Albemarle Tradewinds August 2015 Web Final

MANUEL, the Outlaw
by Wanda E. Hunt McLean
wehunt@roadrunner.com
Slaves usually escaped for the same basic reasons. One reason was to re-unite with a family member. Slave owners who realized this did everything within
their power to keep slave family units together on the plantation.
In 1833 in the Elizabeth City Star and Eastern Intelligencer, a $200 reward was posted for EVE and SALL who escaped with the assistance of a slave
named MANUEL. Manuel was considered “an outlaw among Pasquotank planters and earned great notoriety among the planters in the 1830s for
helping slaves escape and for harboring them.” (Cecelski, 129) Manuel decided that he wanted his wife back, Eve, who was presently living on a
plantation in Hertford, Perquimans County. He also decided to help an old slave name GEORGE kidnap his wife SALL from the same plantation. In the
past both men were known for visiting their wives often and returning to their plantation in Pasquotank.
As I noted, Manuel was known for harboring the slaves he snatched. How did he manage to do such, you ask? He managed “with the assistance of white
persons at or near Elizabeth City,” and once the two women were settled in the same location they were placed “under the protection of that noted villain
Manuel and his brothers.” (Parker, 752) It was rumored that they were planning to board a vessel on the Pasquotank River and travel on to New Orleans.
Manuel was able to do this because he had assistance and cooperation from other people who knew that this country’s institution of slavery was wrong.
White people somewhere in Elizabeth City hid the slaves he rescued, and his brothers assisted by protecting them until they could safely continue their
escape on the Pasquotank River. This demonstrates how people of different colors and backgrounds came together to help other people gain their freedom.
People who realized the cruelty of slavery put everything they owned and worked for at risk to help others live as free human beings.
One reason slaves escaped was because their family members were often sold to another plantation. Mothers were separated from children, husbands and
wives were separated, etc., and many slaves did not adjust to leaving the plantations where they were born and raised. Truancy or absenteeism was
common among the slaves because they often left the plantation for a weekend up to several weeks to visit a family member on another plantation without
permission from the slave owner. The slave usually returned to his or her plantation with little or no consequences. In many situations the slaves did not
return as demonstrated by Eve and Sall. The ad does not specify, but Manuel and George probably left with them.
This slave runaway ad like thousands of others posted in North Carolina also demonstrates the importance of the State’s numerous waterways. Many of our
rivers reach hundreds of miles from the Atlantic Ocean or Sounds into the State. These rivers also have many creeks that branch off. Considering the
commerce that depended on our waterways and the large number of slaves and free blacks working in commerce, it’s no wonder that slaves were able to
escape or assist others to escape. There is no mention in the ad that Manuel was adept in navigation or steering vessels. However, he probably had the
assistance from a ship captain traveling through Elizabeth City on the Pasquotank River, or the assistance of black men who worked on a vessel. With
Manuel in charge, they probably successfully reached their destination.
The Elizabeth City-Pasquotank
County Senior Center
“Serving the Young at Heart, Adults 55 or
Older”
The Senior Center offers a wide variety of
exciting programs, trips and activities for the
senior citizens of Elizabeth City and Pasquotank
County. We strive to create a “family”
atmosphere that promotes social, mental, physical
and emotional overall well-being.
Lauren Turner
Senior Center Coordinator
turnerlauren07@gmail.com
Phone: (252)337-6661 or
(252)337-6662
Credit Card
Multi Tool
$2.00 Handy credit card sized multi
tool does 13 things! Available at
River City Computers
252-562-0987
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22 Albemarle Tradewinds August 2015
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