Digging up the History of Maryland's Early Freed Slaves

1180.2015

Digging up the history of Maryland's early freed slaves

By Baltimore Sun, adapted by Newsela staff 08.07.13

Sabrina Shirazi, a sophomore at University of Maryland, methodically measures the elevation of the unit she is digging at an archaeological site in Easton, Maryland, July 24, 2013. UMD is conducting a dig at "The Hill," which may be the oldest settlement of free African-Americans in the U.S. Photo: Kenneth K. Lam/Baltimore Sun/MCT

BALTIMORE — In Easton, Maryland, an untold story of free African-Americans is being dug right out of the ground.

Archaeologists and historians from two universities and the local area are uncovering the history of The Hill through bits of glass, shards of pottery, and oyster shells. They believe this is the earliest settlement of free African-Americans in the United States, dating to 1790.

Treme, in New Orleans, is recognized as the oldest free black community in the nation, dating to 1812. But researchers say that could change based on findings from the Easton dig.

Dale Green, a Morgan State University professor, explained that this project is "not just a black story," it is also an "American story."

Founded By Freed Slaves

Former slaves founded such settlements, where they enjoyed early emancipation and the chance to own property and trade freely. The slaves who likely formed The Hill had probably bought their freedom. Others may have been freed by Methodists and Quakers, who were religiously opposed to slavery. Historians say this group could have been the largest community of free blacks in the Chesapeake Bay region.

During the first census in 1790, some 410 free African-Americans were recorded living on The Hill. This is much more than the 250 free African-Americans who lived in Baltimore at the time.

Researchers and students are in the middle of a three-week dig at one of The Hill properties, a site owned by the Talbot County Women’s Club. They are working in 5-by-5-foot squares, and the deeper they dig, the further back in history they go.

The first few inches of soil revealed 20th-century objects such as toys, marbles and pipe stems. A little deeper, the team unearthed evidence of 19th-century life, said Stefan Woehlke, a University of Maryland graduate student and director of the site.

Woehlke showed off part of an olive-green glass bottle, decorated with cluster of grapes, that he said was probably used to hold wine. The bottle was hand-blown using a mold, which dates it to the late 18th or early 19th century. Other artifacts include bits of a blue glass pitcher from the 1800s and a 1-cent coin featuring Lady Liberty, dated 1794.

"Piecing Together A Puzzle"

More importantly, researchers have found evidence of making nails and raising chickens on the land. These activities were far more likely to have been carried out by free blacks who lived on the land than by the property owner. Woehlke described his work as a matter of "piecing together all of the evidence."

Professor Green said that in Easton, free African-Americans lived alongside white families. In 1790, this property belonged to James Price, a white man. The census recorded Price and three free African-Americans living on the property, though it lacked detail about the African-Americans.

The excavations on The Hill promise to reveal lots of new information, especially when they are combined with document research and oral histories passed down through the generations. But the researchers say they’re only scratching the surface.

“It’s sort of piecing together a puzzle, but you don’t have all the pieces,” Woehlke said. The team has committed to spending at least five more years working at The Hill.

Since the dig began, more than 500 people have visited. Some have come on organized tours, but others have just wandered in after seeing “public archaeology excavation” signs posted around the block.

Family Roots To The 1600s

Priscilla Morris has family roots in Easton that date back to the 1600s, and she is a regular visitor to the site. Morris is intrigued by the role Quakers and Methodists played in freeing their own slaves and calling for an end to slavery well before the Civil War.

She said she finds the dig "thrilling" because no one quite knows or understands how people lived at The Hill two hundred years ago. Most written histories skip over the experiences of free African-Americans, said Morris.

Morris explained that in the past, history was always told by slave owners rather than African-Americans. “Nobody ever told us there was this extraordinary, large, free community,” she said.

Professor Green said the work on The Hill could change the way American history is told because at the moment, the story of free blacks is usually overlooked.

There are ambitious plans to get the word out about The Hill. These include work by graduate students, museum exhibits, updated tourist attractions, and even a screenplay that’s being financed by a local business owner.

