Elizabeth Freeman – MumBet
By
John C Abercrombie
The case of MumBet is an important case in the history of Blacks and slavery in the United States but is rarely mentioned. This is surprising in view of the significance of the case. Her actions were bold, compelling and significant!
A woman of impeccable character, she was never given formal education, but this in no way reflected on her intellect.
In a time when slaves were denied educational opportunities, not because they were incapable of learning, but to maintain superiority and control of a free source of labor, slave owners forbade by law the teaching of Blacks in many instances both slave and free.
MumBet’ s passion gave eloquence to her words.
Her courage caused people to join her cause.
Her plight touched the hearts of the ethical.
The urgency of her struggle cause people to act.
All of this was tied together by her high level of character!
The case is well documented by early historical accounts of writings by contemporaries including the daughter of the prominent family that she served so faithfully after receiving her freedom.
She was most well known by the name of Bet or MumBet (to those she took care of, this was an affectionate way of saying Mother Bet). After winning her freedom, she took the name of Elizabeth Freeman.
In many cases we see Blacks called Aunt or Uncle as a way to show familiarity, but not great respect. However the name Mother or Mum is reserved for a person deserving the highest level of praise and respect.
She was the first enslaved African American to file and win a freedom suit in Massachusetts. Her case and that of another enslaved person known as Brom is more widely known as Brom and Bett v Ashley decided in 1781 by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court that slavery was inconsistent with the 1780 Massachusetts State Constitution.
His ruling effectively ended slavery in Massachusetts and set precedence for ending slavery in other Northeastern states.
The person known as Brom was a male slave in the house of Ashley and due to the status of women during that time was added to give merit to the case.
The exact date of MumBet’ s birth is not known. Slave records were of little importance to those seeking free labor. She was born in Claverack, New York and was given to her owner’s daughter as a wedding present when Bet was about 7 years old. Taking her away from her mother at such a young age.
Bet is believed to have married a man who served in the American Revolutionary War and never returned after paying the ultimate price for the freedom of the United States. From this union there was one child. A daughter known as Little Bet.
Many people place the blame of slavery on the victim of the cruel acts and not the perpetrator of such cruel and inhumane treatment of humans created by God. While John Ashley treated the slaves kindly, such was not the case with Hannah Ashley, John’s wife.
Hannah was cruel and flew into a rage when she discovered a slave girl eating a scrap of bread. Hannah attempted to strike the girl with a hot shovel used in the fireplace. MumBet stepped in and prevented Hannah from striking the defenseless girl but received a severe wound and burn in the process. A scar that MumBet carried the remainder of her life.
The incident was reported by the writer Catharine Maria Sedgwick, the daughter of Theodore Sedgwick, the young lawyer who would help MumBet gain her freedom.
Bet left the wound uncovered as evidence of the harsh treatment that she and other slaves in the home were subjected to. When people would see the hideous wound and ask what ails your arm? Bet would answer “Ask Missis!” Hannah Ashley never laid hand on the young slave girl Lizzy again.
Bet’s owner John Ashley was a Yale-educated lawyer and a wealthy landowner, businessman and community leader. Meetings were held regularly at his home and is believed to be the site of the signing of the Sheffield Resolves otherwise known as the Sheffield Declaration took place in his home.
The Sheffield Resolves was a Colonial American petition against British tyranny and a manifesto for human and individual rights and predates the Declaration of Independence.
How hypocritical could these people be as they discussed freedom for themselves yet holding other humans in captivity and subjecting them to the cruelest treatment possible?
While working, the words Bet heard were, “All men are born free and equal, and have certain natural, essential, and unalienable rights; among which may be reckoned the right of enjoying and defending their lives and liberties; that of acquiring , possessing, and protecting property; in fine, that of seeking and obtaining their safety and happiness”
Bet had no formal education but had the intellect to know the meaning of the words and sought the counsel of a young abolition-minded lawyer by the name of Theodore Sedgwick.
Catherine Sedgewick mentioned earlier continues her account of the encounter and quotes Bet “I heard that paper read yesterday, that says, all men are created equal and that every man has the right to freedom. I’s not a dumb critter; won’t the law give me my freedom?”
The decision by Sedgwick was complicated by the fact that John Ashley was one of the wealthiest men in the area.
The case would be challenging but it was in line with the philosophy of the young abolition-minded lawyer and after much deliberation, Theodore Sedgwick accepted the case. He enlisted the aid of another lawyer of like mind Tapping Reeve. The team of Sedgwick and Reeve were a formidable team and were considered the two top lawyers in Massachusetts.
In the case that moved forward Sedgwick and Reeve asserted that “all men are born free and equal”. When the jury ruled in favor of Brom and Bett v Ashley, they became the first African-Americans set free under the Massachusetts state constitution.
The jury had found that Brom and Bett were not, nor were they at the time of the original purchase of original writ the legal Negro of John Ashley”
The court assessed damages and awarded both plaintiffs compensation for their labor while they had been toiling without wages.
Although Ashley appealed the decision, he dropped that appeal deciding that the court ruling was “final and binding.”
