An Act to Emancipate Certain Negroes.

by Lisa Y. Henderson

CHAPTER XXXV.

An Act to Emancipate Certain Negroes Therein Mentioned.

Whereas, it hath been represented to this General Assembly, that Robert Shaw, in his life-time, did receive a valuable consideration for the further services of a certain negro woman named Amelia, and has certified the same and declared her to be free: And by petition of Thomas Lovick, it appears to be his desire that a certain negro woman by the name of Betty, belonging to him, should be set free; also a petition of Monsieur Chaponel, desiring to have set free a mulatto slave belonging to him, by the name of Lucy, of three and half years old: And whereas, it appears by the petition of Ephraim Knight, of Halifax county, that he is desirous to emancipate two young mulatto men, called Richard and Alexander, the property of said Ephraim: And it hath also been represented to this Assembly by John Alderson, of Hyde County, that it is his desire to set free a mulatto boy belonging to him, called Sam: And whereas, it hath been made appear to this Assembly by the petition of Thomas Newman, of Fayetteville, that he hath a mulatto boy belonging to him, which he is desirous to emancipate, and known by the name of Thomas:

I. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of North Carolina, and it is hereby enacted by the authority of the same, That the said negro women called Amelia and Betty, and the mulatto girl Lucy, and the said mulatto men Richard and Alexander, and the said mulatto boy called Sam, and the negro boy named Thomas Clinch, shall be, and each of them are hereby emancipated and declared free; and the said Richard and Alexander shall take and use the surname of Day, and the mulatto boy Sam shall be known and called by the name of Samuel Johnson; and the said slaves so liberated, and each of them, are hereby declared to be able and capable in law to posses and enjoy every right, privilege and immunity, in as full and ample manner as they could or might have done if they had been born free.

Acts of the North Carolina General Assembly, 1789, Colonial and State Records of North Carolina.

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