As New England residents, the stories we hear about slavery in our region tend to focus on abolitionists and the Underground Railroad. For the last three years, Country School 8th Graders have set out to tell a more complete and truthful narrative. Working with Dennis Culliton, co-founder and executive director of the Witness Stones Project, they have researched documents buried in local archives, seeking to restore the history and honor the humanity of the enslaved individuals who helped build our small Connecticut town. Following the model of the Stolpersteine Project in Germany, which has installed thousands of brass plaques to honor Jews and others who lost their lives during the Holocaust, their work culminates with the installation of a permanent brass marker to commemorate — and to invite the public to remember — these enslaved individuals whose stories and contributions had been effectively erased from the collective memory.
During the first year of the project, members of the class of 2020 focused on a woman named Lettuce Bailey, who was enslaved for much of her life by the minister of the Congregational Church in East Guilford, known today as Madison. While poring through documents extracted from local archives, students managed to identify some of the milestones in her life and then piece together the evidence so they could write biographical narratives. After a workshop with poet and educator Jumoke McDufieThurmond, whose collection, Recipe for Resurrection, was inspired by archival research into his enslaved ancestors, they also opted to write poetry. At the conclusion of the project, a Witness Stones marker was installed on the green in front of the church where Jonathan Todd, the minister who enslaved her, served as pastor. Two hundred years after her death, the marker invites all passersby to honor Lettuce Bailey’s memory, and her biographical narrative and poetry inspired by it are collected in a book called Searching for Lettuce Bailey.
During the 2020-21 school year, a second group of 8th Graders sought to restore the history and honor the humanity of Lettuce Bailey’s mother, Tamar, whose journey began around 1744 in West Africa and ended with her death in Madison in 1816. Using the same methodology, the project for Tamar concluded with the placement of a brass marker in front of the Congregational Church alongside her daughter’s. A biography and student artwork and poetry inspired by their research is collected in Searching for Tamar, Finding Ourselves.
In year three, members of the class of 2022 turned their attention to a man named Theophilus Niger, who was enslaved for much of his life on the outskirts of town and yet managed to build a family and amass property he could pass on to them. Some of his descendants served in the Revolutionary War, some became small business owners, and one became a Black voting rights activist. In the ensuing pages, you will find a biography based on student research as well as poetry, artwork, and a musical composition inspired
by their discoveries. You will also find excerpts from some of the speeches delivered at their Witness Stones installation ceremony. Together, these elements tell an inspiring story of persistence, resilience, and agency.
During the first year of Witness Stones at The Country School, members of the class of 2020 were guided by the spirit of Sankofa, the Asante Adinkra symbol used by the Witness Stones Project for its logo. Translated from the Twi, Sankofa’s motto effectively means “It is not wrong to go back for that which you have forgotten.” In other words, the past serves as a guide for the future, and we must examine it as we move forward.
While the spirit of Sankofa continued to inform students’ work the next year, members of the class of 2021 selected a different symbol to represent their project: Ubuntu Commonly translated from the Zulu as “I am because you are,” the more complete definition is: “A person is a person through other people.” In the context of Witness Stones, Ubuntu underscores the ways in which we are all connected to each other and to this history.
Kojo Baiden, the symbol selected in year three by the class of 2022, expands upon both notions. An Adinkra symbol representing an all-seeing eye, it is understood to symbolize the cosmos or omnipresence. For the members of the class of 2022, who sought to truly “see” Theophilus Niger and feel his presence on this land, Kojo Baiden felt particularly appropriate.
Like the two previous Country School Witness Stones books, Searching for Theophilus, Uncovering a Legacy seeks to tell the story and celebrate the legacy of a single individual. At the same time, it also sheds light on a much larger story: the long-ignored history of slavery in Connecticut and its ongoing legacy. Theophilus Niger, Lettuce Bailey, and Tamar made vital contributions in the 18th century. The institution of slavery also left a deep mark. In the spirit of Sankofa, Ubuntu, and Kojo Baiden, we share this story in the hopes that a truthful, clear-eyed understanding of our shared past can guide us all toward a better shared future.
The Witness Stones Project begins with an exploration of the history of enslavement in Connecticut, showing how great wealth was amassed through engagement with the West Indies trade. Students learn how local farmers and small business people became provisioners to support agricultural slavery on the sugar islands, how some locals actively engaged in the slave trade and how many became enslavers themselves. They also learn about the impact and importance of the thousands of people of African descent who— whether forced or willingly—contributed to the creation of the Connecticut we know today.
After exploring the broader story of enslavement in Connecticut, the focus becomes specific, with students setting out to research one particular individual who was enslaved in their town. They are given access to primary and, when available, to secondary source documents related to the person they are researching. Mostly found in local archives, these documents might include wills, ledgers, bills of sale, birth, death, and marriage records, and probate court inventories as well as recorded family stories or histories that have been passed down through generations. As they explore these documents, students are asked to consider how each one relates to the five themes of enslavement as identified by the Witness Stones Project: dehumanization, paternalism, the economics of slavery, treatment of the enslaved, and agency and resistance.
This year, before examining documents related to Theophilus Niger’s life, students also explored the physical landscape he would have known during his lifetime. During a class trip to Horse Pond, across the street from where Theophilus Niger lived in enslavement and later in freedom, poet and educator Jumoke McDufie-Thurmond asked students to use all their senses to try to see, hear, and feel the lives that had been lived in that particular space. This notion of attempting to “see” Theophilus Niger was reinforced during a poetry workshop with Mr. McDufie-Thurmond and in a session with professional storyteller Laconia Therrio, who believes in the power of stories to build, connect, and allow us to see one another. It was also mirrored each day in the history classroom, as teacher Will McDonough greeted students at the start of class with the salutation, “Sawubona.” A Zulu term, Sawubona means “I see you”. “Ngikona,” students would respond, meaning “I am here.”
The following pages are our attempt at enabling the rest of the world to “see” Theophilus Niger. As we do so, it’s important to remember that, in fact, he has been here all along. Most of us just didn’t know it.
As we began to explore documents found in local archives, two of the first things that struck us was how Theophilus Niger’s name appeared to change over time and the dehumanizing language used to describe him in the “oficial” records. Prior to records related to his death, no surname is listed anywhere. Instead, we only see the name Theophilus, sometimes accompanied by a descriptor such as “negro” or “my negro servant.” These details led to conversations about whose viewpoint the records reflect and what the word choice suggests about the relationship between the record keepers and the person being recorded. We also discussed what details were included in the record, what was left out, and why that might be. When we finally found a surname, a few questions came to mind. Did he have one all along? If so, why wasn’t it deemed important to include? If not, why not? Note that although he was not listed with a surname until the final documents in the archives, we chose to refer to him as Theophilus Niger or Mr. Niger out of respect.
Editor’s Note: After spending weeks collectively researching documents, students worked individually to piece together a biographical narrative reflecting Theophilus Niger’s life story. What follows is a composite of our sketches. A list of resources used in our research can be found at the end of this book. Like all histories, elements of this narrative are likely to change as more details emerge. We welcome new information; please reach out to alumni@thecountryschool.org if you have something to add.
When you think of the first event in anyone's life, you generally think of their date and place of birth. Unfortunately, with many enslaved people, those details were not recorded (or at least they are not a part of the archived records), and that is the case with Theophilus Niger. Likewise, we do not know whether he was born in Africa, the West Indies, or the New England colonies, nor do we know if Theophilus was the name his parents gave him at birth. (If he was born in Africa, he almost certainly had a different name at the start of his life.) All we know for sure, based on the records we explored, is that he was enslaved for much of his life by Thomas and Abigail Hodgkin, who lived in the house at the intersection of Horse Pond and Wildcat roads. The house, dated 1745, stands in the same spot today.
