New England bills of sale and other legal records often referred to enslaved people as “servants” or “servants for life”. In contrast, this bill of sale starkly spelled out the status of sixteen-year-old J. Romanoo. John Charles of Brimfield, Massachusetts, sold him to Major Ephraim Williams of Hatfield, Massachusetts, “as his & their Slave, during the natural life of the sd. Jromanoo.” Charles further stated that Romanoo would remain enslaved “against the claim and challenge of any other person, and all Rightful Pretentions of his own, to Freedom, by any Law or right whatsoever.” Slavery was never officially outlawed in Massachusetts, but rather gradually disappeared when a series of court cases ruled the practice unconstitutional according to the Massachusetts Constitution of 1780, that declared all men to be “born free and equal.”
Charles, Jr., John. Bill of sale for J. Romanoo. February 13, 1755. Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association, American Centuries. https://americancenturies.org/collection/l00-075/. Accessed on October 16, 2024.
Please note: Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.