Age: 10
Current Year: 1707

I remember growing up in New York City as an child. Every slave-owning household held about 4 to 5 slaves. My mother was a house slave and my dad was a carpenter. I think of the day when I would be in the same house “playing” with Master John Williamson’s daughter, Abby. Master also had a wife Elizabeth, she was very weary of how much I came over, her face had disgust written all over it. Abby kind of looked like my mama, her hair was just strawberry blonde and she had piercing hazel eyes just like Master’s. Since we were really good friends ,she taught me how to read and write. My mother knew very well that I was learning this from Abby, but she decided she wasn’t going to let my father know. One morning Abby and I were playing outside the house and Master brushed passed me ,rushing to my father’s hut where he was busily working on a new table for Elizabeth. Master immediately started to yell at him because he didn’t properly install the framework of his bedroom. Moments later, my father was struck with a whip composed of leathern thongs platted and tapers of wood hardly knotted which tore my father’s flesh and bought blood at every single stroke, while other slaves stood and watched. My mother rushed out the house and unto his side as she heard his shrieking scream. She feared for his life as he quickly fell hard unto the ground. My dad was struck so hard that he had no fight left in him to continue his work so he was ordered to clear the fields of corn by hand with the other slaves. My mother wanted to stay by his side but she knew if she did there would be consequences to face, especially knowing that she was hiding a secret. Ever since that day my father lost his joy and hope of change, so he proposed an idea that tremendously changed my life forever.

Age: 15
Current Year: 1712
Hmm, what can I say, this year was the most horrifying year of my life. By this year I was just about to turn 16 on April 9th, which was the age I became an house slave with my mother. Sadly, my birthday didn’t turn out the way I had expected, I thought that my life was over just a few days before. This all started a couple years back when my dad was brutally whipped and forced to quit his work, he had now planned to revolt against the white men. The plantation now had over 80 slaves,which meant we were watched very closely. One evening, my mom went with Master to go gather more slaves at a bidding, but before she left my dad told her to pay close attention to the city and the townspeople so that his plan doesn’t fail. When she arrived back at the plantation she had two kids who looked about my age, they seemed to be brother and sister. Their real names were Jonah and Abel but Master insisted that their names be Samuel and Caroline, they were very timid so Master had me to teach them how to survive on the plantation. That night Caroline, my mother and I were setting up for Master’s party for his accomplishments of having the most successful plantation. While all of Master’s guests were inside, I decided to tell my father that they were planning to sell us. Once I told him that, he had this ****** expression that told me it was time to put his plan into action. I ran back inside Master’s house and signaled the slaves that it was the point in our lives that we’ll take the biggest risk. It was now or never. Once they got the message, the slaves inside the house distracted them by purposely dropping dishes and making messes. It was now midnight of April 6th, about 25 to 50 slaves, including my father, congregated together with guns, swords, and knives in hand the slaves set fire to an outhouse then fired shots at several white slave owners. By the end of the night ,nine whites were injured. Within a couple of hours, our governor ordered that the militias drive the island. With the exception of 6 blacks who committed suicide, the rebels were captured and punished with savagery that ranged from being burned alive to being crushed by a wheel. My father sadly suffered an excruciating death. He was first whipped by three men at one time, each stroke striking deep inside his back. Since my dad showed no sign of weakness so they used an ax and chopped of both of his feet then ultimately decapitated his head. It was the most gruesome and petrifying death that I had ever experienced, after that day I never spoke unless I was spoken to and did as I was told. Because of my father’s plan new laws were made called the Slave Codes that the white men made sure we followed.

Age: 22
Current Year: 1719
In the year of 1719, secrets were unveiled and loyalty was tested. I had been working in the house since my father passed. My mom would walk around the house in and out of Master’s office with a stressed look on her face. I noticed that Master Williamson was a manipulative man who enjoys wielding control over others. He has complete control over my mother and I, who is 25 years younger than he is, but this is not enough for him. He tries to force me to surrender mentally and emotionally to his domination. Although he does not beat or rape me as the other slaves, he constantly threatens me with violence if I was to tell a soul about what I know and as evidenced by his treatment of his other slaves, he has no qualms about inflicting vicious, brutal punishments. One morning while Ms. Elizabeth was out, I was sweeping the halls and I overheard Master and my mama talking about something very strange. I heard Master say that Abby was mama’s child. As soon as I heard that I rushed up into Abby’s room and realized that I knew that the resemblance I saw between her and mama was right. I never thought that I could be half sisters with a white girl. Abby and I were still pretty close, I stayed in her room all day reading books and writing our favorite things down. I think by now the Williamson family realized that I am what you call an “Intelligent Negro”, they just didn’t know where I was getting it from. When Abby and I were just about to write our last few words, Mrs. Elizabeth walked in and caught me writing and quickly stormed out to tell Master. In the next second, Abby shot up and started crying repeatedly saying that I threatened her so she could teach me how to read and write. I was so in shock and upset at Abby that I blurted out that Ms. Elizabeth wasn’t her real mother and that she was my sister. When I said that my mother’s face angered and so did Master’s. I explained to everyone what I overheard, then Master and his overseers took me and mama back behind the house in a shed, as we were leaving I looked at Abby with disgust while Ms. Elizabeth was crying her eyes out with an hatred look in her eyes. Once we got out there were pushed onto our stomachs, beaten and then stripped out of our clothing. They began to sexually assault us, it was the worst pain I ever felt ever and I had to live with that for the rest of my life. The next Sunday after the incident, Samuel and Caroline came to visit me, I had never come out my room, I was too ashamed of myself for letting it get to that point. Caroline left early to finish her Sunday duties and Samuel stayed with me the whole night since he was finished with his work. We stayed up all night praying that better days would come and that no matter what happens to us, we will never forget who we are.

