Doubtful Freedom, 1766
Bill for court costs, Kent County, November 1766
Abraham Woodland, a debt:
To your appearance with your Negro & entering minutes entering court’s judgement 14 on your Negro being set levy free: 24
Deduct 10 percent if paid in Tobacco.
E E per D Dulany, Clerk
[spelling and punctuation have been modernized]
Dated 1766, this slip of paper is among the oldest items in the Commodore Collection. At first reading, it appears to describe court costs related to the freeing of an unnamed man by his enslaver, Abraham Woodland of Kent County.
But does this document truly represent an African American’s liberation? It describes the enslaved man as being “set levey free.” The term “levy free” referred to enslaved people who would no longer be required to work — usually due to old age or infirmity — meaning that their masters would no longer pay taxes (levy) for them.
Other period sources that suggest setting someone “levy free” later became a general term for unofficially setting people free when they were considered too old to have monetary value — while also evading laws that prohibited manumission of people over a certain age. This kind of freedom could be more curse than blessing, since such people were likely left destitute and helpless.
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