The first record in which we see him listed by name is on an earmark registration found in Guilford town records. At the time, earmarks were required to identify the ownership of livestock in communal grazing areas. Dated 1739-1740, the registration includes a drawing and description of an earmark, accompanied by the name “Theophilus negro.” Given that we have found no other Theophilus of African descent in the town, we assume this refers to Theophilus Niger. We found it interesting that someone who was enslaved had a registered earmark, because it suggests that he owned at least one animal. Finding the earmark registration was also helpful in establishing that he was in town in the late 1730s, a period when there were relatively few enslaved individuals of African descent in Connecticut. (Records show the population of enslaved Africans in Connecticut in 1740 was 2,600; it would nearly double by 1770.)
The next place we found him listed by name was in records for the First Congregational Church of East Guilford, showing the marriage of “Theophilus ___, negro” to “Penelopy [sic.] Tantipen” on April 14, 1748. The minister who oficiated was Rev. Jonathan Todd, who some years later would become the enslaver of at least eight people, including Tamar and Lettuce Bailey, the mother and daughter who were researched by previous Country School 8th Graders. Church records do not say how old Theophilus Niger and Penelope Tantipen were at the time of their marriage. A few students researched the average age of marriage for a man in the mid-1700s and discovered it was 28. Taking that average into consideration, we surmised that Theophilus Niger was likely born sometime around 1720, a date we have used (with a circa) for his marker.
A few things to consider about the Niger-Tantipen marriage: We have found others living in the area who had the last name Tantipen, or something approximating it (spellings vary in the records), and they were all identified as Native American, some as Mohegan. For those reasons and others, we believe Penelope was Native American, and possibly Mohegan. We have found no evidence to suggest that she was ever enslaved, although some Indigenous individuals were, especially after the Pequot Wars. At the time, a law existed which held that the children would follow the condition of their mother. In other words, if the mother was enslaved, the children would be too. Because Penelope Tantipen appeared to be free, we believe the Niger children were as well.
Among the contemporary Tantipens listed in the archives was a woman named Ann Tantipen (or Tantapan), who lived in what is now Madison at the same time as Penelope Tantipen. She is identified as an “Indian” in a petition filed by the town of Guilford in 1837 in which town oficials sought to recoup the costs of her care toward the end of her life through the sale of some property her father had left her. We discovered a Nehemiah Tantipan (also spelled Tantepon) from the New London area who fought in King George’s War alongside a James Tantipan (or Tantepon) in the 1740s. They are listed in a document called Descendants of Monghaughwant and identified as Mohegan. Interestingly, we found church records indicating that a “Penelope, Indian” was baptized in Lyme in 1741, seven years prior to the NigerTantipen marriage. Baptized that same day in the same church was a “Nehemiah, Indian,” leading us to surmise that perhaps the Penelope and Nehemiah mentioned in the Lyme church records might be the same Penelope Tantipen and Nehemiah Tantipan (or Tantepon) we see elsewhere. We also came across a Philip Tantapinant, described as a Native American mariner, who is mentioned in court filings for the town of Lyme in 1735 after he failed to return to an indenture. Meanwhile, a Philip Tatapan is listed in a 1746 Library of Congress document titled “Appeal of the Mohegan Indians agst the Colony of Connecticut & Others.” There is also an Andrew Tantapan living among Mohegans in Montville in the mid-18th century, according to an 1857 book by William Allen. We see Andrew Tantapan again in Confirmation of Uncas’ Deed, a document in the Yale Digital Archives, and his seal can even be found in the Talcott Papers, a collection of the Connecticut Historical Society, where he is identified as Mohegan.
We do not know for certain whether Theophilus Niger was enslaved by Thomas and Abigail Hodgkin at the time of his wedding. We do know that the Hodgkins built their house at the intersection of Horse Pond and Wildcat in 1745. If he was living with them in the years before his marriage, it would not be surprising if he assisted in the house’s construction. Woodworking tools were among the items listed in Theophilus Niger’s inventory after he died, so we can assume he was at least familiar with basic construction materials and methods.
The notion that Theophilus Niger was handy with wood and tools is also interesting for another reason. In 2013, the Hodgkin house, now the home of Madison First Selectwoman Peggy Lyons and her family, was visited by an architectural historian who noted unusual markings on beams in the oldest part of the building. He described the markings as almost like “cardinal directions.” We Googled the term and saw something that looked like the face of a compass (or like a cross inside a circle). In other houses where enslaved people lived, including in Connecticut, symbols have been found carved on surfaces which might appear at first glance to look like the face of a compass. African art historians have identified those carvings as Bakongo cosmograms, symbols designed to allow connection with ancestors. The Lyons family kindly allowed a student to visit to see if she could find a marking that resembled a cosmogram. She didn’t (although there was a crawl space she wasn’t able to examine), but she did find other carvings on beams which resemble a backwards letter S, or perhaps a snake. One West African art expert told us that snakes have deep symbolic meaning in West and Central African belief systems. Is it possible that Theophilus Niger left a mark, perhaps in an attempt to connect with those who came before him and from whom he was separated not just by time but by an ocean?
Church records show that two years after their marriage, the Nigers’ first child, Philip, was born. He was followed by Phebe in 1752, Theophilus in 1755, Eliab in 1759, and William in 1760. They may also have had a daughter Ama, since her name appears in later documents, but we do not have an oficial birth year for her. Unfortunately, the same year William was born Penelope Tantipen died, and William died just a couple of weeks later. We wondered whether anything had occurred in 1760 that made the death of a mother and infant likely. One classmate discovered that in 1760, there was an outbreak of smallpox in Guilford, brought home by soldiers. She surmised that the disease may have killed both mother and child.
Throughout all this time and for at least a decade after his wife’s and son’s death, Theophilus Niger continued to be enslaved. We have found several documents indicating as much, including the first draft of Thomas Hodgkin’s will, written in 1751, in which he promised to leave two plots of land to “my negro man servant Theophilus.” At the time, “servant” was a euphemism for enslaved person; again, this language led to conversations about the mindsets of both the author and keeper of the record. Significantly, the will also promised his freedom after Mrs. Hodgkin died. Two years later, however, Thomas Hodgkin rewrote his will, taking one of the plots of land back and giving it to his nephew and neighbor, Jedediah Coe, instead. Interestingly, after Thomas Hodgkin’s death, Jedediah Coe gave Theophilus Niger a plot of land out of “consideration of the respect and goodwill I have for Theophilus, a man Negro and servant.” This action, and the language used and tone conveyed, made us wonder what might have occurred to make the nephew of his enslaver appear to be both respectful and generous.
Because we know from the Probate Court inventory after his death that Theophilus Niger left his children property and a house and barn, we believe that he and his family were able to live in their own house, perhaps even before he was freed. We also found a record from around the same time showing that Thomas Hodgkin’s widow, Abigail Hodgkin, joined Theophilus to sell land to Noah Scranton. We do not know why they would be selling land jointly and/or how it might connect to the gift from Jedediah Coe. However, the fact that he was owning and selling property as an enslaved person seemed significant and unusual, as did some of the language used to describe the exchanges. These developments led to lengthy classroom discussions about Theophilus Niger’s agency and his strength as an individual.
Abigail Hodgkin prepared her will on February 18, 1760, although she would not die for several more years. The will made no mention of freeing Theophilus. However, it did mention property she would be leaving him, and for the first time she did not identify him as a (or her) servant. Instead, she called him “Theophilus a negroe” [sic]. Could that mean he had been freed?
Finally, our question was answered. While searching land records late in the research process, we stumbled upon a record dated 1761. Filed in Guilford Town Hall property records under the last name Theophilus (which had made it dificult to find), four words jumped out at us. They were “Theophilus, a free negro.” These words appear in a
document in which he purchases land from Phineas Meigs. Yet again, it is interesting to see that he is buying land, but what is far more important is that it confirms what we had hardly dared to hope: By 1761 he was free.
Sadly, less than 10 years later, Theophilus Niger was gone. We do not have an exact date for his death, but Probate Court records show that on July 17, 1770, Jedediah Coe was named administrator of his estate, so his death must have occurred sometime before then. If our estimate about his birth year is correct, he would have been about 50 years old. In one probate record he is called “Toffee Negro,” while in another we see him listed as “Theophilus Niger.” As we have said, Niger is the name his children and subsequent generations would continue to use, so it is the surname we have included on his memorial marker and in this book.
