Deerfield historian George Sheldon traced the ownership of enslaved people living in Deerfield, Massachusetts, from as early as 1695, into the late 18th century. Quoting liberally from a 1749 sermon delivered “to the negroes in Deerfield” by the Reverend Jonathan Ashley (1712-1780), Sheldon conveys the minister’s attitude on the subject of slavery. George Sheldon, himself, never approved of the institution. He was likely inspired to document the history of Deerfield’s enslaved people due to his childhood memories of Cato, formerly enslaved by the Reverend Jonathan Ashley. Sheldon had little patience for those who preferred to minimize or forget this subject and the region’s involvement in it, seeing “no reason . . . why we should not face the facts relating to it [slavery], found in church and town records, and old family manuscripts.” Throughout this document, a capital X is used as a substitute for “Christ.”
Sheldon, George. Negro Slavery in Old Deerfield. New England Magazine, 1893. Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association, American Centuries. https://americancenturies.org/collection/l98-018/. Accessed on October 16, 2024.
Please note: Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.