Enslavement at Liberty Hall: Who was Enslaved at Liberty Hall?

Research into the lives of the people enslaved at Liberty Hall is an ongoing process. The people listed below were enslaved at or were closely connected to Liberty Hall, but there is still much we do not know about their lives. Liberty Hall remains committed to researching the lives of these people and uncovering the histories of anyone else who may have been enslaved on the site. 

You can click through the names of some of these individuals in order to learn more about their lives at and beyond Liberty Hall. Biographies will be updated as we learn new information.

Bell and Lambert

They were born enslaved by William Livingston’s family and were manumitted in 1787.

Abbe and possibly her husband

Abbe was enslaved by Sarah (Livingston) Jay, the daughter of William Livingston, and her husband, John Jay. Abbe’s husband may have been enslaved at or near Liberty Hall. Abbe died in 1783 after attempting to self-emancipate in France. It is unknown what became of her husband.

A man, woman, and their three-year-old child

It is unclear if William Livingston purchased this enslaved family, but he respond to a newspaper advertisement about them in 1785.

Henry

He was enslaved by William Livingston and self-emancipated in 1786.

James, Jenny, Phillis, and an eight-year-old girl

William Livingston’s daughter, Catherine (Livingston) Ridley enslaved these people and proposed to bring them to Liberty Hall in 1790 and Livingston was receptive to the idea, although it is unclear if they were brought here before his death. James had been at Liberty Hall with Ridley at some earlier point.

Violett and her mother

They were enslaved by Julian Ursin Niemcewicz and Susan Livingston Kean Niemcewicz in Elizabethtown before Susan purchased Liberty Hall. Susan may have brought them to Liberty Hall when her son purchased the home for her in 1811.

Sinder

They were enslaved by Thomas Salter and may have lived at Liberty Hall when Salter owned the property between 1808 and 1811.

A man, a woman, and their four children

They were enslaved by Thomas Salter at Liberty Hall between 1808 and 1811.

Eve

She was enslaved by Susan Livingston Kean Niemcewicz.

Sarah, her son, and her daughter

They were enslaved by Susan Livingston Kean Niemcewicz.

Thomas

He was enslaved by Susan Livingston Kean Niemcewicz.

Cirus, Peggy, and their son Elias

Cirus and Peggy were enslaved by Susan Livingston Kean Niemcewicz after 1811. As a condition of the sale, Cirus gained his freedom after eight additional years of enslavement. Elias was born free but would be required to labor for Niemcewicz until his twenty-fifth birthday. It is unclear if Peggy ever gained her freedom. 

Peter

He was enslaved by Susan Livingston Kean Niemcewicz.

Betty, her son Stephen, and possibly another child

They were enslaved by Susan Livingston Kean Niemcewicz.

Abraham and his mother

Abraham’s mother was enslaved by Susan (Livingston) [Kean] Niemcewicz. Abraham was born free in 1814, but Niemcewicz was legally entitled to his labor until he reached the age of 25.

Silas

Demonstrating the shifting and unclear categories of enslaved and free in New Jersey during the early nineteenth century, Susan (Livingston) [Kean] Niemcewicz manumitted Silas in 1819 but did not file the paperwork in county records until 1834.

Peter, Sarah, and Robert Van Horne

Peter and Sarah Van Horne were manumitted by Susan Livingtston Kean Niemcewicz in 1829, but they were required to continue working for Niemcewicz until her death in 1833. Their son Robert was born free but was required to labor for Niemcewicz until his twenty-fifth birthday. Despite this, he had left Liberty Hall and was living in Elizabethtown with his parents by 1840.