In addition to showing us his surname for the first time, the Probate Court records give us some important clues as to how Theophilus Niger made his living, besides buying and selling property. For instance, along with a house, barn, and significant acreage with multiple uses (fields, orchards, and forests), the inventory includes farm animals, farming equipment, woodworking tools, and fishing equipment. Could this mean he made his living as a farmer? That perhaps he built houses? That he and his family fished in Horse Pond or the nearby Long Island Sound? Numerous household items and furniture are listed, along with extensive articles of clothing. A book and fiddle may indicate how the family spent any leisure time.
Curious about the name Niger, we researched its origins. The name of the main river in West Africa, the West African country Niger, and the root of the name for Niger’s neighbor, Nigeria, “Niger” as a name apparently stems from a Tamasheq phrase, Gher n-gheren, meaning “River among rivers.” Tamasheq is a variety of a Tuareg language spoken by nomadic tribes in North and West Africa. Could the name “Niger” have been a tribute to Theophilus Niger’s ancestral homeland?
The distribution of his estate, also reflected in Probate Court records, underscores the depth and breadth of Theophilus Niger’s holdings. Phillip received the house and barn with land surrounding it. Eliab and Theophilus Jr. also received expansive land holdings and they, too, would have houses. Phebe received valuable “sundry moveables” (household items), as did Ama. The fact that Theophilus Niger was able to leave so much to his children must have made a meaningful difference, both for them and for subsequent generations.
Knowing that he spent most of his life near Horse Pond, one classmate set out to find the house where the Niger family lived. He examined 18th century property records, which describe neighbors, landmarks, and distances between them in units of measurement such as acres and rods. Overlaying the archived descriptions and measurements with a modern-day aerial map, he thinks he identified the Niger family home. Viewable from Horse Pond when the leaves are off the trees, the suspected house is located in the woods behind the Hodgkin/Lyons and the Coe houses. If his thesis is correct, students likely saw the house when they stood by the pond at the start of the project and it will be visible from the site of his marker on Horse Pond at certain times of the year.
After their father’s death, Phillip and Theophilus Jr. served in the Revolutionary War, fighting for our country’s freedom. Records show Theophilus Jr.’s service included protecting the coastline from the British. Phillip may have traveled farther afield. Later records show Theophilus working at least for a time in the shipping industry. Like their father, Phillip, Theophilus Jr., and Eliab were also involved in the buying and selling of real estate. According to land records in the Guilford Town Hall, in 1779, Phillip, now living in Branford, sold land that had been given to his father by Thomas Hodgkin. In 1802, Eliab, still living in town, sold property to Julius Wilcox. After his death in 1805, his land was sold to Daniel Hand. Meanwhile, Theophilus Jr. is on record as having sold his property near Horse Pond to Richard Hart from Saybrook in 1809. In 1810, he and his wife, Submit, also sold property they owned in Killingworth.
We found Phillip living into his late 80s in Montville, which, based on some of the other Tantipen records we saw, may have been where his mother’s family originated. We were not able to learn more about Phebe or Ama Niger. This may be because women often took on their husband’s names, making it dificult to locate them in archives.
Theophilus Jr. and Submit moved to Saybrook, where church records show they lived with several children, many of whom were baptized in the church. Two of those children, Alfred and William, later moved to Providence, Rhode Island, where they became barbers and small business owners. In Saybrook land records, there is a document showing Alfred and William sold the family property in Saybrook in the 1850s. Based on the description, the property appears to have been in or near what is now known as North Cove, between the Connecticut River and Long Island Sound, land which today would carry a hefty price tag.
Seeking any history they could connect to the Nigers in Saybrook, two 8th Graders walked around town, visiting the Cypress Cemetery. They came back empty-handed, although one of the gravestones in the cemetery they visited was for a woman named Rose Jackson, who was enslaved by General William Hart. General Hart’s son, Richard, was the man who purchased property near Horse Pond from Theophilus Jr.
Editor’s Note: While putting this book together, we learned from a researcher that, in a codicil in his will, General Hart gave Theophilus Jr. property near his home in Saybrook, provided General Hart’s sons could continue to traverse the land to access “the meadow.” The General William Hart House, located on Main Street in Old Saybrook, is on the National Register of Historic Places and is open for guided tours.
Alfred Niger would go on to become a prominent Black voting rights activist in Rhode Island, helping to lead the only successful antebellum effort in the country to restore the vote to Black men and serving as an agent for William Lloyd Garrison’s abolitionist newspaper, The Liberator. According to writer/historian C.J. Martin, Alfred Niger also served as a delegate to the New England Anti-Slavery Society, which helped lead him and others to establish the Rhode Island Anti-Slavery Society. Many articles have been written about Alfred Niger, and he even has a Wikipedia page devoted to his history as an activist from Rhode Island. In The “Mustard Seed”: Providence’s Alfred Niger, Antebellum Black Voting Rights Activist, Martin sums up Alfred Niger’s life and legacy this way:
Alfred Niger died on August 25, 1862, and his funeral was held a few days later at his home on 28 Spring Street. Niger helped lead the Black community in Providence to conduct the only pre-Civil War movement in the United States to regain the right of Black men to vote, a monumental achievement that has only been given passing glances by historical scholarship. With the proliferation of histories of the abolition of slavery, of leaders in Black communities all across the country, and of the Black freedom struggle in general, the life and achievements of Alfred Niger deserve our attention.
Alfred Niger and his wife, Julia Anne Bowen Niger, had several children, including Alexander Petion Niger, whom they presumably named for Alexandre Petion, the first president of the Republic of Haiti, “signaling, undoubtedly, the pride he took in his Blackness,” as Martin wrote. Like his father, Alexander Petion Niger also recorded some firsts, becoming the first Black printer in Providence and serving as a founding member of a typographical union there. This entry from the book Printers and Printing in Providence, 1762-1907, highlights Alexander’s accomplishments (Alexander’s brother, Henry Niger, also a printer, is mentioned in the book as well):
ALEXANDER P. NIGER Died Providence Jan. 13, 1898, aged 68 years. He was the first man of color to work at printing in Providence and probably the first one to be admitted to any Typographical Union in the United States. His name appears
in the Directory of 1850 as working at 15 Market square, where the Daily Post was printed. Later he worked at 24 Westminster street, A. Crawford Greene's ofice. He was a charter member of Providence Union in 1857 and retained his membership until 1878, when the Union disbanded.
Alexander Niger built a successful business, ultimately amassing an estate that included a house near Brown University and property on Nantucket. While searching online records, students were excited to find photos of his house and his printing business.
So far we have not been able to find living descendants, but with or without stories of contemporary members of the family, it is easy to see the impact Theophilus Niger had on those who came after. As one classmate wrote in her biography, “Theophilus Niger left a legacy.” Speaking specifically about his grandson, Alfred Niger, she wrote that she imagines Theophilus would have taken “pride in his family and what they have accomplished” and that Alfred probably “thought about his grandfather,” who “wanted history to be different for his kids and his grandchildren. … He wanted Black people to vote and have the same rights as everyone else.”
For us, learning about Theophilus Niger and how he lived his life, was both inspiring and illuminating. That is an additional part of his rich legacy. We hope you agree.
Editor’s Note: Like the students who researched Lettuce Bailey and Tamar, members of the class of 2022 found that while a straightforward nonfiction account could restore Theophilus Niger’s history, it might not be fully capable of honoring his humanity. They had seen the possibilities inherent in a more creative treatment of archived material, thanks to Jumoke McDufie-Thurmond, when he shared work from Recipe for Resurrection, showing how through poetry, he was able to “conjure a creative space of reckoning, listening, remembering, and longing” while bearing “witness to the humanity of enslaved ancestors held within the documents of a dehumanizing archive.” After reading some of his poems, Mr. McDufie-Thurmond introduced techniques for writing in ways that would allow students to stay true to the archived material while also conveying some of the “unsayable” things held in those archives.