Age: 31
Current Year: 1728
It’s the year of 1728, I had now had a 7 year old son who is the spitting image of Samuel. We named him Gabriel but obviously Master didn’t approve so his name was James. When I was raped, fortunately I didn’t give birth but I’m glad I have 2 men in my life that will protect me from any way of harm. Mrs. Elizabeth died from a massive heart attack 3 years ago so Master moved on and got him a new wife. Her name was Sarah, she had long wavy brown hair that framed her face and beautiful brown eyes. She was very much different than Ms. Elizabeth, she was always smiling and actually tried to connect with us slaves. I never questioned her because I never knew what she might do to me. One afternoon she came to me and asked me if I needed help to escape, of course I wanted to but I still haven’t quite figured her out yet. It was quite odd that she would even ask me that question. After a few weeks of being together, Master had gotten suspicious of Sarah, like the rest of us, so he hung her when he found that she was an undercover spy who wanted to help slaves. Samuel and I knew that if we took her up on her offer, we wouldn’t even be alive right now. Since all of that happened, Samuel and I decided that we wanted to get married, being that we already had a son together. My mother and Caroline fixed me up a dress, not that extravagant though because we were still slaves and didn’t have access to the fine materials. We decided to jump the broom, “jumping the broom” is a tradition imported from Africa which signifies that we promised to be life partners, even if it wasn’t legal for slaves to marry. The day we got married was the best day of my life, I finally felt that I had someone who loves me for who I am and who was a lifelong friend, I was given the best gift a slave could ever ask for and that was a family. When it was just me, my mother and father it was kind of lonely because I had no one to relate to or share my aspirations with, if I had shared it with my parents they wouldn’t get where I was coming from. On plantations, it does get lonely and drives people to escape, but Master agreed to it because having a family serves as an distraction to keep slaves from wanting to runaway. l wish my father was here to see this, he always wanted the best for me, and I feel that the decisions I have made were the best ones and I could only pray for the greater days to come. James was the main reason I woke up every morning, I knew that if I was to leave this world early then he wouldn’t have a clue of what to do, he doesn’t fully understand what position he is unfortunately put in.

Age: 38
Current Year: 1735
I cannot believe how much has happened. My mother had died of lung cancer and Caroline was moved to another plantation away from us because she was caught stealing food from the kitchen. Samuel had been down about the situation because that was all he had left besides me and James. James had grown so tall that the other slaves and overseers felt intimidated. My son would be beat at least twice out of the day because they couldn’t bare the sight of seeing him so tall and strong, even if he was only 14. I haven’t seen much of Abby since she betrayed me. Before my mother passed, she told me to never forget who I am, a strong, intelligent, and beautiful black woman and that no matter what hardships come my way, I would still remain the same way as I am. One day James showed me all his scars and that he needed them treated. I started to bandage the cuts but as I was doing so I noticed that on his arm it wasn’t a scar, it seemed to be a deep cut that had to be sewn together. I asked him what happened and he told me that Master Williamson cut and dragged a knife into his arm because James accidentally dropped a sack of potatoes on his foot. Once Samuel heard of this news he was completely outraged that he wanted to march right to into that house and kill every single white person living in that house, but I didn’t let him because I knew what they were capable of. If he had killed them, then Samuel’s entire body would’ve been dismembered and shipped off somewhere. Samuel couldn’t bare to see the cuts and bruises on his son so he isolated himself from us, I noticed he started to have this crazed look on his face, I tried to ask him what was wrong but he just walked away from me. I didn’t bother him until James came telling me that Master was going to kill him and Samuel both. I told James to stay close behind me, I wasn’t going to let another person leave my life so soon, if both my husband and son were going to die, I was most definitely willing to die with them. When I told Samuel of the news he just looked at me and we all started to pray. We knew that if we didn’t do anything about the problem then, we wouldn’t make it far on that land. Ever since James was born I instilled into his head that if you want to make it far in this world you had to abide by what he believes in and not by what the white man says but I also told him to never put himself in a position where a gun is between him and the white man.

Age: 45
Current Year: 1741
Boy oh boy, what can I say about this year. I had lost the only person that kept me going everyday. This was the year that everything bad that could possibly happen…happened. I blame myself for allowing the situation to get that far. My husband did the most unruly act ever. What is clear about this incident is that it is an example of an abuse of power and a misuse of law and community values by white colonists. It was between the months of March and April, 10 fires were blazed in the city, along with 4 fires in a single day in early April. The governor’s house and the church connected to his house was blazed also. My beloved husband Samuel was the start of this fire. Him along with 100 slaves and poor whites were brought into the basement of the city hall on charges of burglary and arson. 13 slaves were burned during the fires. Two white men and two women were permanently banished from New York. During the interrogation, slaves were beaten, harassed, and terrorized by whites. These actions contributed to the confessions of at least 81 blacks. In the end, over 100 people were hung, exiled, or burned. The body of my husband was gibbeted on public display of the town. It was the worst thing I had ever seen in my life. My poor Samuel didn’t look like himself, his flesh completely torn in places unimaginable. I knew that James knew what happened but I didn’t bother to talk to him about it , it was just too much to deal with at once. Most people would never understand how much of a struggle I had been through from the death of my father to now my beloved husband. What my child is now going through is a repeat of what I had experienced when my own father passed. James is all I have left in this world, I sometimes wish I hadn’t brought him into this hateful land…