowledge researchers' contribution, inspire understanding of intertwined histories and painful past, and keep developing this extensive record.