This second half of our book features poetry, visual art, photography, and a musical composition inspired by our research. Additional work, including artist statements and more creative pieces, can be found on the student Witness Stones website: https:// sites.google.com/view/tcs-witness-stones/2022-project. The poetry has been organized thematically into four sets: Unanswered Questions, Agency, Legacy, and the Vital Power of Stories and Language. The visual art and music follow.
The first collection of poetry centers around the questions we still had, even after scouring the archives for weeks. Among them: What allows a person who is enslaved, who is considered the property of someone else, to survive and even thrive? In the late 18th century, even after being emancipated, did formerly enslaved people ever really feel free? What was his legacy? Did he get justice? Was he happy? What did he think about and what and who did he love?
Do you know why he gave you land, Mr. Niger? Why you, Mr. Niger? He gave you land, Mr. Niger.
You were an enslaved person, It wasn’t normal to be given land. Though I do not know what you did to receive that land, You, sir, had an impact.
To make Mr. Coe, a white man, recognize you, Realize that you deserve more. And even though you were not free, he still gave you land.
That man valued you back then, even when it was abnormal For a white landowning man to give a gift to a black enslaved person. At the time, it was unheard of. You did something that changed that man, Mr. Niger.
He noticed you, Against everything that seemed typical, You changed him and everything around you.
You gave your children the gift of freedom You set your family free You were the bird that escaped its cage You were like a gazelle free to roam where you pleased.
These things you did, Mr. Niger, were not normal, You endured everything wonderful and lousy this country had to offer. Your grandson became a notable black voting rights activist. You caused that.
So I sit here today and ask you, sir, How do you feel? Are you happy for you and your family? Are you mad at all of the injustices? Did you feel free?
by Grace B.
But was he free?
Even if he left, could he forget?
As he left his legacy, were the chains pulling him down, metal glinting in the dark against skin, even as he kept his head up?
He was born around 1720, and enslaved later, but was he free?
He made his own life, married Penelope Tantipen, was the father of six kids, but was he free?
When they treated him as if he weren’t human, was he free?
When he was born around 1720, did he know?
Did he know he would be enslaved? Was he free?
When he was freed, was he really free?
Did he wonder what would happen once he died?
Did he ever wonder what free even was?
Did he wonder if it would go away? Or did he think his freedom was forever?
When we believe that he was freed, did he believe it too? Did he believe that he was free? But was he free?
What is a legacy? History is watching you With eyes bright as Caribbean sun.
Yet the people, The people before usTheophilus, Penelope, Theophilus jr.A family forgotten, Finally uncovered.
How long did it take To finally get justice?
Taken by Sam. R.
Theophilus Niger, 1728, Born of African heritage, Born a slave?
No education, Constant labor, No choice in participation, The only man he could trust was his neighbor.
East Guilford, Connecticut, The place he called home, But was it really his home?
I guess he'd never know, If it wasn’t for enslavement, Who would he be? Where would he be? What would he do if he had always been free?
Thomas and Abigail Hodgkin, His owners, The ones he labored endlessly for, Like a machine.
The ones who provided him with Property, Goods, And later, Would grant him his freedom.
But never will they grant him The past few years of his life back. The years he worked for them, As their servant,
A farmer.
Forcing tools into his hands, And putting him to work, Tending the crops, And the animals, Not by choice, Not by desire, But by order.
A path chosen for him, A path not chosen by him, A path he could not change, His Past. 1748, 274 years ago, Married
To Penelope Tantipen, A woman born of Mohegan heritage, A provider, with Theophilus, for their 6 children.
Penelope, Who died in 1760, The approximate year Theophilus was emancipated, 10 years before his passing.
Theophilus, Who died in 1770, Leaving his legacy behind, For us to honor.
Did he ever get to live happily? Was he ever treated equally?
Dedicated to Theophilus Niger
Born in 1720, Into enslavement. Or was it 1723, I guess we’ll never know. But what we do know, Is that like bark from a tree, His rights were stripped away from him, Just because of the color of his skin. He didn’t know why or how, And no one would tell him, either. This was life.
Just a young boy, Forced into the dry and rough fields. Heat rising, Energy and years to live, Sinking faster than a pebble in the ocean. A million days of non-stop work to be done. And what in return? Nothing, Nothing at all. This was life.
A man no different from everyone else, Except for the way he was treated. Bought and sold like property, Without documentation of his life, Except for a very few dates, When he was referred to as a “negro.” Besides his neighbor Jeddediah Coe, No one seemed to care about him, Or even tried to remember him. Life was nothing but a meaningless void, Sucking up every last bit of him,
Until he was forgotten. This was life, In the desolate and inhumane times of slavery, Where only white males had a voice.
Was he taught anything? We can’t be sure. But what we do know, Is that he learned to work endless hours, All day, Every day, Whether he wanted to or not.
Was he given some land? Or was he not? Was he given his indebted freedom? Or was he not? He already lived a life no one should ever have to live. Yet to come out with a wife and four children, Proves his strength. Proves his impact on the world, An impact that was not apparent during his enslavement. This was life.
This was life, For Theophilus Niger.
do you ever wonder what humans think about or why we are hated or put down or beaten till we are as slow as a turtle do you ever think about Slavery
slavery: slav·er·y /ˈslāv(ə)rē/ noun noun: slavery the state of being a slave. a condition compared to that of a slave in respect of exhausting labor or restricted freedom. when you fall asleep at night do you ever wonder who was Enslaved
i can answer about 1/10.7 million of that question Theophilus Niger was one of those Enslaved People i think about one that survived the never ending journey of Enslavement across the big black ocean i wonder what his favorite color was or what he cared the most about in his life or if he ever said “my dearest Penelope”
The next set of poems celebrate who Theophilus Niger was and what he managed to accomplish against all odds. In spite of being enslaved, being separated from his birth family, and perhaps enduring the Middle Passage, he made a life — for himself and for his family. Speaking to agency, the most important of the five themes of slavery (and also to its counterpoints — enslavement, capture, and the Middle Passage), these poems allow us to see and celebrate Theophilus Niger’s remarkable fortitude.
A man of many titles, Many identifying phrases, As it reads on the Witness Stone: “Enslaved here Married to Penelope Tantipen Father, neighbor, provider Farmer, land owner Emancipated c. 1760 Died 1770, leaving a legacy”
“Enslaved here,” in Guilford, by Thomas and Abigail Hodgkin. Labored in the heat, worked under the sun, sweated through his clothing, bled crimson blood, cried salty tears, longed for emancipation…
“Married to Penelope Tantipen,” by Jonathan Todd. Loved her, laughed with her, lived with her, experienced everything with her …
“Father,” to Philip, Phebe, Theophilus Jr., Eliab, Ama, and William. Born free as a bird,
Comforted them, cared for them, praised them for making him proud, treasured them, more than the clothes on his back…
“Neighbor,” to Jedediah Coe. Shared with him, received land from him, helped him…
“Provider,” to his family. Gifted them to the best of his ability, paid for their life with the little money they had, adored them, always labored for them…
“Farmer,” of crops. Grew them, prized them, kept them healthy…
“Land owner,” of the Wild Cat Swamp lot of land (from the Hodgkins), and land from Jedediah Coe. Maintained the land, resided on the land, managed the land…
“Emancipated c. 1760.”
Lived his life as a free man…
“Died,” in 1770. Perished, passed…
“Leaving a legacy”
A legacy worth celebrating.
A legacy worth understanding.
A legacy that has lived on for centuries.
A legacy that is important.
A legacy that was just uncovered, like a pocketed pebble that spent years under the soil…
The legacy of Theophilus Niger.
A man that probably lived only fifty years.
A man that left a legacy, and is still leaving a legacy, in likely only five decades of life…
A man that was enslaved, Suffered for years on end…
A man who is a hero, to his family, and to me. A man who deserves everything.
A man who can’t get everything…
Recognition
Respect
Love Honor
Equality…
Theophilus Niger, An enslaved man, A survivor.
The boats were filled, More like packed. They were all in the same positionThey were rough, Broken, And beaten. They were treated like animals, Herded like cows, Sold to their owners, And tossed around. Theophilus was brave. He was enslaved. A survivor. He was Theophilus Niger.
by Miklosh F.
