After Justice Frankfurter's rejection in 1960, she did get a clerkship that year from federal Judge Edmund Palmieri of the Southern District of … Oney (born c. 1773) was a dower slave, the daughter of Betty, a seamstress, and Andrew Judge, a white English tailor who was an indentured servant at Mount Vernon in the early 1770s. Jack’s.”27 This attempt was the last time Ona heard from her former owners, as Washington died shortly thereafter and “they never troubled me any more after he was gone.”28. In New Hampshire, she married a free black sailor named Jack Staines and had three children, who all died before her. Beginning in 1789, she worked as a personal servant t Thank you to Dr. Erica Armstrong Dunbar for her work on Ona Judge. It’s necessary to learn that people like George Washington, who are traditionally celebrated as American heroes, were … She has earned a salute during the month of February. A family member was perfect for this unsavory task that Washington wished to keep under the radar. Instead, “Card-playing and wine-drinking were the business at his parties; and he had more of such company Sundays than on any other day.”31 The newspapers included these arguments to criticize the institution of slavery and its many cruelties. A 22-year-old Ona Judge was on the run from the family of President George Washington when she stepped off a boat in New Hampshire in 1796. In these stanzas, the author takes poetic license with the story of Ona (Oney) Judge Staines, distorting and embellishing many facts. William Lee. Ona Judge was owned by the first In the 1700s and 1800s, many white people, including George Washington, believed that enslaved people were better off in slavery than free. Two 1840s Articles on Oney Judge We … White House Historian, This article is part of the Slavery in the President’s Neighborhood initiative. Washington, his family, and his enslaved workers lived in two different homes in New York City until the summer of 1790. For example, Christopher Sheels, Washington’s enslaved manservant received shoes once per year. Ona was often called Oney by the Washingtons, but later in life introduced herself as Ona, so we have followed her preference. Ona probably attended this church to hear Reverend Samuel Haven's sermons. ~ Ona Judge: The Slave Who Defied a President ~ On this date in 1848, one of the last living people enslaved by George Washington died. George Washington to Joseph Whipple, 28 November 1796. __ It’s always 1799 at Mount Vernon, where more than a million visitors annually see the property as it was just before Washington’s death, when his will famously freed all 123 of his slaves. Where did Ona Judge find the courage to run? In all, he should be remembered as a good horseman and companion who came to Washington’s aid throughout the whole Revolution. Ona Judge died on Feb. 25, 1848. A few years later, Ona gave birth to a second daughter, Nancy, and then a son. Making Connections in the President's Neighborhood, Pulling Back the Curtain on the Executive Mansion, Lindsay M. Chervinsky Advertisement for Runaway Oney Judge. : The Colonial Williamsburg Official History & Citizenship Site", George Washington's correspondence with Joseph Whipple, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Oney_Judge&oldid=1006829700, CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown, Wikipedia articles with WORLDCATID identifiers, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, Eliza Staines (born 1798, died February 14, 1832, New Hampshire, no known offspring), Will Staines (born 1801, death date & location unknown, no known offspring), Nancy Staines (born 1802, died February 11, 1833, New Hampshire, no known offspring), This page was last edited on 15 February 2021, at 01:08. Benjamin Chase. Ona likely made her way out of Philadelphia immediately to avoid being recognized by Washington’s contemporaries.14 In one of her later interviews, she revealed that she had escaped on a vessel commanded by Captain John Bowles, who left Philadelphia and eventually made his way to Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Site Index. Ona Judge did what no one else could do: she beat the president. While Ona lived in Virginia, she was surrounded by several family members. If he died before she did, a wife was entitled to one-third of his estate, also known as a “widow’s third” or a “dower share,” throughout the remainder of her life. When Ona Judge Staines was very old, an abolitionist reporter asked if she regretted giving up her easy life with the Washingtons for a life of hardship in New Hampshire. Her daughters died in the early 