Nathan Green (b. circa 1837 - d. ?)
MSA SC 5496-8459
Fled from Slavery, Queen Anne's County, Maryland 1857
Biography:
Nathan Green successfully escaped Queen Anne's County, Maryland at age twenty, when he fled with his parents, Christopher and Ann Maria Green. His father was owned by Clayton Wright, of Baltimore, but was frequently hired out to farmers on the rural Eastern Shore. Green was owned by James Pippin, a farmer who also held his mother in bondage.1 Pippin recorded eight black slaves in the 1850 Federal Census, several of which are males with ages that could match Nathan.2 Ann Maria Green contended that the family fled because of Pippin's repeated threats to sell the mother and son to Georgia. This situation had grown worse since Nathan's uncle, Perry Trusty, ran from the plantation earlier that year.3
Nathan and his parents managed to reach Philadelphia, an important Underground Railroad connecting point, especially for Eastern Shore slaves. Here, the family was assisted by African-American abolitionist and community leader William Still. They were forwarded to Ontario, Canada, settling in the St. Catharine's area that many former Maryland slaves had selected. The Greens are recorded in 1861 Census of Canada. This includes a 20 year old woman named Susan, unmentioned in their escape narrative, who may have been Nathan's love interest.4 Unfortunately, little else is known about Nathan Green's life in Canada, or if he chose to return to the United States as some fugitives eventually did.
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