I have been reading and watching docos on Black History and found this piece on Mum Betts Bett, or Mumbet, as she was referred to affectionately, was born sometime around 1742. She proved to be a driving force in ending the enslaved people trade in the new Commonwealth of Massachusetts when she successfully sued for freedom in 1781, becoming the first African American woman to win her way out of slavery. Like so many thousands of others born into slavery, little is known about Mum Bett's early history, such as when or where she was born. What is clear is that in 1746 she became the property of wealthy Sheffield, Massachusetts, resident John Ashley and his wife, Hannah. Bett and a younger woman, who may have been Bett's sister Lizzie, had previously been the property of Hannah's family. When she married John Ashley, it seems, Mum Bett and Lizzie were given to the couple. Edmonia Lewis (C. 1844–C. 1907) EXPLORERS Bessie Coleman (1892–1926) INVENTORS Madam C.J. Walker (1867–1919) Earning Her Freedom Betts hadn't just fled out of fear, though. Through all the talk she'd heard around the Ashley home about the rights of the Colonies, Bett had come to believe she'd been guaranteed some rights of her own. To her ears, the new Massachusetts Constitution extended its protection to all people in the Commonwealth, even enslaved people. In Sedgwick, she found the perfect person to represent her. He was looking to mount a legal attack against the practice of slavery, and through Bett and another enslaved person, Brom, attached to the cause, he'd discovered the perfect test case. On August 21, 1781, Brom and Bett v. Ashley was first argued before the Court of Common Pleas. It took only a day for the jury to find in the plaintiffs' favor. Bett and Brom were freed and awarded 30 shillings in damages. Ashley appealed the decision but quickly dropped the case. While he pleaded with Bett to return to his home as a paid servant, she refused, choosing instead to work for Sedgwick's family. Another important legal challenge, headed up by African American leader Prince Hall, involved three men who were abducted and taken as enslaved people to the West Indies. Their case, along with Bett's, pushed the enslaved people trade in Massachusetts to its final days. The enslaved people trade was officially ended in the Commonwealth on March 26, 1788, making it one of the first states in the Union to abolish it. (Vermont was the first state to ban slavery outright in 1777.) Later Life and Death Meanwhile, Bett, who changed her name to Elizabeth Freeman, grew incredibly close to the Sedgwick family, working for them for several years as a domestic servant. She saved enough money to eventually build her own house, where she raised her family. Some 100 years later, her alleged great-great-grandson (most likely not by blood, but by law) W.E.B. Dubois used his own writing to delve deep into the terrible impact racism had on all sectors of American society. Mum Bett lived until her mid 80s, passing away on December 28, 1829. She was buried in the Sedgwick family plot in Stockbridge with the following inscription on her tombstone: contact us! https://www.biography.com/activist/mum-bett Access Date January 3, 2021 Publisher A&E Television Networks Last Updated November 8, 2020 Original Published Date April 1, 2014 SIGN UP MORE STORIES FROM BIOGRAPHY PERSON Harriet Tubman (C. 1820–1913) PERSON Sojourner Truth (C. 1797–1883) PERSON Sarah Moore Grimké (1792–1873) PERSON Harriet Beecher Stowe (1811–1896) PERSON David Walker (C. 1796–C. 1830) PERSON Martin Robison Delany (1812–1885) PERSON Medgar Evers (1925–1963) PERSON Rosa Parks (1913–2005) PERSON Fannie Lou Hamer (1917–1977) About Contact Us Advertise Privacy Notice Terms of Use Copyright Policy Ad Choices Accessibility Support © 2021 Biography and the Biography logo are registered trademarks of A&E Television Networks, LLC. CLOSE