1830s, and Judge Staines lived her final years in Greenland as a pauper. Judge Judy Death | Passed Away. Ona probably lived with Betty in a small cabin near the mansion house, completing simple chores, helping her mother with easy tasks in their cabin, or playing unsupervised with other enslaved children.2 When Ona was twelve, Martha brought her into the mansion house to begin her official training as a housemaid. In 1796, Ona escaped to New Hampshire, where she lived until her 1848 death. For example, in June 1792, she attended the theater; in April 1793, she saw “tumbling feats” (probably acrobats); and in June 1793 she went to the traveling circus.5 Click here to learn more about the enslaved households of President George Washington. Judge was born about 1773 at Mount Vernon, the estate of George Washington and his family. Because of the Fugitive Slave Act of 1793 which Washington signed into law in Philadelphia (probably in his private office barely a dozen feet from where Oney slept), she lived the rest of her life as a fugitive. There is now living in the borders of the town of Greenland, N.H., a runaway slave of Gen. Washington, at present supported by the County of Rockingham. Hercules. Thousands of Images covering the History of the White House, Official White House Ornaments, Books & More, "Running from the Temple of Liberty": The Pearl…, https://www.mountvernon.org/george-washington/slavery/slavery-database/, https://founders.archives.gov/?q=Correspondent%3A%22Washington%2C%20George%22%20Correspondent%3A%22Whipple%2C%20Joseph%22&s=1111311111&r=2. Fearing that Washington’s men were closing in on her, Judge would flee in 1799 to the home of a free black family, Phillis and John Jacks, where she remained until she died in 1848. “Runaway Advertisement,” Frederick Kitt, Philadelphia, 24 May 1796. What are some interesting facts about presidents and first ladies? She had a half-brother, Austin, born before 1757 (father unknown); a half-brother Tom Davis and a half-sister Be… Judge, who was born into slavery and served Martha Washington for most of her young life, had slipped away from the president’s official residence when the capital was in Philadelphia and boarded a ship as the … But Ona certainly met her father and likely had some relationship with him given his extended stay, which was not always the case for enslaved children. In 1789, the new federal government was located in New York City. Ona Judge Staines died on Feb. 25, 1848. Ownership of Oney Judge and her three children now passed to relatives on Martha’s side of the family, but there’s no evidence that they ever tried to reclaim Judge under the Fugitive Slave Act. Oney Judge (ca. Condolences are tributes are been shared across different social media timeline of the death of Judge. By 1816, her son had left home to become a sailor and her teenage daughters were forced into indentured servitude. Ona Judge Staines died in Greenland, New Hampshire on February 25, 1848. Published in The Liberator in 1846. 248-50.. As one interviewer noted: “When asked if she is not sorry she left Washington, as she has labored so much harder since, than before, her reply is, ‘No, I am free, and have, I trust been made a child of God by the means.’” 19 Ona Judge Staines died in 1848. Reinhardt, a liberal champion who was appointed to the bench by President Carter in 1980, died of … Each state was working it out differently," Dunbar said. Though Judge was predominantly of European heritage, she was born into slavery under the premise of partus sequitur ventrem. Oney Judge was the enslaved personal attendant of Martha Custis Washington when she ran away from the President's House in Philadelphia in 1796. On October 4, 1796, Whipple wrote to Wolcott that he had failed to secure Ona. While she was likely grateful for the work, it was a change from the needlework and tending to Martha’s needs. Ona/Oney Judge was, like her mother, a talented seamstress. Jack died or disappeared in 1803, leaving Ona Judge Staines impoverished with three children, all of whom she outlived. Frustrated, Washington wrote directly to Whipple asking him to return Ona by force.19 A quiet abolitionist, Whipple was deeply uncomfortable with this sort of violence. October 21, 2019, Next He told his friends that he was looking for a good maidservant to help his wife. In 1803, Jack Staines died and Ona moved in with the Jack family to share household expenses. Because enslaved people were denied the right of literacy, as a... What is it like to live at the White House? As late as 1795 she wrote to her niece, who was upset that a young enslaved child had