As Epictetus once said, “It’s Not what happens to you, but How you react to it that matters.”
Theophilus stood up to the System that despised him, by getting Married, by gaining freedom, by owning Land, and by having children, among Many other significant accomplishments.
He did not anticipate the whip. He did not anticipate the pain.
But he was able to find himself amid The suffering, find meaning in it, even, And he kept fighting for equity Throughout the whole of his Life. Broken Freedom by Blake Z.
Theophilus Niger, one of the many. Wild Cat Road where everything happened.
Enslaved in Guilford CT in 1745 by Thomas Hodgkin, awarded property for being loyal, But not living his life free.
No rights, being treated like property, being treated like garbage, being treated like no one cared if he lived tomorrow. Then finding a part of life that Theophilus hadn’t experienced. Love
Theophilus married Penelope Tantipen at 20 years old. April 29, 1750 is when he had his first son Then 5 followed after.
Theophilus, enslaved for more than half of his life. He deserved to be happy, he didn’t deserve to be enslaved.
“The men negroes, on being brought aboard the ship, are immediately fastened together, two and two, by hand cuffs on their wrists, and by irons riveted on their legs.”
-Alexander Falconbridge, An Account of the Slave Trade on the Coast of Africa, 1788
Enslaved people thrown on to the vessels, Tightly chained to wood.
They were crammed conjointly on top of each other. They felt pulling on their muscles, their skin, their bones, their hair.
They had no voiceThey had no rightsThey had no say in what would happen to them. The smells on the ships were as bad as rotten corpsesThe ships smelled like vomit, feces, urine.
Human beings treated like animalsThey were not animals.
They were human beings with families and friends, With brothers and sisters and fathers and mothers and aunts and uncles.
They should have a voice. They should have rights. They should have a say in what happens in their lives. Barely any survived.
They died because of unhygienic conditionsScurvy, Starvation, Dehydration.
They were so parched they could drink all the water in the ocean. Human beings were being suffocated in these ships, But this was still not allThe life on the ships were only half the battle of enslavementShips of horror.
by Maggie A.A bitter taste in your mouth
A harsh erasable feeling
A sickness
The feeling
Indescribably awful
It’s disgust It’s disapproval It’s sadness It’s confusion
I can’t understand Why How When it is one It is us all We cannot separate2 Slavery.3
I chose this date for the title because it is the first time Theophilus is recorded 1 as a slave, and I think it represents the beginning of Theophilus’ story
Here I was trying to get the message across that if one American suffers, we all 2 suffer and there is no separating us by our differences
I decided to use no punctuation except for this period because I wanted to try 3 and put a big story in one sentence
Theophilus Niger, A man from Guilford, an enslaved man, gave one of his animals an earmark as a freeman would do, owned livestocks on his master’s land, as a free man would do. A farmer, an enslaved man who lived in the Hodgkin house. Secret markings like spiritual connections, on the beams in the house. He fell in love with the most beautiful woman, Penelope Tantipen, and found a house and called it their own. Blessed with five children, four sons and a daughter. A smallpox pandemic, And Penelope and one of his sons perished.
A freed man like a bird in flight. made Theophilus a happy man, and now he could stand on his plot of land. 1770, at fifty, gone way too soon. Remembered always by his children.
As we discussed Theophilus Niger and how he impacted those around him and even the course of history, we also talked about the different meanings of the word legacy. Is legacy something tangible or intangible? How do we measure it? What does it look like? This next group of poems speak to that conversation.
what we don’t know by Evelyn H.
we don’t know where he was from, who his parents were, his favorite hobby, his religion, his favorite food, or if he could read. we don’t know what his biggest fear was, if he had a best friend, or even how old he was.
we can’t go back in time, and ask him all the things we wonder but can only look at documents and try to figure out who Theophilus was. but, what we know is powerful. we know he was a father, a husband, a former slave. we know about the land he owned, and who his children were. we know the facts. but not all of them. we will never know everything about Theophilus,
but we do know that Theophilus left a legacy, that he lived.
Theophilus, and the legacy of suffrage by Liam B.
Many names given, But all in the name of enslavement.
“Property of Thomas and Abigail Hodgkin.” “Enslaved here”
“Theophilus Niger” “Emancipated ca. 1760”
His last 10 years spent as a Farmer, Land owner, Father, Husband,
But far before then, Blisters, Scars, Slashes from the whips on the slave ships, His skin like a blade of grass, being cut into pieces, Lucky to even be alive, but never alleviated from his pain until 1760.
Married to Penelope Tantipen, The woman he loved more than anything Father of William, Eliab, Phebe, Philip, Ama, and Theophilus Jr.
He loved his children, and gave them a life he dreamed of for his whole entire enslavement.
But in return, He was taken from his family, And suffered as property of Thomas and Abigail Hodgkin, with only 10 years left to live the life he deserved,
And he trudged through life along with the millions of people beside him sharing the same feats of injustice. His legacy should be remembered as an example of Determination, Hope, Love, Generosity, And suffering.
He never quit, He never stopped aching,
He never stopped hoping for the life that he deserved, And yet, for his last 10 years, he got what he wanted.
All he wanted was to be free, and to work with reward, And yet it took him until 1760 to get what we take for granted…
Freedom.
In Madison’s backyard is a tree, A Hickory tree, Strong, powerful, beautiful, All around were flowers, Flowers of all colors, Colors of the rainbow.
Till they are strong enough, The tree protects the flowers. In the flowers, Five seeds appear, Five seeds of the tree. Those seeds will grow, Multiply, Taking the nutrients of the tree. Surviving because of the tree. Thriving, Growing, Spreading, Filling a space in the world.
One day, Gone, Disappeared.
The only thing left, Roots of the tree. Hidden under pounds of dirt.
Almost two centuries later, Thirty-one students, Find those roots. Dig up a new seed, Planting that seed, A legacy
Our final set of poems builds on the notion conveyed in the previous poem: the power of language and stories to build (or reconstruct) narratives, to create bridges across time, and to connect individuals and communities, as we rediscover the roots that had been “hidden under pounds of dirt.” Once those roots are uncovered, human beings and their legacies are revealed.
Time is powerful It steals life memory love But mostly it steals stories
Countless stories are lost to time
Never told again Until now
Theophilus Niger
A man
His date of birth not even known Lost to time
Theophilus Niger
A father
His children went on to live Not just exist
Theophilus Niger A farmer
Went on to own animals, land After being enslaved
These stories have been lost to time Until now
You take a walk not noticing what is beside your feet, Words etched into a golden block, glowing in the summer’s heat-
Take a look at that stoneWe acknowledge the life of an enslaved person. Reflect on the life of a man. Appreciate the life of a father, husband.
The story of Theophilus.
Trapped like a firefly in a jar, Glowing, Leaving behind a legacy of resistance. Leaving behind a story to remember.
Riley S.
MarriedSonDaughterSonSonSonWidowedDied 1770Theophilus Niger, one who survivedOne who livedOne whose story was lost in the darkThat candle has now been lit and will never be blown out.
Freedom cut short by words and a pen The way the world was going is how it would end.
“I want to be free” is what he said, But is he really without being me?
Hatred deep down inside of one another Can’t we live in peace? Why can't we be brothers?
His life was like plastic, thrown away Trying to survive, and live another day.
Hatred goes where I go, Where I want to go there is no room No respect for those that I once knew.
Freedom isn’t gone but nor is it near So hard to be ok, and not shed a tear.
This little light called freedom shines so bright He fought for his freedom, he excites for his rights.
Listen to the words, listen to him speak Hopefully the words don’t drift down a creek.
Letting go, lifting up your hands, To say goodbye to all the people who took him from his land. How or why? Saying he was free was a lie
His name will be heard, his story will be told “We are all humans” yet he was sold for gold
Cleaning out the mess of the past time, behold the future which is mine.
Not a pleasure to endure, insure, that the mistakes stay in the past And that Theophilus’s story will last.
Sometimes we need to close a door, to open a window. How can we, America, assure the future? We can’t.
Light doesn’t go through a door, light can go through a window.
