Amy Hester Reckless (1793-1881) was enslaved by one of Salem County’s wealthiest families, but took action to liberate herself and her children, and then to help others gain their freedom.
Born in Elsinboro, NJ, into a free black family, Rock exhibited a voracious appetite for knowledge. Until age 18, he studied in the school Salem Quakers founded for black students. Rock became the head of the school in 1845, the first of his many professional...
Esther “Hetty” Saunders (c 1793-1862) and Amy Reckless were the same age and both were born into slavery, but their lives were very different. Hetty Saunders’ family fled enslavement in Delaware in 1800. Pursued by slave catchers, her father sought a safe haven for...
In the 1830s, Abigail emerged as an active figure in the Underground Railroad movement. The sisters, now fervent abolitionists, came into contact with leading anti-slavery figures, including William Still, Lucretia Mott, and orator James Miller McKim, who came to...
The Reverend Thomas Clement Oliver (1818-1900) was a conductor on the Salem and Greenwich Lines of the Underground Railroad (UGRR), helping freedom seekers find their way north to New England and Canada. Oliver began his work when still a child, as his parents were...
Black Civil War veterans are buried at Spencer Union American Methodist Episcopal (UAME) Church, Woodstown, NJ, and several other African American cemeteries, including Mt. Pisgah in Elsinboro, also in Salem County. Service records show that over 1,000 Black New...
Listening to the story of how a slave catcher went on trial in Salem, NJ, shows why freedom seekers could not feel secure in staying in South Jersey very long. The Donahower incident in 1834 gives insights into the methods and tactics of slave catchers throughout the...
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