died, ... Martha actively tried to recapture her enslaved maid Ona Judge after Judge ran away in Philadelphia. She has earned a salute during the month of February. Letter to the editor, The Liberator, January 1, 1847..As quoted in Slave Testimony, Two Centuries of Letters, Speeches, Interviews, and Autobiographies, John W. Blassingame, ed. Oney Judge (ca. Stunned by Ona’s lack of cooperation, he returned to Langdon’s house to regroup. PORTSMOUTH, N.H. — Stepping off a boat in a New Hampshire port in 1796, 22-year-old Ona Judge was on the run from the family of President George Washington. Either way, she quickly discovered his purpose for traveling to Portsmouth. ... Ona Judge was born at Mount Vernon around 1773 and was an enslaved servant of Martha Washington, wife of the country’s first president. Ona Lukoszaite. She also secured work as a domestic servant. “But decades before them, Ona Judge did this. Whenever possible, this article uses Ona’s words to tell her remarkable story. Oney “Ona” Judge was another enslaved person of George Washington who escaped from Mount Vernon. Ona’s calculations changed after March 21, 1796, when Eliza Custis, Martha’s granddaughter, married Thomas Law. Friends and families of the deceased are broken by the passing of their beloved one who has just died. She has many changes of good clothes, of all sorts, but they are not sufficiently recollected to be described.11, The advertisement also listed a $10 reward for her capture and return, and conveyed the Washingtons’ shock and outrage that Ona would escape: “As there was no suspicion of her going off nor no provocation to do so, it is not easy to conjecture whither she has gone, or fully, what her design is.”12 Of course, it never occurred to the Washingtons that enslavement served as plenty of provocation for Ona to escape. This property included both land and the humans owned by the Custises—one of whom was Betty, Ona’s mother. Yet, he remained in the area until at least 1784, when Washington loaned him £12. Joe. Her friends in the free black community had already carried her belongings to the port and they were waiting for her when she arrived at the docks.10 Two days later, Frederick Kitt, Washington’s steward, placed an advertisement in the Philadelphia Gazette chronicling the details of Ona’s escape: Absconded from the household of the President of the United States. 32 . But New York City, and then Philadelphia, offered new opportunities.4 Ona encountered a sizable free African-American community for the first time, saw interesting sights, tasted different foods, and met new people. Martha also left one enslaved man, Elish (or Elijah), whom she could have legally freed, to her grandson in an addendum to her will. Accordingly, Tobias Lear, Washington’s household manager, documented regular purchases of textiles for dresses, bonnets, stockings, and shoes for Ona. PORTSMOUTH, N.H. (AP) — Stepping off a boat in a New Hampshire port in 1796, 22-year-old Ona Judge was on the run from the family of President George Washington. The NNA organization says Cantley died Tuesday in hospital in Oakville, Ont., after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer last month. Where did Ona Judge find the courage to run? Staines was a sailor and although the pay was decent, it was sporadic and seasonal. Governor John Langdon’s Home in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Ona Judge’s determination to escape slavery eclipsed any regret over leaving. Continue reading the main story. Advertisement. PORTSMOUTH, N.H. (AP) — Stepping off a boat in a New Hampshire port in 1796, 22-year-old Ona Judge was on the run from the family of President George Washington. He complained that they were unreliable and lazy, yet George seemed to like and trust Andrew. But when Whipple arrived at the docks to ensure Ona boarded the ship at the agreed upon time, she never arrived.18. (Baton Rouge and London: Louisiana State University Press, 1977), pp. Her daughters died in the early 1830s, and Judge Staines lived her final years in Greenland as a pauper. When Ona opened the door, perhaps with her one-year-old daughter, Eliza, in her arms, she may have recognized him from her time at Mount Vernon. At sixteen, Ona may have been growing still and she may have outgrown her earlier shoes. Advertisement for Runaway Oney Judge. He was executive secretary of the awards. Nancy 1802-1833 hand maiden & personal servant of Martha Dandridge Washington She'll speak at the Central Library of the Free Library on Feb. 23. Judge had just learned that Mrs. Washington planned to bequeath her to Eliza Custis