The Hill already is part of the National Register of Historic Places that includes Easton’s historic district, but that listing will be revised to include information about the African-American history. “So when you read it, it’s not just about white Easton,” Green said.

Interest And Excitement

About 75 researchers and students are contributing to The Hill project. Tracy Jenkins is a graduate student in archaeology at the University of Maryland writing about the site. He said the Easton community’s interest and warm reception has been encouraging and unusual.

“That doesn’t happen so much in archaeology. Sometimes, archaeologists are digging off in a cornfield somewhere,” Jenkins said.

At The Hill, in the middle of town, researchers and residents are building a bond, he said. Jenkins is excited about working on the project and said he wants to write something that really matters.

“I like the opportunity to tell stories that haven’t been told,” he said.

1000.2015

Digging back in time for the untold stories of free black Americans

By Baltimore Sun, adapted by Newsela staff 08.07.13

BALTIMORE — In Easton, Maryland, a little-known story of free African-Americans is being dug right out of the ground. Before the Civil War, most African-Americans were forced to work on plantations and held as the property of white people.

But experts here are examining evidence of a black community that was not enslaved when the United States was a young republic.

Archaeologists and historians from two universities and the local area are uncovering the history of The Hill. They are digging up glass, pottery and other objects to give them clues about the past. The experts believe The Hill is the earliest settlement of free African-Americans in the United States, dating to 1790.

Treme, in New Orleans, is recognized as the oldest free black community in the nation, dating to 1812. But researchers say this could change based on findings from the Easton dig.

"An American Story"

“It’s not just a black story. It’s an American story,” said Dale Green, a professor at Morgan State University.

Former slaves founded settlements like The Hill where they could enjoy being free and the chance to own property and to trade. Slaves who had bought their freedom and others freed by religious groups likely formed The Hill. Historians say this group could have been the largest community of free blacks in the Chesapeake Bay region.

In 1790, the United States took its first official count of the population. This census recorded some 410 free African-Americans living on The Hill. This is much more than the 250 free African-Americans who lived in Baltimore at the time.

The first few inches of soil revealed 20th-century objects such as toys, marbles and pipe stems. A little deeper, the team unearthed evidence of 19th-century life.

Stefan Woehlke is a University of Maryland graduate student and director of the site. He showed off part of an olive-green glass bottle, decorated with cluster of grapes, that he said was probably used to hold wine. This bottle was made in the late 18th or early 19th century. Other artifacts found by the team include bits of a blue glass pitcher from the 1800s and a 1-cent coin featuring Lady Liberty, dated 1794.

Solving A History Puzzle

Researchers have also found evidence of nail-making and raising chickens on the land. These activities were probably carried out by free blacks who lived on the land rather than the property owner. Woehlke described his work as a matter of "piecing together all of the evidence."

Professor Green said that free African-Americans lived alongside white families at the site. In 1790, this property belonged to James Price, a white man. Records show that Price and three free African-Americans lived on the property, though there isn't much detail about the African-Americans.

The excavations on The Hill promise to reveal lots of new information. Knowledge from the dig will be combined with other research and spoken history passed down through the generations. But the researchers say they’re only scratching the surface.

“It’s sort of piecing together a puzzle, but you don’t have all the pieces,” Woehlke said. The team has promised to spend at least five more years working at The Hill.

Since the dig began, more than 500 people have visited the site. Some visitors have been on organized tours. But others have just wandered in after seeing “public archaeology excavation” signs posted around the block.

A "Thrilling" Dig

Priscilla Morris has family roots in Easton that date back to the 1600s. She is a regular visitor to the site. Morris is interested by the role religious groups, like the Quakers and Methodists, played in freeing their own slaves.

She said she finds the dig "thrilling" because no one quite knows how people lived at The Hill two hundred years ago. Most history books skip over the experiences of free African-Americans, said Morris.

Professor Green said the work on The Hill could change the way American history is told. At the moment, the story of free blacks is usually overlooked. In the past, history was always told by the slave owners rather than the African-Americans.

There are ambitious plans to get the word out about The Hill. These include work by students, museum exhibits and tourist attractions. There might even be a film made about the African-American community at Easton.