I see you - I am here by Evelyn R.
Theophilus Niger: Toffee
From beneath the narrow-minded titles he’s constrained within. —Slave, negro, servant, mine— Ugly words dance On the hungry paper lips of history.
We are hungry too. We hunt for details with fervor and desperation. We chase the words in a helpless need to know. The more Known, the more Pulled. Threads connecting in a Tangled, Mangled Mess.
Theophilus could be the name of a daffodil: Flowers don’t get to Choose
Their names. But They still Inspire Hope. I need to know, but not as much as they Needed. I wish to take them in my arms, Those I painstakingly unearthed One
By One: Penelope, quietly strong, a mother of six. Penelopy
Phillip, firstborn son of the resilient, Left with the responsibility of being the eldest. Phillip
Phebe, daughter of the strong, growing up female, black, and indigenous in a time where no respect would be afforded her. Phebe.
Theophilus, second son of a survivor, determined to live up to his name.
Theophilus Jr.
Eliab, third son, born of perseverance. Eliab.
William, innocent, taken from life before he could learn the harsh realities of racism. William Ama, daughter of those who fought to thrive in a world that refused to acknowledge their humanity.
Amy Emma Henry, Theophilus III, Alfred, and William.
Grandsons of Hope. Bravery. Optimism.
Alexander Petion Niger, Elizabeth Kennedy Niger, Mariah C. Niger, Fredric Augustus Niger, Margaret F. Niger. Great-grandchildren of the Proud. Bold. Self-reliant. Inspirational and Resourceful. Still more—
A legacy of rippled water in Theophilus’s wake. Branching off into new Tributaries in Tribute to this man of long ago. Twisting and turning, cutting a path through history In ways unexpected.
Harriet Frances, Roland, Francis, Elizabeth A., Frank T., Walter, Nancy. All Nigers, in a Tree forcibly re-planted. All branches growing from roots unknown, So all we begin at is
Theophilus Niger.
Rather than writing poetry, some of us opted to create visual art for our final project. A selection of them appear on the following pages, along with artists’ statements. Additional artwork and poetry (as well as poets’ statements) are available on our website.
In tribute to Theophilus Niger, I drew a picture summarizing the major events in his life. The separated heart is to represent Theophilus's initial separation from his parents. The map of Africa and North America are there to symbolize where he likely started and finished his life. The boat is to embody his journey and being taken from his home. In many pictures online the boats that were transporting the enslaved were as uncomfortable and crowded as a prison cell. The cow and the sheep are livestock to illustrate what the earmarks of some of Theophilus’s cattle may have looked like. The handcuffs being broken are showing his freedom from enslavement when he was set free. The rings tied around each other are to show his forever lasting connection with his wife when Theophilus married Penelope Tantipen on April 14, 1748. Finally, the stick figure children are to symbolize his 6 children. I think Theophilus’s life was extremely inspiring and I hope his story continues to inspire others!
In my art piece, I used a lot of symbolism. For the background, I used a printed-out picture of Theophilus Niger’s Probate record. This was a record of his purchase of land from a white land owner. This was a really important part of his history, so I wanted to incorporate it in some way. I painted a soft gray silhouette of a person on top of the record. I imagine that that person is waiting for a better time, a time where they could be free. I also wanted to represent his children in some way. They all are an important part of his story and are his legacy! I used the Gladiolus, a flower that represents strength, to symbolize all 6 of his children. I added each white gladiolus flower around the silhouette. Because green represents growth, I also added two petals to each flower, because each and every one of their stories is still growing. I also added a Gladiolus flower to the center of the silhouette of Theophilus. I wrote Theophilus Niger, Recorded, Peace, Free, on the bottom in the painting, labeling the incredible person that we got to discover.
This is a representation of Theophilus looking over the families whose lives he changed. This is partially based off of Western African beliefs in the afterlife. Despite being gone now, his efforts paved the way for the next generations, and for many to come.
I chose to do artwork because I wanted people to have a visual of Theophilus’ story. This story is important to learn about and share with others, because in order to not repeat mistakes in the future we must learn and educate about our history. Theophilus taught me how slavery did not just happen in the south but the town that I live in. Hearing this story, and what an unfair life he lived while having to support all of his children, I realize it must have been unbelievably hard. In that time period, smallpox was one of the most infectious diseases known to humans, killing up to 30% of infected individuals and 300 million to 500 million people. Sadly, while we do not know what his wife and baby William died from, it is assumed that they passed from smallpox. Overall, this story was meaningful to learn about, and although it was hard to hear and imagine, I am proud to be the person who gets to pass on this story and respect his legacy.
In this piece of artwork, I hoped to encompass Theophilus Niger’s life. In the background, on the top left corner, there is a cow, which represents when Theophilus registered his earmark for his livestock in 1739. Next to the cow are two wedding rings, representing Theophilus and Penolope Tantipen’s marriage in 1748. Below the rings is a baby. Written on the baby’s hat is “Five”. The “Five” represents the five children Theophilus and Penelope had. Written underneath the baby are all the names of Theophilus’s children, Phillip, Phebe, Theophilus Jr., and Eliab. The reason I did not include William was because below the eagle is a gravestone which has Penolopy and Williams’s names on it. In the top right corner is a sign that says “Promises”, but the sign is broken, because Theophilus was promised freedom and land, but Thomas Hodgkin rewrote his will, which is shown right below. In the bottom left corner, there is a small house representing Theophilus’s family home and the land he bought. In the bottom left corner there is a gravestone, representing Theophilus’s death in 1770. Flying above everything is an eagle, which has just sprung free from a cage. The eagle symbolizes when Theophilus gained his freedom. I depicted the eagle flying above everything else, because even though Theophilus died, his legacy is still with us, flying with us forever.
In my drawing, I am trying to represent what life would be like if we all had worked together instead of being segregated. I did this by trying to make Theophilus and Penelope seem more modern. I know that we would not have advanced that fast, but the point is that we would be much better together. If enslaved humans didn’t have to jump over all of the hurdles thrown at them, they would have helped advance society even more than they did. I tried to make them look how people would look if they were making a Christmas card or something similar.
In my original drawing, I was going to make a lightning bolt going through the page with one side representing segregation and the other side modern, but I didn’t want to make it negative; this drawing is about what America could have been, not what America has become. We could have been learning about how everybody got along and worked together to make us better. But because the African Americans were new and the white men needed free labor, we are now learning about how black people did not get the same opportunities that the white people were getting. About how “free” black men and women were killed for walking in the wrong place, free people getting arrested for not having permission to exist on a specific street. With this drawing, I wanted to make it clear that we, America, would have been much, much better had we found a way to work together.
I decided to make this art from silhouettes since we don’t actually know what any of the people looked like (from drawings or pictures or descriptions). The people on the right represent the Hodgkins, Theophilus’s enslavers. They’re standing in front of the house he was enslaved in. On the left, the smaller people represent Theophilus’s family, and the bigger figure is Theophilus. I decided to use black and white so they would stand out, and also because back then people thought black and white were the only things that mattered. The background is made up of documents about Theophilus, and I decided to do that because the documents were where we got most of our information, so I feel like they’re important. Finding information on him was as hard as fighting a tiger, and even though it was hard to find it, I learned a lot about his life and story, and saw that he was a very important person.
My thought process behind this project was taking photos of buildings and areas that were in Madison during the time of roughly 1739 to 1770 and that Theophilus Niger could have seen in his lifetime. My hope was to make the reader wonder what Theophilus saw that we still see now, and to keep them thinking about Theophilus, even if they are just completing errands through Madison. Firstly I photographed Wildcat Swamp, the land that we assume was given to Theophilus. I also photographed Ms. Lyons' house, where his enslavers, Thomas and Abigail Hodgkin, lived, and which Theophilus possibly lived in too. What was the house like back then? Was it white? Was the stone wall there? How many trees were just saplings when Theophilus saw them?