Law, Mrs. Washington's granddaughter. Tobias Lear Account Books, Philadelphia Household Accounts, 1789-1797. In the 1830s, both of Ona’s daughters also passed away and she became increasingly involved in her church community and perhaps the abolitionist movement.29 In late 1845 and early 1846, Ona gave two interviews to abolitionist newspapers in New Hampshire. In her interviews fifty years later, Ona referred to John Langdon as Governor. Jerry Bishop, the Los Angeles radio host famous for announcing “Judge Judy," has died at age 84. That’s just 10 names of the more than 300 people enslaved by George and Martha Washington… OAKVILLE Bryan Cantley, a long-time ONA judge, and former reporter and editor who oversaw the National Newspaper Awards for many years, has died. Having been born into slavery, Judge … The Ona Judge tour ends in Portsmouth but Judge's story continued onto the neighboring town of Greenland. "Running from the Temple of Liberty": The Pearl…. Whipple owed his position to the Washington administration, so he reluctantly agreed to help send Ona back to Mount Vernon. Oney Judge, a light mulatto girl, much freckled, with very black eyes and bushy black hair, she is of middle stature, slender, and delicately, about 20 years of age. He was 66. However, Landgon’s family had freed their slaves and rehired them as paid workers, even if they didn’t consider themselves abolitionists.25 Langdon “entertained Bassett very handsomely, and in the meantime sent word to Mrs. [Ona] Staines to leave town before twelve o’clock at night.”26 Upon receiving the message, Ona hired a horse and carriage to take her to Greenland, New Hampshire, where she hid in safety at “Mr. 1846 interview with Ona Judge Staines. Considered the last “Founding Father” president, James Monroe was born in 1758 into an affluent, slave owning family in Westmoreland County, Virg... Andrew Johnson’s close association with Abraham Lincoln, as both his vice president and his successor, often disguises Johnson’s own... Uncovering the lives of enslaved people poses many challenges. 1846 interview with Ona Judge Staines. Six years after Ona was born, Betty gave birth to another daughter, Delphy.3. Ona, on the other hand, said “she did not want to be a slave always, and she supposed if she went back to Virginia, she should never have a chance to escape.”13. The shoe purchases are especially telling. Ona died on February 25, 1848, in Greenland, New Hampshire as a free woman.32. Ona also accompanied Martha on her social visits and attended to the first lady’s needs at home. Austin , about fifteen years Oney's senior, would have been her half-brother. Many decades later, when all of her family members had died, Ona gave two interviews about her life and escape to freedom. Ona took the opportunity to share her thoughts on the institution of slavery, proclaiming, “that she never received the least mental or moral instruction, of any kind, while she remained in Washington’s family.”30 She also criticized the Washingtons’ piety, saying she never saw or heard any indication of “piety and prayers” while she was enslaved. Additionally, if women’s shoes wore out more quickly than men’s shoes, Ona may have needed more pairs than the enslaved coachmen or postilions. Finally, Ona may have worried about Law’s questionable reputation. It’s because of the deep teaching moments embedded in Ona Judge's powerful story that I suspect this book will soon become required reading in schools—if so, my kids will be happy. When a reporter asked why she chose that moment to escape, Ona said “she was determined never to be her slave,” referring to Eliza Custis.8 Eliza had earned a reputation among the enslaved women for being highly volatile and erratic—dangerous qualities in a slave owner. Judge’s mother was among the 285 slaves held by Martha Washington’s first husband, Daniel Parke Custis, who died intestate, leaving her a “dower share” and lifetime use of his estate, although without the right to sell or free her slaves. Few enslaved workers left written records, let alone participated in interviews with reporters. Jerry Bishop, famed announcer for the television show "Judge Judy," died on Tuesday at age 84. After her marriage to George Washington in 1759, the dower slaves came with her to Mount Vernon, including Betty. Martha announced that she planned to give Ona to Eliza as a wedding present, separating Ona from her family and the life she knew in Philadelphia and at Mount Vernon. I'm not going back and let me freedom after they died and mister knew that couldn't happen so he left her premises went back to Philadelphia and told the