The Hill already is part of the National Register of Historic Places, but that information will be updated to include the black history of the area. “So when you read it, it’s not just about white Easton,” Green said.

Bond Between Diggers And Residents

In total, about 75 researchers and students are working on The Hill project. Tracy Jenkins is a graduate student in archaeology at the University of Maryland. He said that the local community has been very interested in the dig and friendly to the archaeologists.

Jenkins said this is encouraging and unusual as it doesn't often happen in archaeology. He said that he sometimes has to dig in lonely places in the countryside where there is no one else around.

At The Hill, which is in the middle of town, the researchers and residents are building a bond. Jenkins is excited about working on the project and said he wants to write something that really matters.

“I like the opportunity to tell stories that haven’t been told,” he said.

800.2015

Digging up the hidden history of Maryland’s early freed slaves

By Baltimore Sun, adapted by Newsela staff 08.07.13

BALTIMORE — In Easton, Maryland, a new history about African-Americans is being dug right out of the ground. Before the Civil War, most African-Americans were held as the property of white people.

But experts here are examining evidence of a free black community during the early years of the American republic.

Archaeologists and historians are uncovering the story of an area called The Hill. They are digging up glass, pottery and other objects to give them clues about the past. They believe The Hill is the earliest settlement of free African-Americans in the United States, dating to 1790.

Dale Green is a professor at Morgan State University. He said that this project is not just a story about black people. It's a story about America.

Digging Back In Time

The Hill was founded by freed slaves. Some slaves were able to buy their freedom, while others were freed by some religious groups. In communities like The Hill, they had the freedom to own property and trade goods.

According to the 1790 census, a population count, about 410 free African-Americans lived on The Hill. This is much more than the 250 free African-Americans who lived in the port city of Baltimore at the time.

Researchers and students are in the middle of a three-week dig. They are working in 5-by-5-foot squares. The deeper they dig, the further back in history they go.

In the first few inches of soil, the team found 20th-century objects such as toys, marbles and pipe stems. A little deeper, they discovered evidence of 19th-century life.

Stefan Woehlke is in charge of the dig. He showed off part of an olive-green glass bottle that was decorated with a cluster of grapes. Woehlke said the bottle was probably used to hold wine. He believes it was made in the late 18th or early 19th century. The diggers also found a 1-cent coin featuring Lady Liberty, dated 1794.

Professor Green said that the free African-Americans lived alongside white families at The Hill. In 1790, this property belonged to James Price, a white man. Records show that Price and three free African-Americans lived on the property. The records don't include very much information about the African-Americans.

Putting The Pieces Together

The work at The Hill promises to give up lots of new information. But the researchers say they’re only scratching the surface.

“It’s sort of piecing together a puzzle, but you don’t have all the pieces,” Woehlke said. The group will spend at least five more years working at Easton.

Since the dig began, more than 500 people have visited the site. Some visitors have been on organized tours. But others have just wandered in after seeing signs posted around the block.

Priscilla Morris has family roots in Easton that date back to the 1600s. She is a regular visitor to the area. She said she finds the dig "thrilling" because no one knows how people lived here two hundred years ago.

Professor Green said the work at The Hill could change the way American history is told. At the moment, the story of free blacks is usually ignored. In the past, history was always told by the slave owners rather than the African-Americans.

There are big plans to get the word out about The Hill. These include work by students and new museums. There might even be a movie made about the African-American community at Easton.

The Hill already is part of the National Register of Historic Places. That information will soon be updated to include the black history of the area.

An Untold Story

About 75 researchers and students are working on The Hill project. Tracy Jenkins is a graduate student in archaeology at the University of Maryland. He said that the local community has been very interested in the dig and friendly to the archaeologists.

Jenkins said this is encouraging and unusual as it doesn't often happen in archaeology. He said that he sometimes has to dig in lonely places in the countryside where there is no one else around.

At The Hill, which is in the middle of town, the researchers and local people are getting to know each other. Jenkins is excited about working on the project. He's glad to have the chance to write what he called a paper that really matters, and not something that just "sits on a shelf."