I have a distant and close up shot of the small house that we believe Theophilus owned and lived in with his family. Did he look from this point of view down at the Hodgkin house? Was the giant tree there back then? I have a picture of the plaque on the Jedediah Coe house. I wonder if Theophilus ever visited Jedediah’s house. Next, by the Madison green I captured the church and house that belonged to the Rev. Jonathan Todd, the pastor for Theophilus and Penelope’s marriage. I wonder if they got married in the church. I wonder if that moment was important to them, if they remembered it for the rest of their lives, if they ever met with the pastor again, or if they celebrated their wedding day every year. Along the Madison green, you can see the many houses that I
Jedediah Coe House
Steeple of current
Possibly the Niger house
Wildcat Swamp
Thomas Hodgkin House
Old tree in area
researched on the Madison historical society website, and photographed with plaques that show that they were standing when Theophilus lived in Madison; I wonder if Theophilus saw these houses on his journey into Madison.
Finally, I have a picture of an old sycamore tree, an elm tree, and scion of the charter oak, that are old enough to have been standing during Theophilus’s time. I hope that if you pass any of these buildings or pieces of land while traveling through Madison, they will make you think about Theophilus and his legacy.
In my drawing I chose to depict a scene of a cow standing in the sun in front of fields in black and white using charcoal and ink. To begin with, I wanted to do the drawing in black and white because the story of Theophilus Niger was unclear. I want to show this by not including the specific colors of each of the elements. For instance, we don't know what color cow he had, we don’t know the trees that surrounded his farm land, or the exact color of the sky, but further, we don’t know what he looked like, or the exact location he lived. I felt like doing the drawing in black and white made it more inclusive.
Additionally, the first record we have of a Theophilus is an ear marking that was used to distinguish between different owners' cattle. That is why I drew a cow with an ear tag. We also know that he most likely made a living from farming, especially after he had been freed. Which is why I drew the fields in the back and the most blistering sun in the world beating over the fields. However, I did not want to include any specific crops, because of the same reason as before - I wanted to be inclusive to whatever crops he grew. I want the drawing to represent how he started out in the U.S.A and also how his story, as we know it, ended.
Listen to Chris’s composition at https://sites.google.com/view/tcs-witnessstones/2022-project/student-writing-and-artwork-a-g/christopher
My piece is introduced with a simplistic melody played by the clarinet. I’ve nicknamed this section “Africa?” because there is much we don’t know about Theophilus and his origins. Personally, I like to think that he had a happy childhood before he was brought into slavery. This then breaks into a fanfarelike phrase with the trumpet and violin. This section has a happy but mysterious feel, like the beginning of what we know about Theophilus’ life. The second section starts its transition at measure 9 and starts on measure 10. The transition starts with a quick, 3-note progression with a clashing note underneath. It ends with a quick minor note to introduce the new feel. While this section is the most succinct, it has the most meaning behind it. The violin, which has the lead, is slow and is supposed to show the feeling of this period of his life. It also has a low and quiet clarinet part with repeated triplets as a bit of a heartbeat. There is also a trumpet part that also gives a heartbeat feel, but actually symbolizes the few small, good things that happened to him during his enslavement: the promise of freedom and land, as well his marriage and the birth of his children.
This last section is my favorite; it starts with a low whole note and is arpeggiated into a higher note that starts a repeated phrase. This phrase is intended to make the listener feel very hopeful. It has a large contrast in comparison to the previous section. This represents the accomplishments of Theophilus (his selling of land to Noah Scranton, owning cattle) as well our work with the Witness Stones Project. This last section represents something rewarding that we’ve done to highlight the life of a forgotten man.
In addition to student speakers, we were fortunate to hear from an array of guest speakers at the installation ceremony. Excerpts from their speeches follow.
From Mr. Smith’s welcome:
At The Country School, we talk a lot about representation — the fact that we all deserve to see ourselves reflected in and celebrated by our community. For far too long, Theophilus Niger and others like him were not just not reflected; they were entirely absent from our memory and the stories we know and tell. Today that is changing. Today we take one step closer to the tomorrow that has been promised. I have told my students that I am the impossible dream of my enslaved ancestors realized. May we continue to fight until all the forgotten voices of the past have the opportunity to have their stories heard. Barack Obama once said "Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we've been waiting for. We are the change that we seek." I am continuously inspired by my colleagues and students at The Country School. It is my honor to introduce our 8th Graders, who will share what they have learned about Mr. Niger and his legacy. Thank you, students, for doing this work. And thank you, Theophilus Niger, for all you brought to us, both then and now.
Mr. Therrio, who visited with students several times over the course of the year, shared the Story of the Old, Old Man and the Very Young Boy as an invocation. The story, by Kristine Franklin, focuses on an old storyteller who is revered by neighbors in his village. He passes his tales on to a little boy, who one day continues the tradition as an old man himself. The following excerpt describes a scene where a new generation of youngsters ask the former little boy, now the ancient storyteller, to share a story:
‘Old father, tell us a story.’ ... And he began hitting his chest, ‘When I was young and proud’…. And then they asked, ‘Old father, were you ever a little boy?’ And he said, ‘Inside this old old man lives a very little boy.’ ‘You’re the oldest man we know.’ ‘One day you will get to be as old as I am today.’ ‘No, we will never be as old as you; you’re the oldest man ever.’ That old man laughed and cried with
those kids until he felt the silver tears coming down those wrinkled cheeks, for he was remembering a long time ago when he asked another old man those very same questions. He remembered, he remembered, he remembered. And we remember Theophilus Niger.
A former state legislator and commissioner of Social Services, Mrs. Wilson Pheanious shared what it meant for her to discover the identity of her enslaved ancestors through research conducted by students and teachers doing the Witness Project. She also described the ways Theophilus Niger’s story parallels the stories of her ancestors and how hearing about Theophilus Niger impacted her. Below are two excerpts.
I learned for the first time about things my forebears did, and they had a profound effect on me. I think that day I found a missing piece of my soul. I learned that, yes, my ancestors had been enslaved here in Connecticut but during those years of enslavement, family members had become a slave king and fought as freedmen in the Revolutionary War, been fiddlers and spinners, been memorialized in biographies and memoirs, been literate … owned and passed property on to their families, become ministers, one of whom mounted a movement to found homes in Africa for former slaves, and all of this was before the Civil War began. … The gift of my history changed me, expanded my horizons, increased my commitment to this country. It anchored me. The new knowledge changed the way I looked at myself and appreciate my place in the history of this country…. This knowledge made me love America more because I realized how deeply my family and I had already invested.
Students in this class went beyond the assignment to find their own answers…. I want to thank you for your work, your questions, your industry, your patience, your compassion and your creativity. I thank you for your generosity of spirit and I thank you for your growth. I think that Montros [Mrs. Pheanious’s ancestor] and Theophilus would not only be grateful, they would be proud of you. I am. You gave Theophilus dignity, you honored his history and restored his humanity. You recognized his accomplishments. You made him live again through the accounts of his children that you connected to him. You gave him a voice and I suspect that that voice, with all of its promise and pain, will live in your memory as it will in mine. As one single representative of a million unknown descendants, I want you to know that your work has been a blessing to me.
Lyons, Madison First SelectwomanMs. Lyons lives with her family in the house where Theophilus Niger was enslaved by Thomas and Abigail Hodgkin. Here is an excerpt from her speech:
I learned so much today. I just had a few tidbits of the rich history of Theophilus, and I am so grateful you spent the time to research the history of someone who is so important to our community. I learned about Theophilus a few years ago after my husband and I moved to Madison when we bought this special house from his dad. I had a passion for old houses and was intrigued by its history, wondering what mysteries it held. A few years later, the Madison Historical Society did a binder on the house and unveiled the will of the original owners. It was here that we learned that an enslaved person was living here when the house was initially built, and just as the deed history was itemized, so too was the will which itemized other property, including … Theophilus Niger. It was shocking to us to learn that the hands that built our beautiful home which held so many wonderful memories for the Lyons family were enslaved hands, the labors of a very dark part of American history.
