{"id":20960,"date":"2025-02-22T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-02-22T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/idavox.com\/?p=20960"},"modified":"2025-02-22T08:54:33","modified_gmt":"2025-02-22T13:54:33","slug":"prince-estebrook-c-1741-1830","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/idavox.com\/index.php\/2025\/02\/22\/prince-estebrook-c-1741-1830\/","title":{"rendered":"Prince Estebrook (c. 1741-1830)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Slave who served in the Revolutionary War. Fought the in Battle of Bunker Hill. Died a free man at 89. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

A note: The Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth currently cracks on the observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Pride Month, Holocaust Days of Remembrance, The Tuskegee Airmen and other cultural or historical annual events that pay tribute to those who contribute more than he ever has. We felt the need to fill in the gaps of the approved history of Hegseth and Trump. This Black History Month we will be spotlighting military heroes, and encourage everyone to learn more about these heroes we write about!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

NPS<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Prince Estabrook was an enslaved man who stood with his white neighbors against the British Army on April 19, 1775. It is likely that Prince was the son of a man named Tony, who was enslaved by the Estabrook family. When Prince was born, around 1740, he became the property of Benjamin Estabrook. Benjamin\u2019s family lived just east of Lexington center, owning land on both sides of the road running between Cambridge and Concord. Little is known about Prince\u2019s activities and responsibilities while enslaved to the Estabrook family.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Though Provincial law prohibited \u201cIndians and Negroes\u201d from training as soldiers in the militia, they were still required to \u201cturn out\u201d armed during an emergency. During wartime the enlistment of black men was more common though still controversial.  In 1775 Prince was a member of the Lexington militia, and mustered with that militia under the command of Colonel John Parker during the early morning hours of April 19th<\/a>. When the advance column of British troops decided to confront the militia gathered on Lexington Green, Prince was among the militiamen who had reassembled there. During the ensuing shooting, before the British officers regained control of their troops, Prince Estabrook was struck by a musket ball in his left shoulder. A document entitled \u2018Appendix – Soldiers of Color on April 19, 1775\u2019 states that a 35 year old black slave from Lexington named Prince Estabrook serving in Colonel Parker\u2019s militia was actively engaged in fighting and was wounded that day. A separate document titled \u2018LIST of the Names of the PROVINCIALS who were Killed and Wounded in the late Engagement with His Majesty\u2019s Troops at Concord, &c.\u2019, under a heading listed as \u2018Wounded Of Lexington\u2019, the name \u2018Prince Easterbrooks (a Negro Man)\u2019 appears.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Prince recovered from that wound and, over the course of the next eight years, he served several tours with the militia and with the Continental Army:<\/p>\n\n\n\n