Slavery in New Jersey occurred from the 1600s as a Dutch colony, until 1866, when the 13th Amendment was ratified, something that New Jersey voted twice on before passing. In recent decades historians have done more research on slavery in the north. This work often focuses on slavery as a whole instead of the individual experiences of enslaved persons during this time. Limited documentary evidence leaves historians with a lot of statistics over being able to make a complete history of an individual. The goal of this research is to share the experiences of Black Americans in Lawrence Township from the time of the American Revolution to the Civil War. By examining history from this perspective, case studies of several individuals will add to the literature the untold stories of Black Americans who are not identified as historical figures in textbooks. Implementing an analysis of the historical accounts personifies broad themes and puts faces onto statistics. This study uses qualitative methodology to review primary documents and secondary sources to support the research findings.
