Escape and Emancipation of Enslaved Laborers

In which year did Congress make the harboring of a freedom-seeking enslaved person a federal crime?

What percentage of white families in New York City owned enslaved laborers?

Between 1783 and 1800, how many enslavers in New York City voluntarily manumitted their enslaved laborers?

According to the 1830 census, how many people were still enslaved in the North?

Until which year did elderly enslaved people remain in bondage in Connecticut?

In which state did slavery endure until after the Civil War?

Routes to Freedom

Quicker routes to freedom for enslaved people included escape or direct emancipation by enslavers
However, escape was dangerous, and voluntary manumission was rare

Legal Barriers

Congress made harboring a freedom-seeking enslaved person a federal crime in 1793

Manumission in the North

Few northern enslavers emancipated their own enslaved laborers
In New York City, roughly one-fifth of white families owned enslaved laborers, but fewer than eighty enslavers voluntarily freed their enslaved laborers between 1783 and 1800

Slavery in the North

By 1830, census data suggests that at least 3,500 people were still enslaved in the North
Elderly enslaved people in Connecticut remained in bondage as late as 1848
Slavery endured in New Jersey until after the Civil War

Census Data

The 1830 US Census enumerates 3,568 enslaved people in the northern states, including:
- Connecticut
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New York
- Ohio
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- Vermont

This quiz explores the limited options for enslaved laborers to gain freedom, including escape and manumission, and the laws that hindered their pursuit of liberty.