president that he is not able to retrieve owner Mister President. After the elder Mr Jack died, Rockingham Co NH donated firewood and other supplies to Oney & the Jack sisters, by then too old to work. When Martha brought Ona to the President’s House, Ona left her family for the first time. Ona Judge was an incredibly brave woman who had a difficult life, but did whatever she could to protect her freedom and that of her children. The Ona Judge tour ends in Portsmouth but Judge’s story continued onto the neighboring town of Greenland. It was common practice for slave owners to give their enslaved workers nicknames that ended in”y” to subtly infantilize adult men and women. Justices Who Died in Office Before Chief Justice Rehnquist's death in 2013, the last Justice to die in office was Justice Jackson. Ona Judge. Josh Blackman | 9.18.2020 9:50 PM Looking for a means to escape, Ona agreed to meet Whipple at the docks and return to Virginia. This article would not be possible without her scholarship. Her mother, Betty, was an enslaved mulatto, and her father, Andrew Judge, was a white English tailor working as an indentured servant at Mount Vernon. After she fell into a fearful silence, Whipple confessed that he had received instructions from President Washington, but that he was eager to help her and would try and negotiate her eventual manumission. The Ona Judge tour ends in Portsmouth but Judge’s story continued onto Greenland. For example, she was older than age fifteen at the time of her escape, gave birth to several children, and Eliza died many years before her mother -- just to name a few distortions. Tobias Lear Account Books, June 6, 1792; April 1, 1793; June 24, 1793. Ona Judge was born around 1773. Yet, Judge legally remained a fugitive slave until her death in 1848. I have recently made a visit to one of Gen. … Ona worked as Martha’s enslaved housemaid for the next seven years before running away. Fearing that Washington’s men were closing in on her, Judge would flee in 1799 to the home of a free black family, Phillis and John Jacks, where she remained until she died in 1848. She walked out of the house and quickly rushed to safety. She became Martha Washington's personal maid as a teenager. Letter to the editor, The Liberator, January 1, 1847..As quoted in Slave Testimony, Two Centuries of Letters, Speeches, Interviews, and Autobiographies, John W. Blassingame, ed. "Interview with A Slave of George Washington." First, while still in office, he sent a letter through Secretary of the Treasury Oliver Wolcott, Jr. to Joseph Whipple, Portsmouth’s collector of customs. But she lived as a Explore the Timeline. Upon arriving in Portsmouth, Bassett made himself comfortable at Senator John Langdon’s home.21 Bassett then went to the Staines’s house and knocked on the door. He was 87. Fearing that Washington’s men were closing in on her, Judge … Author Erica Armstrong Dunbar states: “She lived as a fugitive for the entirety of her life. This article would not be possible without her scholarship. It must have been incredibly scary for sixteen-year-old Ona to travel to New York City, a place she had never visited before. Oney "Ona" Judge (c.1773—February 25, 1848) – known as Oney Judge Staines after marriage, was an enslaved African-American servant on George Washington's plantation, Mount Vernon, in Virginia. Read more. Unlike Washington’s other enslaved servants in Philadelphia, Ona received new shoes several times per year while working in the President’s House.6 Perhaps Ona wore out her shoes while accompanying Martha on her visits. In April 1774, one of Martha Washington’s enslaved housemaids, Betty, gave birth at Mount Vernon to a daughter named Ona Judge.1 Ona’s father was Andrew Judge, a white indentured servant who was employed on the estate. 12 people found this helpful. 1773–1848) Contributed by Brendan Wolfe. Thank you to Dr. Erica Armstrong Dunbar for her work on Ona Judge. A skilled seamstress, Ona Judge … Judge didn’t take any chances, though. "Following Ona from the South to the North, we see that there's no straight line to freedom. Jack died six years into their marriage, leaving her with three small children. Bassett insisted Ona return to Virginia and “used all the persuasion he could” but Ona “utterly refused to go with him.”22 He even promised that the Washingtons would free her once she returned to Virginia, to which she replied “I am free now, and choose to remain so.”23, As an elite white southerner, Bassett was accustomed to African Americans obeying his every command. He recommended that Washington secure a lawyer’s services and direct future letters to “the Attorney of the United States in New Hampshire.”20, With Whipple unwilling to assist further, Washington turned to Burwell Bassett Jr., Martha Washington’s nephew. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died on Friday due to complications of metastatic pancreas cancer, the court announced. "She was never free; she was simply never caught. Joseph Whipple to Oliver Wolcott, Jr., 4 October 1796, Dunbar. Never Caught, the Story of Ona Judge CHAPTER ONE AMERICA’S DAUGHTER ONA’S STORY BEGINS IN VIRGINIA around 1773, when the United States is not yet the United States, and slavery is considered acceptable by many of the white people who live in what comprises the first thirteen colonies. Paul Jennings was born in 1799 at Montpelier, the Virginia estate of James and Dolley Madison. 248-50.. In November 1790, they moved into a new house in Philadelphia when the government relocated. They believed they had treated her like a daughter and felt betrayed by her departure. Never Caught, the Story of Ona Judge CHAPTER ONE AMERICA’S DAUGHTER ONA’S STORY BEGINS IN VIRGINIA around 1773, when the United States is not yet the United States, and slavery is considered acceptable by many of the white people who live in what comprises the first thirteen colonies. Benjamin Chase. How many weddings have been held at the White House? Ona Judge died on Feb. 25, 1848. Andrew Judge’s indentured servitude ended in 1776, but he worked for Washington until 1781. d/o Andrew Judge & "Betty the Slave" married, Jack Staines Jan 1797 children: Eliza 1798-1832 Will 1801-left NH never to return. While the records of her son’s life are inconclusive, it’s possible his name was William and he followed in his father’s footsteps and became a sailor. “Whilst they were packing up to go to Virginia, I was packing to go, I didn’t know where; for I knew that … On May 21, 1796, enslaved maid Ona Judge seized her freedom from the President's House in Philadelphia while George and Martha Washington ate dinner. The Ona Judge tour ends in Portsmouth but Judge’s story continued onto the neighboring town of Greenland. Runaway advertisement requesting the return of Ona Judge. Another, more insidious possibility also exists. Ona Judge. She was 87. Ona learned of the inquiry and met with Whipple to discuss the position. I want people to know her story.” The tale of Judge’s escape begins when she escaped in the middle of a presidential dinner after learning that Martha Washington was going to give her to Washington’s granddaughter. Ona Maria Staines (Judge) Born: circa 1773 at Mount Vernon, in Virginia. Andrew Judge, Ona’s father, was also an expert at sewing. She continued in this role until 1789, when she traveled with Martha to the President’s House in New York City. The Ona Judge tour ends in Portsmouth but Judge's story continued onto Greenland. In the afternoon of Saturday, May 21, 1796, Ona slipped out of the house while the Washingtons enjoyed their dinner. When Daniel died, his property was split three ways between Martha and their children. Born about 1773 at Mount Vernon, Judge began laboring in the mansion when she was ten years old. At some point during the spring of 1796, Ona made contact with members of the free black community that would facilitate her escape. Market Square in Portsmouth, New Hampshire in 1853. Her mother, Betty, was a “dower slave,” part of the estate of Martha’s first husband; her father, Andrew Judge… Paris. ... before she died in May 1802. Irony is the way to pre-teen hearts, and Dunbar and Van Cleve allow them to find plenty of it here. Ona died on February 25, 1848, in Greenland, New Hampshire as a free woman. She quickly became suspicious, however, when Whipple began asking personal questions to verify her identity—the type of questions that would be unusual in a job interview. Washington made … George Washington died a few months later, on December 14, 1799; Martha Washington followed in May 1802. She revealed, “I never told his name till after he died, a few years since, les they should punish him for bringing me away.”15, Once she arrived in Portsmouth, Ona found lodging with a free African-American family. Christopher Sheels. In 1796, Martha Washington decided to give Ona as a wedding present to her granddaughter—but Ona made her escape by ship to Portsmouth, New Hampshire, setting up years of attempts by allies of Washington to return Ona to slavery. She probably did the laundry, cooked meals, scrubbed floors, and cleaned the home—all physically demanding labor.16 In January 1797, she married a free man named Jack Staines and they moved into their own home.