The case of Brom and Bett v. Ashley was heard in August 1781
Following the ruling by the court confirming her freedom, MumBet took the name of Elizabeth Freeman. Ashley asked her to return to his house and work for wages and she wisely turned down the offer, choosing instead to work for the Sedgwick family.
MumBet worked as senior servant and governess. A governess differs from a Nanny in that the governess is employed to teach and train older children in a private house as opposed to a nanny who concentrates on meeting the physical needs of babies.
One of the Sedgwick children was Catharine Maria Sedgwick, an American novelist. Her work was in great demand during the period from the 1820’s through the 1850’s. She was one of the most notable female novelists of her time.
As a child Catharine was cared for by MumBet. In her autobiography, Catherine refers to MumBet and reflects upon the influence that she had on Sedgwick’s perception of the world. The integrity and pride that MumBet possessed regarding her own intelligence and understand of the world is reflected in Sedgwick’s admiration of MumBet.
Elizabeth Freeman died December 1820 and is buried in the Sedgwick family plot in Stockbridge, Massachusetts. She is the only non-Sedgwick buried in the family plot. In appreciation and love to her the family provided a tombstone with the following inscription
“ELIZABETH FREEMAN, also known as MUMBET died Dec. 28th, 1829. Her supposed age was 85 years. She was born a slave and remained a slave for nearly thirty years; she could neither read nor write, yet in her own sphere she had no superior or equal. She neither wasted time nor property. She never violated a trust, nor failed to perform a duty. In every situation of domestic trial, she was the most efficient helper and the tenderest friend. Good mother, farewell”
W. E. B. DuBois claimed Freeman as a relative and while there is no written record, there is anecdotal evidence to support a close relationship.
Also working at the Sedgwick household was a free Black man named Agrippa Hull, who had served during the American Revolutionary War.
Agrippa Hull was a free African -American patriot who served a total of 6 years and 2 months. After the war, he received a veteran’s pension signed by George Washington. Hull treasured this document his entire life. Hull became the largest Black landowner in Stockbridge where he lived after the Revolutionary War. He died at the age of 89 years.
MumBet aka Elizabeth Freeman was a woman who stood on principal, was bold and faithful in her beliefs and service to others. A true pioneer of human rights!
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A Free Woman On God’s Earth: The True Story of Elizabeth “Mumbet” Freeman, The Slave Who Won Her Freedom Paperback – August 21, 2009
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MumBet – Elizabeth Freeman a leader in the fight for freedom
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Mumbet’ s Declaration of Independence
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A Free Woman On God’s Earth: The True Story of Elizabeth “Mumbet” Freeman, The Slave Who Won Her Freedom
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Agrippa Hull: The Life and Legacy of the Revolutionary War’s Most Famous Black Soldier Kindle Edition
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Friends of Liberty: A Tale of Three Patriots, Two Revolutions, and the Betrayal that Divided a Nation: Thomas Jefferson, Thaddeus Kosciuszko, and Agrippa Hull
Friends of Liberty tells the remarkable story of three men whose lives were braided together by issues of liberty and race that fueled revolutions across two continents. Thomas Jefferson wrote the founding documents of the United States. Thaddeus Kosciuszko was a hero of the American Revolution and later led a spectacular but failed uprising in Poland, his homeland. Agrippa Hull, a freeborn black New Englander, volunteered at eighteen to join the Continental Army. During the Revolution, Hull served Kosciuszko as an orderly, and the two became fast friends. Kosciuszko’s abhorrence of bondage shaped histhinking about the oppression in his own land. When Kosciuszko returned to America in the 1790s, bearing the wounds of his
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Mumbet – Story of Elizabeth Freeman
Co-authors David Levinson and Emilie Piper discuss their new book “One Minute a Free Woman, Elizabeth Freeman and the Struggle For Freedom” at the Litchfield History Museum.
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Mum Bett a/k/a Elizabeth Freeman: Unsung Heroine of the Civil Rights Movement music & image enhanced feminist lyrical dissertation.
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The Berkshires Gone By – Episode 6 – The Outstanding MumBet
The life story of Bet, a slave woman, who would take hold of an idea that would change the course of history. This is an oral rendition of the story, but with great detail.
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How Elizabeth Freeman Helped End Slavery in the North
Author/historian Damon L. Fordham tells how Elizabeth Freeman became free and helped to end slavery in the Northern United States. Read James Oliver Horton’s book “Slavery and the Making of America” and Darlene Clark Hine’s “The African American Odyssey” for further details. Filmed in Mt. Pleasant, SC, August 8, 2015. Mr. Fordham is available for speaking engagements.
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MUM BET
A detailed look at the life of Elizabeth “MumBet”, includes a great deal of information on music of the times and other interesting historical facts.
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It is difficult to understand why Elizabeth “Mumbet” Freeman could or would be overlooked in the pages of our history. We see a woman of outstanding character who while uneducated showed great intellect and faithfulness for what is just and right. She was much loved by the family that employed her and that is shown in the headstone they placed for her in the family cemetery. A woman deserving of respect and acknowledgement in American History!
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