Accession No. RARE.2021.0025: Purchase, 2021 March
[identification of item], John Williams of Kent County, Delaware Notarized Certificate Documenting His Status as a Free Black Man, SPEC.RARE.MMS.0191, Rare Books & Manuscripts Library, Ohio State University
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Processed by: Audrey Wimbiscus, 2021 October; finding aid written by: Audrey Wimbiscus, 2021 October
Prior to the end of the American Civil War, free Blacks and people of color were required to carry what were known as freedom papers, free papers, or certificates of freedom. These papers were used to prove that the bearer was legally free from slavery, either through their birth as a free person or as a result of being freed by a slaveholder. If they were caught without these papers, free Blacks and people of color ran the risk of being taken by slave catchers or kidnappers and forced into the life of a slave.
Freedom papers were often notorized and filed with a deeds office, in case the original was destroyed. The papers contained descriptors used to identify the person such as their height, skin color, identifying marks such as tattoos or scars, and hair texture, as well as a statement proclaiming the bearer's freedom and their signature or mark, if they were illiterate.
The John Williams of Kent County, Delaware Notarized Certificate Documenting His Status as a Free Black Man dates from February 4, 1799. It was notarized by Clement Biddle, American Revolutionary War veteran and the first United States Marshal for Pennsylvania, and declared that Williams was a free United States citizen born in Kent County, Delaware, as certified by a George Houston. The certificate also contains a description of Williams identifying several physical attributes, including a missing toe.