The Hidden History of Slavery in New England

New England's hidden history More than we like to
think, the North was built on slavery.

By Francie Latour
Boston Globe
September 26, 2010

http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/ideas/articles/2010/09/26/new_englands_hidden_history/

In the year 1755, a black slave named Mark Codman
plotted to kill his abusive master. A God-fearing man,
Codman had resolved to use poison, reasoning that if he
could kill without shedding blood, it would be no sin.
Arsenic in hand, he and two female slaves poisoned the
tea and porridge of John Codman repeatedly. The plan
worked - but like so many stories of slave rebellion,
this one ended in brutal death for the slaves as well.
After a trial by jury, Mark Codman was hanged, tarred,
and then suspended in a metal gibbet on the main road
to town, where his body remained for more than 20
years.

It sounds like a classic account of Southern slavery.
But Codman's body didn't hang in Savannah, Ga.; it hung
in present-day Somerville, Mass. And the reason we know
just how long Mark the slave was left on view is that
Paul Revere passed it on his midnight ride. In a
fleeting mention from Revere's account, the horseman
described galloping past "Charlestown Neck, and got
nearly opposite where Mark was hung in chains."

When it comes to slavery, the story that New England
has long told itself goes like this: Slavery happened
in the South, and it ended thanks to the North. Maybe
we had a little slavery, early on. But it wasn't real
slavery. We never had many slaves, and the ones we did
have were practically family. We let them marry, we
taught them to read, and soon enough, we freed them.
New England is the home of abolitionists and
underground railroads. In the story of slavery - and by
extension, the story of race and racism in modern-day
America - we're the heroes. Aren't we?

[Continue reading this article at:
http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/ideas/articles/2010/09/26/new_englands_hidden_history/

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