Through the years our house was home to many noted Madison families: Fosters, Bushnells, Wilcoxes — families noted in local archives and with plaques adorning doors in many houses in town. However, Theophilus and his legacy was never noted at all. His was one of over 6,000 enslaved people in Connecticut whose stories have been largely ignored or purposely forgotten because they were not considered real, whole people at that time. He was forced to labor for food and shelter, with his only dream of freedom, dependent on the benevolence of his master. A product of his time, he was considered to be property to be handed off, unimportant and insignificant.
Now, today, through all the hard work that you guys have done, we realize that is simply not the case. Thank you for unearthing this rich history of this incredible man and his accomplishments. I’m grateful that my family and I can learn about this unique person who shares a common bond with us, living and thriving in this very beautiful and special place. I’m appreciative that we can celebrate his life and legacy as an integral part of our community and mark it here in a public place for the public to enjoy for generations to come.
PeggyMr. McDufie-Thurmond, who joined us earlier in the year to “feel” the landscape and then again a few months later after students had concluded their research and were beginning to think about writing poetry, wrote the following closing statement:
Language is an immeasurably powerful tool. At its best it can gift us the ability to reconstruct realities from fragments; to question and ponder and create in ways that alter our understanding of ourselves and the world around us. I believe that all of us have a profound responsibility to use language wisely and with care. The work that these students have shared with you today is a beautiful expression of such care. It is a testament to the impact that approaching history with attentiveness and the courage to face the truth can have.
The legacy of Theophilus Niger is a poignant reminder that the past is not static. It is always enveloped in the present, always offering itself to us if we are open enough to speak back to it. May we all learn from the powerful examples displayed by these students today and find ways in our own lives to speak back and support the telling of narratives and histories that refuse to be erased or forgotten.
Guilford Town Records. Theophilus Earmark. Ancestry.com. Web November 2021.
Connecticut Vital Records for Guilford, Pre-1870 (Barbour Collection). No Surname listing, p. 326.
Petition from the Town of Guilford. Native Northeast Portal. Web October 2021.
Brown, Barbara and James Rose, Black Roots in Southeastern Connecticut, 1650-1900. New London: 2001, New London Historical Society, Pub., pp. 538 and 544.
Andler-Dousman, Caroline K. Descendants of Manghaughwant. Genealogy.com. Web November 2021.
Mancini, Jason, New London’s Indian Mariners, connecticuthistory.org (Philip Tantipinant/Indian Mariner). Web October 2021.
Talcott, Mary, Sherman Adams, Forrest Morgan. Talcott Papers: Collections of the Connecticut Historical Society, Volume V. (Hartford, 1896). Web November 2021.
Confirmation of Uncas’ Deed, Yale Indian Papers Project. Web November 2021.
Squire Thomas Hodgkin House, Madison Historical Society Historical Plaque Presentation for 176 Horse Pond Road, Madison, CT. Architectural Survey by James Sexton, PhD, Archival Research by Lynn Friedman. 2013.
Holloway, Joseph E., ed., Chapter by Robert Farris Thompson, Africanisms in American Culture (Indiana University Press, 1991), p. 154.
Connecticut Vital Records for Guilford, Pre-1870 (Barbour Collection). No Surname listings, p. 326.
Probate Court. Guilford and Madison. Records of the Probate Court of Guilford and Madison, CT. Madison, CT. (Thomas Hodgkin’s will, 1751, revised 1753, inventory. Abigail Hodgkin will, 1760)
Guilford Town Clerk. Property Records. Guilford, CT. (Various Dates)
Probate Court. Guilford and Madison. Records of the Probate Court of Guilford and Madison, CT. Madison, CT.
Online Etymology Dictionary: Niger. etymologyonline.com. Web April 2022.
Connecticut, U.S. Church Records Abstracts, 1630-1921. (Eliab Niger) Ancestry.com. Web February 2022.
U.S. Revolutionary War Rolls, 1775-1783 (Phillip Niger, 6th Regiment). Ancestry.com. Web March 2022.
Revolutionary War Service Records: Compiled service records of soldiers who served in the American Army during the Revolutionary War, 1775-1783. National Archives. Theos Niger and Philup Niger. Web fold3.com.
Eli Foote Portage Bill (Theophilus Niger payment). September 1790.
Guilford Town Clerk. Property Records. Guilford, CT. (Various Dates.)
Dunham Wilcox Deeds. Killingworth Land Record. Dunhamwilcox.net. Web February 2021.
Connecticut, U.S, Church Records Abstracts 1630-1920 - Madison (Death record for Eliab Niger). Ancestry.com. Web October 2021.
Connecticut, U.S. Wills and Probate Records, 1609-1999 (Phillip Niger of Montville, probated in Hartford). Ancestry.com. Web October 2021.
Connecticut Church Records Abstracts, 1630-1920 - Saybrook (Birth, Marriage, Death, Baptism records for Theophilus and Submit Niger family). Ancestry.com. Web October 2021.
Saybrook Property Records. Ancestry.com. Web October 2021.
Martin, C.J., “The Mustard Seed”: Providence’s Alfred Niger, Antebellum Black Voting Rights Activist, The Online Review of Rhode Island History. Smallstatebighistory.com. Web February 2022.
“Alfred Niger.” Wikipedia.com. Web. April 2022.
Printers and Printing in Providence, 17620-1907. Prepared by a committee of Providence Typographical Union Number 33 as a souvenir of the 50th anniversary of the institution. (Providence, 1907).
Adding to the Witness Stones Project and to the historical record has been a privilege for all of us. We have so many to thank for their support of and/or contributions to this project, among them (in no particular order):
• Dennis Culliton for developing the Witness Stones Project and for once again leading us in this effort to restore the history and honor the humanity of a remarkable member of our community.
• Elke Zigmont ’19, young historian, for contributing invaluable research and document transcriptions so we could do this project.
• Members of the Class of 2022 for their commitment to unearthing and so thoughtfully sharing Theophilus Niger’s story and honoring him as a person.
• Teachers Kristin Liu (English), Will McDonough (History) and Liz Lightfoot ’77 (facilitator) for guiding this effort and for taking the time to allow students to fully engage.
• Jumoke McDufie-Thurmond, poet, artist, and educator, for inspiring all of us, leading our poetry workshop, and helping students “see” Theophilus Niger.
• John Fixx, Head of School, for the ongoing embrace of this project, the initial introduction to Dennis Culliton, and installing Theophilus Niger’s Witness Stones marker at Horse Pond.
• First Selectwoman Peggy Lyons for supporting this project, inviting students to speak to the Board of Selectmen, welcoming us to the site, sharing the historical records related to her family home, and speaking at our installation.
• Pat Wilson Pheanious, Witness Stones Board Chair, for sharing her family’s history and showing us why it is critically important to restore long-buried histories.
• Laconia Therrio for showing us the power of stories and storytelling and how they can allow us to connect across time and from person to person.
• Keith Smith, director of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging at The Country School, for supporting this undertaking and so eloquently expressing why the Witness Stones Project is important.
• Tracy Tomaselli, genealogist and historical room specialist at the Guilford Public Library, for sharing research and discussions on a topic she knows so well and has advanced so expertly.
• C.J. Martin, historian, for giving feedback about the project and for writing “The Mustard Seed”: Providence’s Alfred Niger, Antebellum Black Voting Rights Activist, allowing us to visualize an important piece of the Niger family legacy.
• Researchers Jim Myslik, Don Perreault, and Carolyn Wakeman for sharing valuable information.
• Austin Hall, Director of Beach and Recreation, for helping us prepare the site for installation.
• Joe LaMacchia, Country School technology director, for coordinating technology at the installation ceremony.
• Suzanne Sliker, remarkable designer and volunteer, for once again creating this beautiful book. We are beyond grateful for your countless contributions.
Finally, thank you, Theophilus Niger, Penelope Tantipen, and the NigerTantipen family, for all you gave to our community and our world.
To access books about the projects for Tamar and Lettuce Bailey, type the links below into your browser or contact The Country School to request a printed copy (203-421-2113).
Searching for Lettuce: https://issuu.com/thecountryschool7/docs/ searchingforlettuce_6-6-20
Searching for Tamar, Finding Ourselves: https://issuu.com/ thecountryschool7/docs/searching_for_tamar_finding_ourselves
