Description:

African American
Norwich, CT, ca. 1784-1786
Summons for Free African American Veteran Signed Twice by Connecticut Governor!
various
[AFRICAN AMERICAN.] Matthew Griswold, Partially Printed Document Signed, Summons of Pompy (Job Leason), March 13, 1786, Norwich, Connecticut. 2 pp., 7.5" x 6.5". General toning; some staining; two bold signatures by Griswold.
? Manuscript Document, Account of Pomp with Dudley Woodbridge, 1784-1785, n.p. 1 p., 8.25" x 3.25". Expected folds; very good.

This summons orders free African American Pompy of Norwich, Connecticut, who may have also gone by the name Job Leason, as that name is stricken and "Pompy" inserted, to appear in court over a debt he owed to Norwich merchant Dudley Woodbridge. Pompy failed to appear in court, and Justice of the Peace ordered him to pay 13 shillings, 9 pence for the debt and 6 shillings, 1 penny in court costs. Also includes the related account from 1784-1785 that details Pomp's account with Norwich merchant Dudley Woodbridge.

Excerpts
[Summons:]
"To the Sheriff of the County of New London or his Deputy, or either of the Constables of the Town of Norwich within said County, Greeting.
"By Authority of the State of Connecticut, you are hereby commanded to summon Job Leason ^Pompy^, a Negro of said Norwich late Servant of Simon Huntington of said Norwich To appear before ... Justice of the Peace for said County at the Court House in said Norwich on the 8th Day of May 1786 at 2 o'clock in the afternoon. Then and there to answer unto Dudley Woodbridge of said Norwich In a Plea, that to the Plaintiff the Defendant render the Sum of thirty shillings Lawfull Money...."

"Pompy / May 8th 1786 / Defaulted / Judgmt that Plaint Recover of Defendt the Sum of £0.13.9[1/]2 Debt & 9.6.1 Cost / Exen Granted May 10th 1786"

Historical Background
As slavery waned in Connecticut under the provisions of a 1784 gradual emancipation act, the number of free blacks in the state grew. In 1790, 2,764 enslaved persons remained in Connecticut. The number declined to 951 in 1800, 97 in 1820, 25 in 1830, and 17 in 1840. In 1844, then Governor Roger Sherman Baldwin proposed legislation to end slavery, but the General Assembly did not pass it until it was reintroduced in 1848. That act freed the six remaining slaves in the state.

In 1800, there were approximately 5,330 free blacks in Connecticut. However, many were little better off as free people than they had been in slavery. They could testify in court and own property, but their socioeconomic status remained poor. Although theoretically, free blacks who owned sufficient property could vote, an 1818 state law specifically denied them the right to vote. Only after the Fifteenth Amendment was ratified in 1870 could African Americans vote in Connecticut.

Many African Americans in Connecticut lived in cities, where they formed separate communities in poor neighborhoods and held low-paying jobs. Few could afford the property necessary to prosper as farmers; most in rural areas worked as field hands.

Job Leason (1756-1828) lived in Windham, Connecticut, and served in Colonel John Chandler's Regiment of the Connecticut Line from April 1777 to April 1780, when he was discharged at Springfield, New Jersey. The regiment saw action in the Battle of Germantown, the siege of Fort Mifflin, and the Battle of Monmouth. Both he and his brother Jesse Leason were encamped at Valley Forge during the winter of 1777-1778. Job Leason reenlisted in 1781 in a regiment commanded by Colonel Isaac Sherman, and then transferred to one commanded by Colonel Ebenezer Huntington. He was discharged at West Point, New York, in July 1783. Leason's first wife may have been Zilpha Perkins, a daughter of London Perkins (1721-1799) a former slave who operated a tannery, and his wife Cate Perkins (ca. 1717/18-1813). [Zilpha's parents had both been enslaved by Capt. John Perkins and his wife Lydia of Norwich; they were evidently free by 1786. Their eight children – some of whom retained the surname Perkins, while others adopted the surname Wilson – appear to all have been born into slavery and were all baptized in Lisbon's church.] According to pension records Leason's second wife was named Rosanna; they had no surviving children. After 1808, Leason was feeble and was unable to do any work except basket making. By 1818, he was "very poor and destitute of property" and in need of "assistance for his support." He began receiving a pension of $8 per month, beginning in April 1818. Early in 1828, Leason appointed an agent to obtain a land warrant for his services as a soldier, but Leason died on May 28 before receiving the land grant.

Matthew Griswold (1714-1799) was born in Lyme, Connecticut, studied law, and gained admission to the bar in 1742. He married Ursula Wolcott in 1743, and they had seven children. He served as king's attorney for New London County (1743-1776), in the Connecticut General Assembly (1748, 1751-1759); Council of Assistants (1759-1769), Deputy Governor of Connecticut (1769-1776), Lieutenant Governor of Connecticut (1776-1784), and Governor of Connecticut (1784-1786). He strongly supported the American cause and became a member of the Sons of Liberty. During the war, he focused on troop movements, provisions, and defending American ships and the Connecticut shoreline.

Dudley Woodbridge (1747-1823) was born in Stonington, Connecticut, and graduated from Yale College in 1766. He worked as a lawyer in Norwich, Connecticut, for several years but by 1778 had become a merchant with his brother Samuel Woodbridge. Dudley Woodbridge served as Norwich's first postmaster from 1782 to 1789. He then moved to Marietta, Ohio, where he again practiced as an attorney and operated a general store. In 1774, he married Lucy Backus, and they had at least six children, including William Woodbridge, who later served as governor of Michigan (1840-1841) and U.S. Senator from Michigan (1841-1847).

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

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  • Dimensions: 7.5" x 6.5"; 8.25" x 3.25"
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