slavery at shirley place

“Work was both the source of the slaves’ oppression and the seedbed of their liberation.”
— Philip Morgan, "Rethinking Early American Slavery"

William Shirley enslaved several Africans over the course of his life, and at least a few of them while living in the Shirley-Eustis House. We only know some of their names, but we can piece together small parts of their identities, relationships, and roles at Shirley Place based on surviving records. Click the topics below to learn more.

How we know what we know

Names and Identities

enslavement in the landscape

THomas scipio: ONE MAN’S Story